A/N: Still on a roll here guys. And after reading everyone's reviews I can honestly say that there are some good ideas about Ethan and his true past, but so far only one of you is on the right track. And if you really think about it, the answer will come to you too. I'm also starting a small poll for a pairing regarding Claire Redfield in the future of the fic. So far there's a single vote for Piers and Steve, and I'm keeping it open until much later in the story.
As for this chapter, it's a little smaller than I intended. But it rounds everything out perfectly and set things up for when Alpha Team arrives. So enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Resident Evil.
Previously
"Oh...Fuck..." Ethan muttered looking up into the eyes of the large serpent as it opened its mouth wide enough to swallow a person whole and let out a deep hiss that sounded like a truck letting off break pressure.
The Yawn reared its head back and snapped forward, intending on making the STARS its next meal.
Chapter 15:
"There are very few monsters who warrant the fear we have of them." - Andre Gide
The trio leapt back as the serpent's mouth snapped the air loudly where they had been standing. Ethan slapped the clip the rest of the way into his pistol and quickly switched to his shotgun and fired into the creature's face, the shot peppering its snout and making it rear back with a loud hiss.
Rebecca blinked several times, her nightmare briefly coming back to her before she raised her Beretta and fired as well while Richard added his own shotgun to the fray.
The Yawn's scales chipped away and small fountains of blood sprayed through the air with each hit. But its outer skin was hardened and absorbed the damage like insect bites, head sweeping from side to side as though considering the best way to strike at its prey.
It's mouth slowly opened, tongue lashing through the air. But a 12-gauge shot struck its open maw and making it rear back in pain. "We can't stay here! Get inside!" Ethan shouted racking his shotgun and firing another shot at the serpents head while it righted itself.
They started backing up the steps and going around the side of the mansion along the walkway, keeping their weapons trained on the monster as it lowered to the ground and began to slither after them, going up the steps and along the concrete walkway easily.
Richard fired another shot, but the rounds peppered along the Yawn's back and doing hardly any damage. "Nothing seems to be working!" he exclaimed racking his weapon and firing again.
"Aim for its eyes or its mouth!" Rebecca shouted taking careful aim with her pistol and trying to get a bead on its yellow eyes.
Going around the corner, they bolted for the door at the end of the walk. Ethan shoulder tackled it open and herded the others inside. Attempting to close it afterward, but the serpent slammed its large head into it knocking him back several steps while its head slip through the opening.
"Keep going!" he shouted, firing another shell into the Yawn's neck as they vaulted over the railing to the stairway leading back to the first floor.
Behind them, the Yawn smashed through the tiny wooden barrier in pursuit of them. The trio fired over their shoulders as they ran down the hallway ahead, rounding the corner through a doorway as the monster's head slammed into the wall, shaking the mansions wing on its foundation while bullets continued to pelt its scales.
Running down a corridor filled with suits of armor, Ethan fired his last shell into the beast's open mouth stopping its chase so that they could keep moving. Stopping a moment to grab a familiar golden arrow from the wall they moved past. "Think we can go around it?" the comm specialist asked firing at the thing chasing them.
"You wanna try? Be my guest, I think we wanna live!" The profiler said back as they headed toward the door ahead of them. Getting through it and slamming it shut behind them just as the large snake's nose poked around the corner.
The STARS paused, catching their breath as they heard the Yawn slithering about behind the door they had just come through. Ethan held up the arrow he had taken from the corridor, taking the head off and pocketing it with the imitation key.
"We need to keep moving, that thing will track us down if we stay in one place too long." The profiler said to his companions as the finished catching their breath.
"You think we lost it?" asked Richard reloading his assault shotgun.
"Hardly. One thing I've learned about Umbrella's pets in the last 24 hours, they never give up the hunt when there's food around." Ethan replied reloading his own shotgun as they started moving again.
The door they had gone through lead to the corridor that winded around the library, and the traveler knew that one of the keys leading to the underground laboratory was within. Approaching the double doors, the STARS stacked up before going inside, sweeping the large room quickly before stepping farther in.
Book shelves filled to the brim lined the walls, a large standing shelf was on their right and a ladder in the far right corner that led up to the second floor. A couple of broken tables and chairs were along the walls with some books scattered and torn on the floor.
Making sure the room was empty of anything hostile, Ethan headed down the side of the library behind the standing shelves. Scanning each book quickly until he found the one he was looking for. The small, blue hard cover standing out against the rest of the tombs around them.
Pulling it out, he flipped it open and smirked at hollowed out insides. Glinting back at him in the light of the room was the wolf medal that would open the elevator to the secrets labs below the estate. He pulled out the medal and slipped it into his back pocket, replacing the book back where he had gotten it before rejoining the others.
He took two steps into the main part of the room when he heard the loud hissing from before. Snapping his head up toward the second floor landing he saw a long, dark-green mass moving about toward the railing. "UP HIGH!" he shouted while firing.
Richard and Rebecca snapped their heads up then dove to the side just as the Yawn came down with a crash. Shaking the whole room and sending books falling everywhere. The large serpent slithered along the floor, coming around and rising to its full height thanks to the high ceiling as it leered at them.
"This thing's not gonna let up! Lets finish it off!" the comm specialist called out readying his shotgun. The Yawn lashed forward with its maw wide open and received a barrage of rounds in response. Rearing back as blood gushed from the multiple wounds in its mouth, the serpent.
Rebecca dumped the spent clip from her Beretta and slammed a fresh one home just as the creature slid back up the ladder toward the upper balcony. "It's going back up!"
"Get out from under the balcony!" Ethan called out as they sprinted to the other side of the room. Turning around in time to see Yawn flying out from one of the open archways above and come streaming down toward them, mouth and fangs dripping as it closed the distance quickly.
Richard snapped his shotgun up and fired, the 12-gauge shot slamming into its open mouth. The pain from the shot causing the overgrown snake to veer off at the last moment and hit the wall off to their right. Rebecca and Ethan took that time to pump what rounds they could into its side and belly as it went by.
The Yawn moved along the floor and turned back to face them, hissing loudly as it began making its way forward. Bullets peppering its scales and puncturing several of the tumors on its body that didn't seem to hinder it the slightest.
"Ethan, don't you still have a grenade?" Rebecca asked as she kept firing.
"Won't work with its hardened scales." he replied when he realized something. The Yawn's outer skin was designed to take a beating, but inside..."We need to shove it down its throat! Give me an opening!" he put away his shotgun and taking out the explosive.
The Bravos kept shooting, keeping the snake's attention while the lone Alpha member waited for the right moment, pulling the pin and keeping the trigger down while the beast kept moving its head around in an attempt to avoid the bullets hitting it.
Pain turned into rage as the Yawn hissed, saliva and droplets of venom dripping from its extended fangs as it lunged. 'Gotcha!' Ethan flung the grenade with a sideways toss, the explosive device sailing through the air and disappearing inside the serpent's dark-pink throat.
Stopping from the foreign object going down its gullet, the snake paused in its strike. Closing its mouth and pulling back a moment, feeling the small device slide farther into its body before it exploded. Blowing a chunk out of the creature's body from the inside and creating a open, bleeding hole in its side.
The Yawn hissed/shrieked in pain as it writhed on the floor, sending blood and chunks of scaled flesh splashing along the walls and shelves around it before collapsing with a loud thud. The head shifting a bit along with the blood soaked coils before going still.
Silence filled the library, the members of STARS kept their weapons trained on the serpent to make sure that it was down for good. "Think it's dead?" asked Rebecca edging back toward the door that led out to be sure.
"Maybe, but let's get the hell out of here and as far from it as possible just in case." said Richard. Getting agreement from the two rookies, they turned and headed toward the way out.
Behind them, the Yawn's forked tongue flickered a moment before it slowly started to rise up again. Weakened from the damage it sustained, but the virus that caused its creation and size keeping it from bleeding out completely from its injuries. Yellow eyes locking on to the retreating humans as a low hiss emitted from its mouth.
Hearing the noise, Richard slowly turned around. His eyes widening when he saw the snake now upright once more and opening its mouth to attack. "LOOK OUT!" he shouted shoving the two younger STARS out of the way at the monster's head launched forward.
The sound of flesh being pierced filled the air as the Yawn snapped its mouth around the comm specialist. It's huge fangs puncturing through his left side like it was paper as the serpent pulled him into the air. Cries of anguish ripping from his mouth as the beast thrashed him around, sending blood spraying across the room.
"RICHARD!" Rebecca screamed as she fired into the snake's body. Ethan surveyed the situation quickly before taking out his own pistol and targeting the monster's head. When it stopped moving for just a second, the comm specialist struggling in its grip as he fired.
The round shot through the air in a straight path directly into the Yawn's right eye. It hissed in pain and thrashed more, blood pouring from the damaged eyeball and mouth opening enough to send Richard crashing to the floor. The man's own blood pouring from the open wounds in his side from the monster's bite and pooling on the floor under him.
"Rebecca! Help Richard, I'll deal with this thing!" the profiler shouted scooping up the dropped assault shotgun and opening fire on the serpent's exposed belly. Each shot punching large, bloody holes through its body and pushing it back toward the other side of the room.
The medic nodded and ran to her downed comrade while the Yawn rose back up, its lone yellow eye snapping toward the sudden movement. The serpent hissed, going after the single target when a shotgun blast peppered the side of its head.
"Come on asshole! I could use a pair of snake-skin boots!" Ethan roared firing the last round in the chamber into the hole his grenade had made a minute ago. Gaining the snake's attention, he spun on his heel, dropping the spent shotgun as he ran toward the opposite side of the room.
The profiler knew that the Yawn would go after him, it may have been bigger than the average snake but it still had the same instincts and biology; which included short-range depth perception.
This in mind, he sprinted toward the standing shelf on the of the library when the snake came for him. Taking deep breaths with each pump of his legs, needing to time his next few moves very carefully or this would turn out bad in his favor.
His mind relaxed, the flow of time around him seeming to slow while he moved. Hearing the snake coming up behind him, the teen leapt on to one of the tables, right foot hitting the side of the shelf and managing two steps vertically before rebounding off.
A moment later the serpent's head crashed into the shelves, shattering it on impact and sending wood and books flying in every direction while Ethan landed on the back of it's head. Knife in hand as he drove it hilt-deep into the monster's already damaged eye.
The Yawn shrieked and began thrashing hard, Ethan held on but the blood pouring from the damaged eye he had shot and stabbed made it hard to keep his grip and ended up being tossed off easily. Crashing through a table a few meters away leaving his knife imbedded in the creature's head.
In pain, and with a combat knife sticking out of its damaged right eye, the snake rose up and went into the second level of the library. Finding the hole it had used to get into the room in the first place and disappeared into the mansions frame work to recover.
Getting to his feet, the traveler felt his whole body ache for a few seconds as he regained his barrings. Eyes scanning around for the Yawn but found that it had fled into the mansion to lick its wounds and recover. "Later, you oversized freak." he muttered before he heard wet-coughing coming from where the others were.
Richard was in bad shape, the wounds caused by the Yawn's bite bled openly and he had already started turning pale from blood loss. But it was the greenish-yellow fluid mixed in with his blood that was the real problem.
Rebecca had removed his vest and was doing everything she could, using what supplies she had on her to treat the older man's injuries. Going as far as to use the spare first aid spray they found back in the dorms and one of the herbs they had located to treat the damage.
But his injuries were very severe, and the venom now running through his body would kill him if they didn't do something. "Heh...I messed up good...didn't I?" he said between pain filled breaths. He grunted when the young medic's hands worked on his wounds. "S-Some back up I made."
Rebecca looked at him with tears gathering in her eyes. "Richard..."
"That's complete bullshit." Ethan said kneeling down to his other side. "If it wasn't for you, then we wouldn't be alive right now. We owe you, Rich. And there's no way in hell we're letting you die in this fucking place."
"What can we do? I don't have anything that can help with the venom." said the young medic after layering enough gauze on the comm specialist and taping it all up.
Ethan reached into her hip pack and pulled out the map they had gotten in the art gallery back on the first floor. Finding the right room in seconds and pointing it out to her. Rebecca looked where he was pointing and gasped when she saw the words 'Drug Room' scrawled on a small room that was right by a small set of stairs.
"The stairs we went by running from the snake, that lead down right next to this room. If the title of it is anything to go by, they had to have stored something there to handle snake venom. That's our best bet." he said folding the map up and storing it in his own pocket before reaching down and grabbing Richard's arm on his non-injured side.
The man hissed as he was helped to his feet, arm slung over the profiler's shoulder to stabilize him. "Let's get going, time isn't on our side right now." he said seriously.
Steeling her resolve, Rebecca raised her weapon as they headed out of the library. Following along the same path they had taken escaping from the Yawn. Treading slowly as to not agitate Richard's wounds too much.
Reaching the stairs, they moved down them steadily toward the first floor. Turning the small corner into an alcove beside the staircase where the drug room was located. Opening the door, the trio slipped inside and switched on the lights.
The place looked exactly like it did in the game, the large chest in the corner which would have been used as an item box, a shelf next to it filled with various bottles and supplies, and a bed on the far side.
Dragging the wounded man in, Ethan laid him down on to the bed while Rebecca closed the door and began going through the shelves for the cure to the toxin running through Richard's system. "How you holding up, man?" the older rookie asked.
Richard groaned as he settled into the bed, "Been...better..." he managed to get out as pain wracked through him. "At least I'm not...dead yet."
"You'll be alright, we'll make sure of it." replied the profiler as Rebecca came over with a small brown bottle in her hands. "That the stuff?" he asked.
"Yeah, there are a couple more too incase one isn't enough." she replied as she opened the bottle, moving the bandages she put on aside and pouring some into the wounds. The comm specialist hissed feeling the serum poured into the puncture holes before Rebecca held his head up and poured the rest down his throat to be use that it took.
Nothing happened for a while, the older member of Bravo team was still pretty pale and was sweating profusely while laying on the lone bed. He fell unconscious after about 15 minutes, when Rebecca checked him over she breathed a sigh of relief. "I think it's working. He just needs to rest now."
Ethan sighed as well, running a hand over his scalp as he sat on a desk close to the door. "That's one crisis solved, but our situation hasn't changed yet. And with a man down we can't afford to leave him on his own while he recovers."
"So what do we do now?" Rebecca asked sitting next to him, wiping some of Richard's blood off her hands on to her capris.
Looking over at the chest in the corner, the older rookie got up and went over to it. opening the lid and going through the contents. Inside, he found two boxes of 9mm rounds, a box of shotgun shells and a case of explosive rounds for a grenade launcher amongst a few pieces of junk. "There's only one option available right now." he said laying the small ammo cache on the desk and splitting it up.
The medic caught on fast and shook her head, "No, no way. I'm not letting you go out there alone!"
"We don't have a choice, Becs." Ethan reasoned. "Richard might still need medical help when he wakes up and you're the only one that can keep him from dying. And Kenneth, Enrico and Forest are still out there."
Her small hand stopped him when he finished dividing up the bullets he'd found. "Ethan, it's dangerous without someone watching your back." She bit her lip and looked toward Richard's prone form. "I...I don't want anything to happen to you too." she said resting her head against his chest.
Wrapping his arms around her, Ethan rested his chin on the top of her head while her smaller arms gripped him. "I'll be fine, darlin. And my radio's still on, I'll keep you updated if anything happens."
Rebecca nodded before leaning back from him, "Just promise me you'll be careful."
He smiled at her, "I'll do my best, but no promises." the medic rolled her eyes as he went back to loading their weapons and taking stock of the spares. The fight against Yawn had badly drained their ammo supplies, and the additional ammo in the 'safe room' was a godsend if he ever saw one.
Ethan had managed to make sure all of his and Rebecca's Beretta clips were full along with both shotguns, There were still 11 spare shells that he divided up between the two guns as he laid his on the desk and picked up Richard's assault shotgun. "I'll leave my shotgun with you for back up assistance, I'll give Rich his back when he wakes up." he said slipping the weapon over his shoulder and the shells in his vest.
"Okay," came the reply as he headed for the door, "Ethan wait!" The profiler turned and felt his girlfriend's lips on his, feeling her fears and her love for those few seconds they were connected before they separated. "For luck." she said smiling, brushing some of her bangs from her forehead.
The profiler smiled at her, "Thanks babe." he said lowly giving her one more quick kiss before heading out of the drug room and back into the silent halls of the mansion. Taking a deep breath as he took out his Samurai Edge and set his jaw. 'By the time the others get here, this place will be pretty empty.' he thought going around the corner.
Finding a lone zombie standing in front of a closed door, turning around at the sound of the teen's footsteps on the carpet. Arms raising and hungry groan coming from the back of his throat before a 9mm round silenced him.
X
The ragged outskirts of Raccoon forest slipped below, the orange markers of the police blockade that had been set up standing out against the thick, muted green trees. Twilight had finally set in, the forest growing heavy with shadows and darkness.
"ETA...3 minutes!" Brad called back over his shoulder over the sound of the helicopters rotors. Chris looked around the cabin, noting the silent, grim expressions of his teammates. Joseph had tied a bandana over his head and was intently relacing his boots. Barry was gently rubbing a soft cloth over his beloved Colt Python, staring out the hatch window as the passing trees below. Wesker had his arms folded across his chest, head angled at the floor and seemed to be in deep thought most likely about the mission.
He turned his head to the side and looked at Jill who was sitting on the same bench as him and was surprised to find her staring back at him thoughtfully. She smiled briefly, almost nervously as he caught her gaze.
She quickly unhooked her belt and slid over next to him, the faint smell of soap on her skin washing over him a moment before she spoke. "Chris...what you had said before, about the factors in these cases..." she said with her voice pitched so low he had to lean over to hear her.
Glancing around at the others quickly, as if to make sure that none of them were paying attention, she looked back into his eyes with hers guarded. "I think you might be on to something," she said softly. "And I'm starting to think that it might not be such a good idea to talk about it."
Chris' throat went dry, ever since the murders had started he had believed that there was something that they weren't seeing going on. Ethan had agreed with him on it which aided in them finding all of the data that they could on the murders and the MOs behind them that had been brought up in the meeting days before.
"Did something happen?" he asked a little curious about where she was going with this.
Jill shook her head, her beautifully chiseled features giving nothing away. "No. I've just been thinking that maybe you should watch what you say. Maybe not everyone listening is on the right side of this..." she said trailing off meaningfully.
Frowning, Chris just wasn't sure what she was trying to tell him. "The only people I've talked to are on the job." Her gaze didn't faulter, and then he realized what she had been implying. "Jesus, and I thought I was paranoid." he muttered. "Jill, I know these people, and if I didn't, the STARS have psycho profiles on every member, history checks, personal references, there's no way it could happen."
She sighed. "Look, forget I said anything. I just...just watch yourself, that's all." she relented before moving back to her side of the bench.
"Alright everyone, look lively! We're coming up on Sector Twenty-Two, they could be anywhere." Wesker called out. Everyone moved close to a window and searched the darkened forest for any sign of Bravos' downed chopper.
Looking out the portal on his side, Chris scanned the shadows. Thinking about what Jill had said at while he searched. He supposed he should be grateful that he and Ethan weren't the only ones that suspected some kind of cover up within the law enforcement in Raccoon City. But why hadn't she said anything before about it?
And to warn him against their fellow STARS...'She knows something.' he thought with his eyes widening at the thought.
She must, it was the only explanation that made any sense. He decided that after they located and picked up their friends he'd talk to her again. Try to convince her that going to Wesker could be their best bet, with them plus Ethan's skills as a profiler the Captain would have to listen to their claims.
He went back to focusing on the seemingly endless sea of trees as the helicopter skimmed lower, forcing his full attention on the search. The Spencer Estate had to be close, though he couldn't see it well in the dark.
After several minutes he caught sight of something less than a mile away from where they were hovering. Jill saw the same thing, pointing and speaking at the same time. "Over there!"
Laying in a tall patch of grass in a small clearing within the trees was the unmistakable form of a downed helicopter. Cold dread filling the Alpha's as Brad brought the chopper around and illuminated the wreck with the spotlight. Small trails of smoke were still coming from the craft's engines even after being there for almost a whole day.
Wesker looked down at the wreck and turned to the team. "Listen up! We've got people down in a possibly hostile environment. I want all of you armed, and I want an organized approach, a standard fan as soon as we set down. Barry, you'll take point." The bearded man nodded seriously, "Brad's going to set us down as close to the site as he can get, there's a clearing about fifty meters south of their last coordinates. He'll stay with the copter and keep it warm in case of trouble. Any questions?"
No one spoke and the Captain nodded briskly, "Good. Barry, load us up. We can leave the rest of the gear on board and come back for it when we need it." He stepped up to the cockpit to speak with Brad, mentally smirking seeing the serious expressions of the team as they prepared to look for their friends.
If only they knew what was waiting for them upon arrival. The results would be very interesting to say the least, and nothing would botch up what he had in store for the STARS when they reached the Spencer mansion.
Little did the traitor know, his plans were already on the rocks. The cause being a 19-year-old dimension jumper who now stood alone against the horrors within the estate's walls. All the while preparing for their arrival himself.
A/N: And there you have it. Wesker has no idea what's waiting for him either, and with the knowledge Ethan has at his disposal the traitor will get a front row seat to his and Umbrella's plans coming apart and burning to the ground. Liking the reviews guys, keep them coming and I'll update ASAP.
