AN: Here's chapter 2! To make up for the long wait, this chapter is extra long (in my opinion; 17 pages is Word). I'd like to give an extra-special shout-out to haalyle and Experimental Agent 1123. Once again, they were the very first reviewers to this story, just like old times. I love you guys so much! And I love you too, Christie Redfield. I look forward to everybody's reviews and reactions!
As of right now, I am sick. Nasty cold. :P And I still have a few really important tests to do in the coming week. If I miss those, I'm screwed. So, fingers crossed that I can get better soon. Also, JediSpartan217 and I have been talking over the plot points for this story. The main plotline won't change; we're just considering writing in a few little hints of 'something you'll have to figure out for yourselves'. I'm not giving it away that easy.
Disclaimer: I do not own Resident Evil, its characters, or recognizable references made in this chapter. The idea for 'Rookie Pinball' is mine, and non-canon characters own themselves! Oh, and Jedispartan217 helped me come up with the plot for this sequel; gotta give her credit too. Done!
"Okay, you ready?"
"No."
"Too bad. One, two-"
"OW! Mother of God that hurts! Let me up! Let me up!"
Stevie sighed and reluctantly allowed her friend to sit upright. "C'mon Kate, we have to work on your flexibility," she reminded as her partner sat up, "I mean, what if a mission requires you to touch your toes?"
Now it was Kate's turn to sigh in annoyance. "You know, to be perfectly honest," she replied, looking up from the black, padded mats of the gymnasium where they trained, "Just how likely is that going to happen?"
"That's the point; you never know," a third female voice added as its owner entered the room. The two girls spun around to identify their visitor.
The red dress gave it away. "Ada!" they greeted with brightened voices as their mentor approached. After returning to their regular lives and finishing school, Stevie and Kate had decided that their loyalties rested with The Organization. One call from a pay phone later, a limousine arrived to pick them up and whisked them away to an undisclosed location in the middle of who-knows-where. Ada immediately took the duo under her wing for training in preparation for field missions. Even as adults, the girls still reacted to her presence like children greeting a favorite babysitter.
However, Mattie had decided to sign on with the BSAA after spending an extended amount of time in the recovery wards, no thanks to the P30 device that Wesker had attached to her chest. Once released from the sixteen-week boot camp, Mattie began her specialized training under Chris and Jill. The three girls remained in contact with each other, but correspondence was limited to ambiguous emails from public computers and vague letters with a different return address every time. On rare occasions, the girls would arrange to meet in public places when they were allowed a day off. Those days were highly anticipated, and the girls' conversations consisted of current news, funny stories, and griping about training. Speaking of training….
"How goes the practice?" Ada asked, looking at her charges with a teasing glint in her eyes "Any improvement?"
Stevie exhaled through her nose as her partner stood up. "We've been here for a little over two years and Kate still can't touch her toes," the dark-haired girl explained. Kate nodded shyly in agreement.
Ada absorbed the response before delivering her own message. "That's not important. The Organization higher-ups have decided to give you your first assignment," the spy stated. Stevie and Kate's faces brightened in excitement, imagining the possibilities held in store for them. "Don't get too excited; it's not a heist. And as your mentor, I have final say on whether you're ready to take on assignments." The girls' faces fell in dismay. Ada paused, deliberately drawing out the good news. "However…. I'm confident that you can handle this mission on your own." The duos' faces brightened up again, hearts swelling at the praise. "The BSAA has been very active as of late with all the bioterrorism that has occurred lately. We're sending you in to act as moles for The Organization."
Stevie gave a short cheer whilst Kate nodded in approval. "Sounds easy enough," the quiet girl commented with a smile.
"This'll be a piece of cake!" Stevie added, "And hey! We can go see Mattie while we're there!"
The spy's eyes flashed at the younger novice. "Yes. But it is of critical importance that your cover stays intact," she warned, raising her voice at her apprentices, "No one, I repeat, no one, is to know about your mission."
The girls' expressions became serious. "We understand," Kate replied for both of them, "When do we leave?"
Ada turned to her other trainee. "Your tools and gear are waiting in the helicopter. You will receive further instructions when the helicopter lands," the spy explained. Then her tone became more severe. "The Organization is taking a gamble, sending you two on a mission like this; don't disappoint them." The two students traded signals with their eyes, now knowing where they stood, and gave their mentor one last good-bye before heading into the changing rooms.
The helicopter delivered the girls to an abandoned parking lot, occupied only by an empty gray sedan. The pilot dropped them off, gave them a set of keys, and bid them farewell before taking off again. Inside the car, they found a stuffed manila envelope containing a GPS unit, a set of fake ID badges, a cell phone, and a small Bluetooth earpiece. Kate turned on the cell phone, synced it with the earpiece, and placed the headset in her ear as Stevie took the driver's seat and started the car. As the vehicle pulled out of the parking lot, the cell phone began to ring. Kate pressed a button on the headset. "Hello?" she answered tentatively, adjusting the setting to speakerphone so Stevie could hear as well.
"It seems you've found the car already, that pilot was quick," a familiar voice replied.
"Hello Ada," both girls greeted, recognizing the voice of their mentor.
"So, I take it you're our backseat driver on this mission?" Stevie quipped.
"I suppose that's one way to put it," the spy replied, "As your mentor, I'm supposed to guide you through the first steps and monitor this mission. Have you checked the GPS yet?"
Kate turned the GPS on and attached it to the dashboard. "It's ready," she said, examining the map that appeared on the screen, "Where are we going, anyway?"
"It's been programmed to take you to the BSAA's North American Headquarters," Ada explained, " You two will be posing as new cadets. The badges will get you past the front gate. I'll give you further instructions once you're inside. Have a nice drive."
The girls drove onto the highway, following the GPS for three hours before reaching the BSAA's security checkpoint. "Here we are," Stevie thought as she pulled up to the gate, "Moment of truth." Making sure her 'Game face' was ready, she rolled down the window of the car. "Good morning sir!" she greeted as she held out the badges to the guard, a chubby man who looked to be in his thirties. "How are you this fine morning?"
The guard took the badges and smiled at the girls in a friendly manner. "Doin' well!" he replied. He gestured over at the main building with his head. "Busy day in there, though."
"How come?" Kate asked from the passenger seat.
The guard shook his head. "Wish I could say what was going on, but everything is hush-hush until further notice," he said, running the ID cards through his computer. Stevie and Kate bit their tongues in worry as the guard watched the computer run through the database, hoping that the operative that was in charge of preparation had done his part and installed their names in the BSAA's system. "I don't believe I've seen you girls here before," the guard spoke in an attempt to make conversation, "You girls new here?"
Stevie nodded brightly. "Yep! First day as new cadets, fresh out of basic training!" she replied smoothly.
"Right," the guard responded as he handed the ID cards back to the girls, "You're all checked out. I'll open the gate for you."
Stevie took the counterfeit IDs back as the gate began to rise. "Thank you!" she said before driving away, "Have a nice day!" The guard nodded in reply as the car drove off.
Once inside the gates, Kate reconnected the communication line on the headset. "We're in," she said, "What do we do now?"
"You're doing fine," Ada's voice reassured, "Go inside. Check in at the front desk to claim your locker keys. Your uniforms and weapons are in there."
Kate nodded in understanding. "Got it. Thanks Ada," she replied before cutting off the connection. "Park over there," she instructed Stevie, pointing to an empty area of the parking lot. Her friend nodded and navigated the car into one of the spaces.
From there, the two girls exited the car and walked into the building. The front lobby of the BSAA was bustling with suits and soldiers alike, but the two girls managed to find their way to the front desk undisturbed. They presented their badges and signed in with the secretary, a small blond woman, who gave them the keys to the lockers and informed them that their unit superior would meet with them in the locker room. After receiving directions, Stevie and Kate found the women's locker room and began searching for their lockers.
"Dang!" Stevie remarked, looking at the rows of lockers stacked two high and at least fifteen in a row, "How many people do they have here?"
"Many," Kate replied despite the statement's rhetoric, reading the numbers on a row of lockers before stopping in front of two lockers, "Found our lockers. Yours is on the left."
The girls opened up the lockers. Inside were a few sets of folded gray clothes with a handgun and small combat knife sitting on the top. A gun holster and set of body armor hung in the back of the locker. "Looks like this is our uniform," Kate stated, pulling out the clothes. The gray items consisted of cargo pants, and a matching shirt with black accents starting from the top of the elbow to mid-forearm. The girls changed into their clothes, adjusting the uniforms to fit their taste. They had just started checking their handguns when a set of footsteps wandered into the room.
"Hey, I didn't think I'd run into you two again. So you decided to join up with the BSAA too?" a familiar voice greeted. The girls looked up at their visitor, recognizing the smiling, blue-clad brunette on sight.
"We just decided to spend a little extra time in basic training," Stevie explained as she rolled the sleeves of the uniform to rest above her elbows, "What's been going on, Jill?"
"Yeah, Is Mattie around?" Kate asked in curiosity as she holstered her handgun.
Jill shook her head. "Nope. Last I heard, she was off on a investigation mission in Europe."
Kate raised an eyebrow, sharing a quick glance with Stevie. The old trait of protectiveness the girls had for each other was still strong, despite the fact that they had gone their separate ways after the hotel outbreak.
The silence was broken by a high-pitched alarm from Jill's pager. The female agent tore the device from her waistband, glancing down at the message for a few seconds before shoving the pager away. "We have to go. Now," she said sharply, breaking into a fast walk towards the exit, giving Stevie and Kate no choice but to follow her. They still didn't know the layout of the building, after all.
Jill led the two cadets into what looked like a medical recovery wing, passing rooms holding agents with varying degrees of injury before entering one of the rooms. Stevie and Kate followed her inside, standing out of the way as Jill began talking with the room's sole inhabitant.
"Parker," Jill greeted solemnly, leaning over the husky man's bed, "Are you alright? The nurses said you were hurt pretty bad."
The male agent grunted, holding the bandages wrapped around his chest as he tried to sit up. "It seems these injuries are going to keep me off my feet for a while, but I think I'll survive," he groaned. "Jill. That facility wasn't as abandoned as the BSAA thought. The place was filled with Hunters."
"What happened to your partner?" the female agent questioned.
Parker sighed and looked down at his lap. "We were overwhelmed by BOWs. She . . . she sacrificed herself so I could get out safely. Any way you slice it, at least one of us probably would have died back there," he confessed.
Jill's eyes widened. "But why her?" the female agent asked.
"She knew what she was doing; I couldn't stop her," the injured man said.
Jill cursed under her breath and bit her lip, willing herself not to reveal emotion at the loss of her trainee. She turned to Kate and Stevie, catching a glance at two of her co-workers as they passed the door. "Quint? Keith?" she called, grabbing the attention of the two arguing men, "What are you guys doin' here?"
The two men stopped. "'Ey! Jill!" the taller of the two greeted, "Just 'ere on a temporary transfer until 'Merica takes a break from spearheading anti-bioterror operations. You?"
Jill shrugged her shoulders. "Just doin' my job. Could you guys do me a favor and show my new cadets to the barracks? I need them to get settled in while I take Parker's report."
"Hey, no problem, Jill!" the shorter man replied in a distinct Bostonian accent, while the taller, younger looking man poked his head into the room, searching for the two girls.
He spotted Stevie and Kate against the wall. "You two, come with us," he prompted, gesturing for them to follow.
"C'mon," his partner replied, "We won't bite!"
Parker gave a small laugh as Jill glared at the shorter man. "What did I tell you about scaring the rookies, Quint?" she scolded, sending an annoyed look to both of the two grown men.
"Sorry ma'am, I'll put a tighter leash on him next time," the taller man, now recognizable as 'Keith', replied. He turned back to Stevie and Kate. "C'mon! Time's a-wastin'!"
The two girls reluctantly picked themselves up and followed the two men out of the room. Once out of Jill's earshot, the teasing began again. "Haven't seen you two here before," Keith asked the duo, "Fresh cadets?"
"More like 'fresh meat'," Quint teased as he turned around and began walking backwards, "Welcome to the BSAA, ladies. Ya know what department you wanna go into yet? You'll get more opportunities as agents instead of soldiers. We could always use more women in the 'Tech pit'."
Stevie gave a small laugh at Quint's antics. "Unless you have equipment engineering, I'm not that interested. Kate's more of a code monkey than I am. I'm Stevie, by the way."
Keith's head whirled around. "Get out!" he exclaimed, "You girls are Mattie's friends?" Stevie and Kate nodded. "Aw, man," the tall man griped, "She talks about you guys all the time! Can't shut her up!"
"Yeah!," Quint added, "Too bad 'Goggles' ain't around right now. It'd be a nice surprise when she saw youse here in uniform." The girls smiled sheepishly. The balding man addressed Kate next. "So, whadda you interested in?"
Kate gave the question some thought before replying. "I like intelligence analysis," she said, speaking calmly as usual, "And I'm good with any model of sniper rifle if I need to shoot something."
"Perfect!" Quint exclaimed, turning back around to face forward, "Now, we usually throw a hazing party for new cadets, but with all the bioterrorism activity, looks like yours is gonna be rescheduled to next week."
A bright grin grew on Stevie's face. "Awesome! I love parties!" she cheered.
Keith turned to his partner in disbelief, "Next week?!" he objected, "I was looking forward to 'Rookie Pinball'."
Kate's expression grew uneasy. "Uh, what's 'Rookie Pinball'?" she asked.
Quint glanced back at the soft-spoken girl. "'Rookie Pinball' is a game we all play whenever a new rookie gets stationed here. The rookie gets blindfolded, spun around until they can't find their nose, and then released into the 'tech pit' where they wander around an' bump into things until they fall over. The best part is the gambling," he explained, "Almost as good as playin' 'Pac-Man'!"
Keith noticed the nervous look on Kate's face and added, "He's just bein' a Grade-A jackass. Don't take 'im too seriously," earning an elbow in the ribs from the aforementioned 'jackass' as the two girls giggled.
Several twists and turns through the BSAA led the group into an area lined with numbered doors, reminiscent of a dormitory. Quint and Keith stopped in front of an unmarked door. "Well! Here ya are, girls! Home sweet home," Keith joked, "that is, until you get assigned proper quarters. Hope ya don't mind."
"It won't be a problem," Kate replied, taking a seat on the lower bunk and looking around the new surroundings. Moderate size, closets, and a bunk bed set against a wall. Apart from that, the room was dark. No windows, just one drab floor lamp.
"Yeah, and thanks a lot for showing us!" Stevie added, flopping onto the bottom bunk, "If it weren't for you, we'd be lost!"
Quint and Keith laughed. "Well, we gotta get back to work," Keith stated, clapping a hand on Quint's shoulder, "See ya around!"
The two girls waved 'Good-bye' to the agents as they prepared to leave. Once the men departed, Stevie jumped up and strode to the door, closing it behind them before turning to her friend. "Nice guys," she said, "I'm gonna miss them when we get called back."
Kate nodded in agreement. "I think I'm gonna miss Keith more," the glasses-wearing girl commented.
"Uh-huh. You like him, don't you?" the dark-haired girl teased.
A perplexed look crossed Kate's face like a deer in the headlights. "I do not!" she rebutted, "Wait, which 'like' are you talking about?"
The younger girl shook her head. "Sorry buddy, you're terrible at Poker," Stevie replied, "Hey, uh. Shouldn't we be checking in with Ada about now? It's been a while since we last called her."
A silent "Oh!" crossed Kate's face, and the quiet girl began adjusting the Bluetooth device she had forgotten to remove earlier. "Hello?" she started, minding the communications security system the BSAA undoubtedly had, "Is this thing working right?"
Ada's voice sounded from the earpiece a second later. "The line is secure," the spy informed, "Do you have an update?"
Stevie fell on the bed next to Kate, taking advantage of the opportunity that had been presented. "Well, Ada," she replied lightly, "For starters, I'm going to need a big bar of soap to wash all the bullshit I'm spewing to the BSAA out of my mouth."
Kate rolled her eyes at her friend's antics. "We're inside," the calm girl reported, "and nobody suspects a thing."
"Good," Ada replied curtly, "If your cover is blown, The Organization will not bail you out. You'll be on your own."
"So, no pressure on this assignment?" Kate questioned, snarky sense of sarcasm kicking in. If their mentor didn't respond to a joke, then sarcasm was the next best thing to get a smile out of her.
"Of course not," Ada replied with sarcasm of her own, except her tone was much more serious, "You'll only be serving a life sentence in a high-security federal prison if you get caught."
Kate sighed in disdain. "That's comforting," she commented.
"Anything else I should know about?"
Stevie gave recent events consideration before she replied. "Nah. That's pretty much everything up to now."
"Then I bid you Good-bye," Ada replied before cutting off the connection with her apprentices. The room fell silent for thirty seconds before Stevie made an attempt to lighten the mood.
"Think we're allowed to explore around here? I'm getting bored," the younger girl suggested, pulling her legs up on the bedspread.
Her companion thought about it. "Maybe," Kate replied, "They didn't say anything why not to."
Stevie jumped to her feet again. "C'mon! Let's see if we can find Mattie's dormitory," she suggested, skipping over to the door, "When we get there, I'm going to touch everything in her room!" She opened the portal to find a familiar face in the doorway. "Hi Jill," the dark-haired cadet greeted, "How's Parker doing?"
Jill positioned her hands on her hips and sighed. Kate caught on to the change in the female agent's tone and behavior; something was wrong. "I need to talk to both of you," Jill stated, "May I come in?" Stevie opened the door wider, allowing the older woman to come in. The female agent stood to the side of the bunk bed as Stevie closed the door behind her. "I finished taking Parker's report, and it wasn't pretty," Jill began.
"What about his partner?" Kate asked, drawing her legs upward on the bed as a gnawing feeling entered her stomach. Something was not right about the female agent's behavior.
Jill sighed again. "That's the real kick in the teeth," she replied. Stevie and Kate leaned closer to listen. "I didn't want to be the one to tell you this, but his partner on that mission was your friend Mattie." Shock set in. The girls' faces fell silent. "I know what you're going to ask next, so I'll cut to the chase." Jill folded her arms over her bust. "We don't know if she's okay. As of right now, the BSAA has her listed as MIA."
"Isn't anybody looking for her?!" Stevie questioned, since Kate wasn't saying a word. "There's got to be a search team or something!"
"Not yet," Jill replied, "Thing is, she and Parker went out there searching for Chris, who is also MIA. The BSAA is claims the risk factor of sending another search party is too high.''
Stevie began to see red. "And why not?!" she argued, standing up from the bunkbed "She's our friend! Don't tell us the BSAA is leaving her to die!"
Jill paused for several seconds before turning towards the door. "Follow me," she instructed, "You need to see the full picture to understand 'Why'."
Minutes later, the trio arrived in the 'Tech pit'. The 'pit' consisted of a large, high-ceilinged room. Desks of computers were arranged in front of a giant screen that hung from the far wall. Aside from the emergency exits, the main entrance was at the top of a metal staircase that led downwards, giving the 'Tech Pit' its name. The room was designed for several analysts to be working at the same time, but for now, only two men inhabited the space.
Jill strode towards Quint and Keith who were working furiously at their stations. "Quint, Keith," she ordered, getting their attention, "I need you to bring up the non-classified information on the Edonia outbreaks. These cadets need to be filled in on the current situation surrounding Chris' disappearance."
The two men spun their chairs around to face her. "Now?! We just got some new material on that!" Quint objected, "We're up to our necks 'ere! Everyone else went home early!" Jill stood her ground, looking at the men expectantly.
"Eh, I suppose we could show ya," Keith said, shooting a confused look to Jill as he turned back to his computer and began typing, "Why the sudden request?"
"There's been a development in the situation," Jill explained, "We know who's been taken."
"Someone we know?" Keith asked.
"Yes. Mattie," Jill stated. All activity on the computer ceased, and curses could be heard under Quint and Keith's breath. "We have to stay focused."
The men were quiet for several seconds. "Right," Quint stated, turning back to his computer, "One fresh batch o' data comin' up! Can we get some fries with that, Grinder?"
"Got it," the other man said, turning to his monitor as well, "Care to explain what we already know, Jill?"
Jill turned to Kate and Stevie and began her explanation. "After Chris disappeared, there have been small bio-outbreaks all over the globe," she started as a giant image of the world map appeared on the screen behind her, "Then we started getting strange videotapes in the mail. Quint?"
"On it!" the hacker said, typing more commands into the computer, "Bringing it up on da big screen for ya."
The image of the map vanished, only to be replaced with a video player. The only thing that could be seen from the clip was a man's blurred silhouette. Keith hit the 'Play' button and the video began.
"BSAA," the figure started. The girls were quick to note that the voice was heavily deepened and masked by filters, making the voice near impossible to identify. "I have been watching you from the beginning, and you have once again shown that you have failed to prevent even the smallest outbreak," the figure said, "You show me and the rest of the world that the BSAA isn't competent enough to contain bioterrorism." The video ended. Quint pulled up another movie and pressed 'Play'. "I am from the dying flames of Umbrella," the same figure continued, "You may call me by 'Delfredi', and I will soon bring light to this world. I know the truth. Those who have survived Arklay already know it. And the truth can spread just as fast as the outbreaks I've caused. You can try to contain it, hold it back, but everything you know will soon disappear. Show me that the world has something to offer hope to."
The video ended, and Quint prepped another video player on the computer. "Now this," he said, "Is the most recent one we received. And by recent, we mean twelve hours ago."
The video started. "You are trying my patience! I grow tired of your weak command structures and protocols. I have started four outbreaks and once again, the BSAA has shown their incompetent strategies and disregard for soldiers!" Delfredi growled, "The truth hides with me, but your ignorance will soon come to an end. I have captured not one, but two of your soldiers who have broken into my lab, looking for the truth themselves. If you make an attempt to rescue them: Congratulations. You're showing courage in the face of your failures. Before you act, there are certain conditions that must be met. If these conditions aren't met, I will kill both captives." Stevie and Kate bit their tongues in anticipation, eyes glued on the screen. "The first condition is this: The team that you send must be smaller than a four-man unit. The second condition is this: That team must be lead by a true survivor: Jill Valentine."
The silhouette disappeared as Keith closed the video player. Stevie and Kate were silent, absorbing the information that had been imparted to them. Despite the emptiness of the room, the atmosphere felt darker, as if 'Delfredi' was still in the room. The hacker turned to Jill. "Man, this guy's just like Veltro, ain't he?" Keith said, an edge of depression in his tone, "Makes you wonder what else he's done."
Jill nodded, still staring up at the screen. "Exactly," she replied, turning to the two girls, " He's caused massive civilian casualties in the area surrounding his hideout," the female agent explained, "Not to mention critically injured one agent, and he's most likely captured Chris and Mattie, if the new video is any indication."
Quint shrugged his shoulders. "If that's the case, they're probably complete freak shows by now," the hacker added, earning a smack on the head from Keith. "Ow! What was dat for?!"
"Dude! Not cool!" Keith hissed, keeping one eye on Kate and Stevie, "Not in front of the newbies!"
Quint nursed the spot on his head that had been hit. "Sorry Grinder…" he apologized.
"Sheesh! What's wrong with you man?" Keith responded, leaning back in his chair in a huff.
"That's enough you two," Jill snapped. The men calmed down and exchanged annoyed glances.
Kate suddenly spoke up. "Any idea why he's targeting you, Jill?" When the chips were down, the timid got analytical.
Jill shrugged her shoulders. "No idea. I've made plenty of enemies in my time. It's possible there are some that I'm not even aware about," she explained, "but if Delfredi has captured Chris, it's not a good omen."
"Yeah," Keith agreed, "Funny thing is, Captain Redfield went AWOL after the mission in Edonia went bad."
The hinges of the seat creaked as Quint leaned back in his chair. "Guy disappeared quicker than Houdini!" Jill sent the two men a dirty look. Quint and Keith averted their gazes back to the monitors in shame.
Jill gave another sigh. "The events of that mission are confidential to all cadets and low ranking soldiers. What happened on that mission— It wasn't supposed to end like it did. Chris was unconscious when he was checked into the hospital. Then he went missing before anyone else saw him."
"Why don't you go talk to Piers?" Keith suggested, "He'd know more."
Stevie and Kate glanced at each other in extreme confusion, the same thought going through their heads. "Excuse me, but," Stevie asked, "Who's Beards?"
The two hackers shared a chuckle. "Piers," Jill emphasized, " was Chris' lieutenant in Edonia. He and Chris were the only survivors of that mission. We've still got the communication logs in the system, but we're still trying to figure out what happened. Piers was so shell-shocked when he came back stateside, he wouldn't speak to anyone."
Quint made a few discreet keystrokes on his keyboard, and an audio recording appeared on the large screen. "Lt. Piers Nivans here, in position with Alpha team," a young man's voice, presumably Piers' reported.
"Chris to HQ, requesting clearance to proceed with mission," the voice of Chris added.
"This is HQ," a third voice reported, "You are clear to proceed with the mission. Good luck out there." The audio file went silent, only for a second file to start up in its place.
Gunfire raged in the background. "This is Chris! We've come into contact with BOWs! We've never seen anything like this!"
"Captain! We're losing men fast! We need orders!" a soldier shouted in the background.
"Good God what is that thing?!" another voice cried out.
"We need back-up!" Chris shouted, "Piers, get your ass over here now!"
The audio file stopped, and another one began. "This is Piers to HQ! We've made contact with huge BOWs! Requesting an air strike down here!"
"Copy that, but we cannot send out any air support at this time. The area is too hot."
"Are you kidding me?! We need air support NOW!" Piers replied," We're losing men way too fast out here!"
"Piers get down!" Chris' voice broke in, right before a large 'boom' sounded, ending the transmission in white noise.
Jill turned to the balding hacker. "I thought I said those were confidential!" she snapped at Quint.
"Sorry, Jill," he apologized, casting a glance back at Stevie and Kate, "But they really oughta know what went down. Last one's going up." Quint pressed a button on his keyboard, and the audio file began to play.
The girls listened with rapt attention. "This is . . . Lt Nivans," Piers spoke, interrupted by his own pants for breath, "… need evac . . .right now. Capt. Redfield is unconscious . . . possible concussion, but alive. . . .Send evac . . . coordinates: 9758-sector BS01 . . . Green zone."
"Copy that. How many survivors?"
"Just myself and the Captain. . . . everyone else . . . dead."
" . . . Roger. Stay in the green zone until further notice."
"Why the hell would we want to move?" Piers replied. A distinct grunting rumbled in the background before evolving into a yell of anguish. "Captain Redfield!" Piers shouted, having forgotten about the radio. Then the transmission ended with more static.
Quint reached up and stopped the recording. "And that's all, she wrote," he stated.
"Lots of people were in here, listening to the transmissions from that mission," Keith recounted to the two girls, "Including Mattie."
A lightbulb flicked on in Kate's head. "But isn't she still a cadet?" she asked, "Jill said that mission was confidential."
"Chris and I began her special training as soon as she arrived," Jill explained, "She wanted to keep a tab on him and Piers while they were out."
"What'd she think when she heard about this?" Stevie questioned, referring to the recorded transmissions.
Jill paused, recounting the situation. "She was upset. It was easy to see why; she was a big fan of Chris back in her 'civilian life', and she and Piers have been close friends for a while," the female agent replied, "But she was so relieved when Piers made a video call from the hospital. She talked to him for hours, asking if he and Chris were okay. Which is why—"
"You wanted to see me ma'am?" a young man interrupted. All three women turned in place; they hadn't even heard him come in. The man stood at attention a short distance away from the trio, as if waiting for orders. He resembled a younger version of Chris: tall, short spiky dark brown hair, dark eyes.
"Piers?" Jill inquired in curiosity, "What are you doing down here?"
As he talked, Stevie and Kate continued to stare, each wrapped in their own thoughts. "So that's him…" Stevie thought, remembering his voice from the audio recordings.
"He looks so tired," Kate thought to herself, noticing the dark circles under his eyes, "and that mission must have only been a few months ago."
Jill's voice interrupted their thoughts. "Quint!" she snapped at the hacker again, upon hearing Piers' report.
"Wha?! Why me?! I didn't do it," the older man tried to explain himself.
"That was me, ma'am," Keith confessed from his seat, "I paged him."
Now it was Quint's turn to snap. "Grinder!"
"Captain Valentine?" Piers requested, earning Jill's attention back on him. "Would you mind telling me why these cadets are here?" he asked, gesturing to Kate and Stevie.
The female agent was at a loss for words. "Oh, yes," she replied, "Piers, this is Kate," She gestured to the two girls. "and Stevie. They're friends of Mattie's that just graduated to cadet rank."
"Pleasure," Piers replied, giving a nod of acknowledgement to the two girls, which they returned in kind. "Any reason I've been called down here?"
"Actually Piers," Jill stated, "We need to talk to you again about what happened in Edonia. Care to recount your side of the story?"
Piers gave an official nod to Jill. "Of course, ma'am," he replied, "Where do you want me to begin?"
"Start with the beginning, right after HQ granted your team permission to proceed," Jill instructed.
Piers gave another nod. "Right," he said, and he began giving his testimony. Jill listened carefully, absorbing every little detail, whereas Stevie and Kate only half-listened, but managed to catch the general events of the report anyway. Quint and Keith's brains had checked out a long time ago and had gone back to analyzing the evidence they had on the computers.
"Thank you, Piers," Jill stated once the soldier had finished, "I'm sure this will help us find Chris. You are dismissed." The blue-clad agent turned to Quint and Keith as Piers moved towards one of the exits of the 'Pit'. "Guess I'm going on a rescue mission," she said, "Hopefully I can net a few semi-trained volunteers to fill in as backup before I have to go." No sooner had she said that, two hands shot into the air, and Jill knew that there was no way to change their minds.