December 29th, 1998
Rockfort Island, South Atlantic Ocean...
This couldn't be happening, it simply could not! Even though he was never a religious man, having always put his personal faith into science and his own smarts, William Birkin couldn't help but wonder if somehow, somewhere, he died three months ago and ended up in hell where a demon patterned after his childhood nemesis' twisted twin brother was assigned to torture him for the rest of eternity. If it was so, last three months of constant back-breaking manual labor and living in the conditions comparable to the Nazi concentration camp obviously weren't a punishment enough as now he was kneeling on a cold, dirty concrete floor of the dingy interrogation room, being stared down by a young blonde woman clad in purple formal dress who stood just in front of him; Another demon from his past and the one who should've been buried fifteen years ago.
"Now, isn't that better, doctor Birkin? You're finally in a position that truly befits you and your lowly status." Alexia said, her accented voice calm and composed even though the white opera glove pulled over her hand was stained with fresh blood which she drew when she slapped Birkin to the ground when he refused to kneel by himself, obviously too shocked to do anything when he saw her come in. It would appear that Alfred wasn't as successful at beating the defiance out of the man as he claimed when he told Alexia that he has prepared a very special "homecoming gift" for her practically the moment they were back on Rockfort.
Birkin couldn't do anything but seethe quietly as he instinctively rubbed his burning cheek, his internal rage and disbelief mixing with equal measure of utter confusion. For all intents and purposes, Alexia wasn't that much larger or more physically developed than when he last saw her so she shouldn't have the power to slap him so hard that she broke the skin, and yet, she had and just did.
"What's the matter, doctor?, cat got your tongue?" Alexia asked, sadistic, almost childish glee evident in her tone. Even though she didn't have all the details about the circumstances of Birkin and his family's reason for being thrown into Alfred's prison, she didn't need them, at least for now; By the time she had her way with this pompous fool, he'd be telling her all of his darkest secrets anyways.
"Impossible! You should be..." Birkin started, his voice cracking from the mix of disbelief and the dryness of his throat.
"...dead?" Alexia cut him off, starting to laugh menacingly, echo of her voice in the cramped room causing Birkin to flinch slightly. "As if someone like me can ever truly die." She said after calming down.
"This doesn't make any sense!"Birkin mentally screamed. Even when he was beaten into near-unconsciousness daily, kicked around like an animal in front of his own daughter and purposefully starved for the last three months, he was never really afraid, at least until now. Refusing to let the fear brewing in his gut break him, Birkin started to think; Knowing Alfred, that psychotic fuck couldn't keep quiet if he were hiding Alexia somewhere for the last fifteen years, someone in the company would find out along the way. The only other explaination that didn't defy common sense was that research she did just before her disappearance.
"T-Veronica is a truly versatile agent, doctor Birkin. It is a key i'll need to show this pathetic world the true greatness of the Ashford family." Alexia said, snapping Birkin out of his thoughts and quickly reorienting them to the sequence of events that got him into this mess in the first place. The reason his research into T-Virus, the research over which he had killed his old mentor, became overshadowed by Alexia's project was the fact that she promised not only to make the virus capable of making the test subjects grow bigger and more aggressive, but also allowing them to retain their intelligence, instead of creating mindless zombie-like cannibals or giant, uncontrollable versions of the regular animals. With her gone and Alfred unwilling to continue the research into T-Veronica on his own, being more concerned with poorly re-enactingSchindler's Liston Rockfort, William was certain that his path through the company's ranks will be clear, even more so once old Marcus was done away with in 1988. Sure, at first it seemed to be the case, especially when he discovered an unique virus within the body of a long-suffering test subject in Arklay facility, one Lisa Trevor soon after Marcus' death. The virus, codenamed Golgotha, or G-Virus for short, became both his personal blessing and a curse as Spencer was thoroughly impressed with the preliminary research and spared no expense in constructing a sprawling facility below Raccoon City dedicated to G-Virus research, the so-called NEST. At the age of 29, William found himself designated as the head of NEST's research team, having been promoted as soon as the facility became functional in 1991. Even though the project of making G-Virus into a functional biological agent progressed steadily and with minimal issues for the next seven years, William found himself thinking about his future; Should G-Virus succeed, there was a good chance that Spencer would get rid of him just like he did of Marcus when his T-Virus became a threat to his grip on power within Umbrella, and unlike T-Virus, G-Virus could really be a game changer that would increase William's own standing in the company immensly, possibly putting him on the same rank as Sergei Vladimir which would of course, ensure a prestige and financial security not only to him but to his girls as well. But he also knew that Spencer didn't trust him at all and only kept him around for his scientific ability, so he started to negotiate with Umbrella's main rivals, H.C.F., to try and sell G-Virus to them and join their ranks. Sure, he'd have to start all over again in a new company but at least he or his family wouldn't have to spend the rest of their lives looking around their respective shoulders for armed men in black gas masks, or at least that was the plan. He should've realized that things wouldn't go his way when his attempt to distract Umbrella by covertly starting a small-scale T-Virus outbreak in P-12A plant in July failed spectacularly. As it turned out, the corpse disposal machines there worked significantly better than he anticipated, even under extreme loads of biohazardous organic waste which he "accidentally" sent to the facility. By mid-September, USS agents were posted in NEST for some vague "security reasons" and William realized that was his sign to bolt as Spencer was closing in on him. However, only a few days later, it happened; Spencer made his move and sent a group of USS' elite agents to capture him during the evening of September 23rd. Even though he confronted the agents with the handgun in one hand and briefcase containing the G samples in the other, ready to make his last stand and determined not to die pathetically like Marcus, he was forced to surrender when one of those masked bastards brought out Annette, submachine gun trained on the back of her head. The moment his gun clattered to the ground, he felt a dull pain as a butt of the submachine gun connected with the side of his head, knocking him out. By the time he woke up, he saw that he was in the helicopter, handcuffed and with Annette and Sherry sitting next to him, also handcuffed and with Sherry sobbing into her own knees while Annette was trying to comfort her, even though she could barely touch her due to the handcuffs placed over her wrists. Fear that he momentarily felt was quickly replaced with boiling rage as he realized that the bastards grabbed his poor little girl too. And if that was the case, that could mean that they were headed for only one destination...
"Y-you took that thing?" Birkin asked, unable to keep the shock out of his voice. After Alexia "died" and Alfred's disinterest in furthering her research became apparent, Birkin considered the whole ordeal done and buried so he didn't even consider acquiring her research samples from the facility in South Pole for further research or even to destroy them and spite Alexia even in her "death". He had no clue what it was capable of, or if it even worked. For all he knew, little whore was just bluffing and trying to show him up, even over fifteen years after their last interaction.
"But of course! If anyone deserves to wield such magnificent power, it's me and me alone!" Alexia said, cruel smirk still evident on her face as she slowly stepped to his side. As he tried to follow her movements with his gaze, she gripped the back of his head, forcing him to face forward; There was that impossible strength again. Birkin grit his teeth to prevent himself from vocalizing the pain she was causing him.
"Bonding process required fifteen years of cryogenic suspended animation, and it worked perfectly. If i wanted to, i could burn you to a crisp with the snap of my fingers right now." Alexia continued, her voice taking on chilled, clinical tone that implied genuine threat to the man kneeling in front of her. That was also when she applied additional pressure to the back of his head with the other hand; Just a bit more, and it would pop like a cyst.
Birkin grit hit teeth even harder as hiss of pain escaped his mouth. He tried to fight back, refusing to fold even slightly before his captor, but she was strong. Impossibly strong. Before long, hisses of pain turned into screams which grew progressively louder.
"If you want me to stop, doctor, then beg." Alexia said coldly, continuing to slowly squeeze harder. She didn't want to kill Birkin yet, but if he really wanted to stay true to his own hubris and refused to submit to his queen... well, Alexia most certainly wouldn't envy the one who ended up having to clean the interrogation room after this matter was concluded.
Birkin could feel the tears stinging his eyes and pressure mounting in his skull. Alfred had already broken his body through months of physical labor and almost daily beatings. He had scars and bruises hidden beneath his dirty prison uniform to attest to that. And now, his sworn enemy whom he thought dead for the last fifteen years intended to take one thing which her insane bastard of a twin brother hadn't managed to take; His dignity. He continued to simply scream, willing himself not to form a coherent sentence, lest he ends up telling the sick whore exactly what she wanted to hear. Through his own screams, Birkin could hear Alexia's voice as she spoke up again.
"Beg now or i may have Alfred bring in your daughter. You won't like what she'll experience because of your pride,doctor!" Alexia said, practically spitting out Birkin's title like it was venom. She didn't know anything about Birkin's wife or daughter except for their names; Annette and Sherry, having been shown their prisoner files by Alfred while waiting for Birkin to be prepared for the interrogation. But it didn't really matter, Sherry Birkin was the youngest prisoner in this facility so she couldn't be mixed up with someone else. This lack of familiarity will make her next course of action a lot easier if Birkin's hubris persists, not that she'd think twice about hurting anyone, including a child; They were all beneath her anyways.
"Y-you wo-wouldn't..." Birkin tried to grit out between screams and moans of pain as Alexia didn't let up her pressure. He lost his position, his life's work and his freedom. In this hell-hole, the only things that kept him going were his own spite towards Ashford and desire to ensure his girls' safety, especially Sherry's since he didn't even know where did Alfred keep her, his only solace when he did get to see her once a month during Alfred's routine inspections of the camp being that she obviously wasn't being hurt, at least physically. But, with Alexia there wasn't any guarantee; As countless scenarios of what she may do to his little girl while he'd likely be held down by Alfred and his USS flunkies and forced to watch danced before his eyes, each more horrifying than the last, Birkin caught his lips moving to utter the plea which Alexia wanted to hear. He'd lose his self-respect and dignity to his sworn enemy, but at least Sherry would be safe. If he weren't panicking due to the horrifying images of the brutality Sherry will likely suffer if Alexia were to get her hands on her and the pressure building in his skull, he would've realized that he may end up seeing his current greatest fear realized regardless and that he may end up losing both his dignity and daughter.
"P-p-pl..." Birkin started, mentally forcing himself forward. He was never the one to beg for anything, let alone just for the hell of it with the decades of success he had within Umbrella having helped him to build up a confidence and pride to ensure that it remained that way. But now, that pride fought the desperation brewing in his mind, trying to stop him from giving into Alexia's forceful advances.
"I can't hear you, doctor." Alexia hissed into Birkin's ear. Her grip on his head didn't loosen even slightly.
"P-pl-please, stop! I-it hurts!" Birkin managed to croak out, trying to even out his breathing to lessen the pain. His pride was bruised and strained from the effort of uttering this admittedly half-assed plea, but he still hoped that it will be enough to stroke Alexia's ego.
"You'll have to do better than that, Birkin." Alexia said, pulling Birkin's head back by his hair while continuing to apply painful pressure with the other hand, eliciting more screams from Birkin. "Your daughter's well-being hinges on what you'll say next."
It hurt so much. Even though he was never really physically robust, Birkin considered himself to have some tolerance to pain, but now, it felt like Alexia was trying to simultaneously rip his scalp off with her bare hands while also squishing his head like a pimple. His poor attempt at sating the void of her ego failed and shiver of fear slithered down his spine as he imagined that sick fuck Alfred signaling his guards to follow him to wherever he had Sherry holed up in order to drag her to the interrogation room, like zookeepers taking a slab of meat to a hungry lion. As tears of pain started to sting his eyes, Birkin started to beg.
"STOP! I-i'm begging you, Alexia! I'll do anything just don't touch Sherry!" Birkin said, starting to sob as Alexia suddenly let his head out of her grasp, allowing him to catch himself on all fours as he stared holes into dirty floor of the room and unsuccessfully tried to blink away the tears from his eyes, unwilling to face the blonde woman behind him; He had just sold his dignity, hopefully to ensure Sherry's continued safety. But, Alexia's giggling told him that this humiliating experience wasn't over yet.
"Anything, doctor?" Alexia asked, her lips stretching into another sadistic grin as she slowly stepped around prone Birkin to his front. He was kneeling on all fours, evoking an image of a lowly peasant worshipping his queen; Just the sight of her biggest rival forced in such a sorry state, sobbing like a beaten child moments after begging her for mercy made her want to moan in pleasure like a common whore. She wanted to see him reduced like that since she was a little girl and now, she did just that. The fact that Birkin's own blunder forced him right into Alfred's and by exstension, her domain was just an icing on the cake.
Birkin looked up, trails of tears visible on his dirty, bruised face. He wore an expression of a broken man. He had already begged her, selling his dignity not for himself but for his daughter's safety, but it was obvious that Alexia wasn't happy yet. He felt his stomach churning as Alexia calmly lifted up the hem of her dress, revealing obviously new pair of expensive black leather ankle-high boots on her feet; He had a horrible idea of what Alexia will demand of him next.
"If you want your daughter to remain safe and sound in our captivity, you'll have to submit completely, doctor Birkin." Alexia said, stepping even closer to Birkin, to the point where he could smell the fresh leather from Alexia's boots. "Now, kiss my boots." She commanded, barely any emotion discernible in her voice.
Birkin didn't even want to pretend that he didn't hear his captor correctly; He'd have to debase himself in front of his nemesis. For all it was worth, he was happy that at least neither Annette nor Sherry were here to witness this borderline sexual assault and that sick whore didn't demand him to do something even more demeaning; At least two infinitely worse scenarios ran through his head as he gulped, lowering his gaze towards one of the boots which was currently directly under his nose.
"Annette, i'm so sorry. This is forSherry."Birkin thought as the gnawing pit in his stomach deepened in shame of what he was about to do. As his lips connected with the tip of Alexia's boot and he instinctively wrapped his hands around her ankle for support, Birkin felt fresh tears rushing to his eyes; Alexia Ashford, his oldest enemy, was not only alive but she has managed to strip him of any self-worth he had built up in twenty years of his association with Umbrella in a matter of minutes, having reduced him from a bruised but determined prisoner and ex-scientist to a snivelling, crawling bootlicker. Even in his despair, Birkin silently hoped that his sacrifice will be enough to spare Sherry whatever horrors Alexia had intended for her.
Alexia watched the scene unfolding at her feet with perverse mirth. High-and-mighty William Birkin was litterally kissing her boots like an extreme caricature of a Byzantine vassal greeting his emperor, an only position befitting not only Birkin, but literally anyone who ever crossed her; Inferior worker ants who'd worship her forever. Although Alexia could admit that she rarely experienced genuine happiness or associated emotions, mix of Birkin's soft sobs and kisses being planted on her leather-bound feet filled her with ecstatic pleasure that bordered on pure thrill that made her realize that almost anyone could be doing this to her, even Alfred; After all, they were nothing but drones who should know their station beneath their queen's feet, in figure of speech or literally. And with T-Veronica and its powers at her beck and call and Alfred's resources and unwawering loyalty, everyone will bow before her soon.
That very thought made her head swim violently for a moment as she started to laugh maniacally, her glee contrasting sharply with Birkin's sobs which grew louder.
Later that day
Ashfords' official residence, Rockfort Island, South Atlantic Ocean...
"Take over Umbrella?" Alfred asked, shock evident in his high-pitched voice. He could feel a sweat breaking out onto his skin and sticking to his white dress shirt as horrifying implications of his twin sister's words crossed his mind; He knew that Ozwell Spencer wasn't a man to be triffled with, hell, he personally killed some of those who made that mistake and lived to regret it by being sent onto his island. But deep down, he wasn't scared of the fate that would befall him should he help Alexia and their plan failed but what would happen when she was tracked down in such scenario. Would she be able to hide from Umbrella and USS? Would they find a way to kill her, even though a linear launcher created for a specific purpose of destroying T-Veronica should it go haywire in any shape or form was hidden away in Antarctica and was one-of-a-kind weapon? He sighed, trying to stop himself from panicking and even worse, doubting Alexia's judgement. If she thought that taking over Umbrella would help further her main plan, he'd be on-board regardless, after all, he was always a loyal soldier to his beloved queen.
"You sound shocked, brother. Almost as if you forgot that Umbrella is our birthright!" Alexia said, locking her icy gaze straight onto Alfred; Twins were sitting on the opposite sofas of the projection room in the official residence of 7th Earl Ashford, two steaming cups of tea sitting at the coffee table between the sofas. Even though Alfred considered bringing Alexia to the private residence built just behind this one, he thought better of it when he recalled its sorry state brought on by the poor construction of those peons from the prison facility; He'd never forgive himself if he brought his perfect sister into such pig sty! Due to this, they came here to talk properly once Alexia was done with Birkin. Well, they got to talking once they both managed to stop laughing at poor old Harman who nearly suffered a stroke from sheer shock when he saw Alfred walking into the mansion hand-in-hand with the woman he thought was dead for the last fifteen years. He didn't look much better when he brought them tea requested by Alfred. Current topic of their discussion was Alexia's plan to finally show the world her true power and its first phase.
"O-of course i didn't forget that, it's just... Everyone who could oppose Spencer is dead! The only reason i'm still alive is because he doesn't see me as an actual threat." Alfred said, stammering slightly. Even though his fellow executives in Umbrella saw him merely as a high-strung, trust-fund psycho ready to go off at the moment's notice, Alfred kept his ear to the ground within the company at all times since he assumed his duties there five years ago; That was how he managed to find out what really happened to doctor Marcus and Spencer's role in it even though majority of the company's higher-ups, especially in the American division and those closest to Spencer, thought that Marcus just up and vanished and was still out there somewhere. As it turned out, keeping his head down and not blowing a whistle on Spencer for both his and Alexia's sake was a smart choice in a long run.
"So you're afraid of a frail old man who can barely even walk without a cane?" Alexia said, giggling as Alfred's brow furrowed in irritation at the implication. "N-no, of course i'm not afraid! But we need to play our cards properly with this." Alfred retorted, clearing his throat "And he doesn't use a cane anymore. He's been in the wheelchair for the past six years because of his arthritis."
"I agree with you, brother. If Spencer really centralized the power within Umbrella, he'll be dangerous to take head-on. But remember, he doesn't know about T-Veronica or my survival. Officially, i died fifteen years ago and my research in Antarctica was a dead end." Alexia said, reaching for her tea and taking a small sip.
"And yet, i'll never be powerful enough to counter the old fuck on my own since he did everything to neuter me! I mean, look at me! I'm on the island in the middle of nowhere, everyone in the company hates my guts and i'm essentially a glorified cleanup crew for Umbrella's dirty little secrets!" Alfred said before running his hands over his face and through his blond hair. In moments like these, those moments when his mind broke in half under the duress of loneliness and stress and made him think he was Alexia for several hours every couple of days seemed almost like a mercy and a break from his bleak reality which he just dumped onto his sister; Even if he knew that Ashfords were entitled to the CEO position in Umbrella, Spencer was smart enough to secure the power to himself and hold onto it like a dragon to its hoarded gold and jewels. He left him and Alexia with practically nothing and if he wiggled a single toe out of arbitrary line drawn by Spencer and his Russian lapdog Sergei Vladimir, entire Rockfort would be remotely detonated, killing everyone and everything on it, likely excluding Alexia who'd find herself with an entire world-spanning corporation breathing down her neck for the rest of her life. That thought alone disgusted Alfred to no end.
"But you won't face him alone, Alfred. You're forgetting that i'm here now and that we can do anything together. Just remember what we did to Alexandertogether." Alexia said, putting the additional emphasis on the last "together".
Alfred didn't have to think hard to recall what she was referencing; Nearly sixteen years ago, their father, or rather, creator, Alexander Ashford, 6th Earl Ashford, became the very first human test subject to receive T-Veronica virus. A rather fitting punishment for a man who sunk Ashfords' family name into depths of irrelevancy through his unwillingness to stand up to Spencer's power grab in the '80s and couldn't even properly own up to his blunder, instead opting to utilize the power of IVF years before it became a commercial medical procedure to try and create an artifical heir who'd represent Ashford family in his stead. That heir turned out to be Alexia, who assumed every good quality a person of her breeding and rank should possess, chief of them being unnaturally high intelligence that allowed her to create T-Veronica in the first place while the fatal mistake that sealed the old man's fate was Alfred's discovery of the project's notes. In the end, Alexander was really not that much better than other fools in history who ended up buried under the weight of their own hubris; That was something Alfred always thought about when Alexander's tortured groans and moans reached his office in the Antarctic base. He also quickly deduced Alexia's reason for bringing Alexander up; He'd either play along with her plan and face Spencer regardless of the consequences it would bring to them or he'd find himself restrained right next to Alexander.
"Right... I'm sorry Alexia, i shouldn't have reacted like that." Alfred said, apologetic tone noticable in his voice. As much as he knew that Alexia could cut his life short the moment he displeased her, especially now when her body fully accepted T-Veronica, he wasn't as afraid of death as he was afraid of the mere thought of insulting Alexia, especially considering that she left her icy confinement barely 12 hours ago.
"Don't worry about it, brother. All i'm going to need from you for now is your support and commitment since you'll be a significant factor once Spencer and his supporters are out of the picture." Alexia said, setting her teacup back with practiced gentleness. As he watched her, Alfred realized that he didn't even touch his own cup yet. After a brief pause, Alexia continued. "As for Spencer and his cronies, i will do the heavy lifting while you'll be responsible for what comes after."
Alfred froze up as he reached for his own teacup. He quickly infered exactly what Alexia was saying. "You want me to... become the CEO once Spencer is gone?"
"Of course! I'd gladly take over myself but officially, i've been deceased for the last fifteen years and explaining my prolonged absence to the executives and public could be... messy." Alexia said, briefly looking away from Alfred, almost as if she was ashamed of admitting that in front of him.
"But... Alexia, you're the real master of this family! We both know that i'll never compare to your genius! Especially since other executives already hate my guts and consider me to be a psychopath." Alfred said, looking at his sister pleadingly. For the last fifteen years, he roamed this world like a lost puppy, doing just enough to survive while awaiting Alexia's return the same way ancient Jews once awaited their Messiah, and now, she wanted to pull herself apart from him again, while also leaving him to fend for himself in the proverbial lions' den known as Umbrella Corporation's headquarters in Raccoon City; Without loyal protection, Alfred knew that he'd probably leave the building in a body bag within a few days at best and few hours at worst.
"I've already told you Alfred, we'll do this together!" Alexia snapped. After a brief pause, she calmed down. "Officially, you're the only survivor of the Ashford family and as such, you'll become the CEO of Umbrella once i turn Spencer into worm food. It may not calm the pretenders within the company's upper management but i know that you'll do fine since i will be directing you from here." Alexia said, reaching for her tea again and taking a slightly longer sip; Alfred's propensity towards panic always got on her nerves and was one of the few things in this world that could genuinely piss her off without a fail.
Alfred looked at Alexia, puzzlement more than obvious on his face. "Directing me from here?" Alfred repeated as he tried to figure out Alexia's plan; Would this mean that she'll take over command over Rockfort as well? Certainly he wouldn't be able to keep things in check around here while also drowning in paperwork and settling power games between executives in Raccoon City.
"Yes. I will also take control of Rockfort and its facilities and continue my research in Antarctica so you can consider yourself relieved of those duties. Of course, whatever developments happen in Raccoon City, you are to report directly to me. If one of those executives as much as sighs the wrong way during the board meeting, i want to know about it so that i can consult you on the proper course of action." Alexia said, almost as if reading Alfred's mind. Even though she could just take over on her own and either leave Alfred where he is now, kill him outright and continue with her plan alone or even turn him into her personal footstool as Shapur had done to Valerian, she knew that such rushed approach would tear Umbrella apart and significantly hamper her future plans for the world at large; There'd be time and place to unleash her full power, only once Umbrella was fully and absolutely within Ashford family's grasp and Alfred will be her pawn to ensure that, or more precisely, a dog let loose into a massive minefield made out of Umbrella's power intrigues.
"I... i don't know how to thank you, Alexia! You always stuck up for me, even if i failed you."
"I can think of one way to thank me properly, brother."Alexia thought as she looked down at her feet, noticing that the wet trails of Birkin's tears and spittle have dried up on her boots. Just recalling the incident in the interrogation room barely three hours ago caused her stomach to tighten in arousal that travelled in between her legs as she imagined Alfred cleaning her boots with his togue and lips too, thanking her and worshipping her like the queen all the while. However, she quickly shook such thoughts away. "If you had truly failed me, we likely wouldn't be sitting here right now. You can thank me by not screwing up when your time comes." She simply said with a faint, genuine smile on her face. Alfred returned the gesture with a smile of his own.
"Umbrella is going to be ours, Alexia." Alfred said softly, finally picking up his cup of tea and taking a long, quiet sip. If Alexia really thought that he was fit to control Umbrella, he intended to do it to the best of his ability, for her and their vision of the world, remade in her image.
"Umbrella and so much more, Alfred. So much more." Alexia replied, taking a sip of her own tea.
Three months later
April 1st, 1999
Umbrella Corporation Headquarters, Raccoon City, Illinois...
How could this happen? Why did this happen? Even if you applied the "enhanced interrogation techniques" on him at that very moment and left him on the verge of death, Ozwell Eric Spencer couldn't tell you. Just over three months ago, things couldn't be better; Business was booming, Umbrella was expanding into former communist countries at a rapid pace and aside from some small issues, everything in Umbrella ran like a Swiss clockwork. However, just after new year, murders of Umbrella's employees started to occur.
It started off small; Some researchers from pharmaceutical division in Argentina didn't turn up for work for a few days in early January, it could be chalked up to partying too hard during New Year's festivities. But those days quickly turned into weeks and in the end, only their charred and massacred remains were found. Real problems started as increasingly higher-ranking researchers in Argentina started to meet similar grizzly fates by late January, starting with the local branch's chief of aquatic B.O.W. research who was found disembowled and hanged in his own bed and progressing almost daily throughout early February until Argentinian executive, one Carlo Maria Juarez, disappeared without a trace while leaving Umbrella's local headquarters; To Spencer's best knowledge, he was never found. USS' investigation into the events in Argentina didn't yield any fruit even though it was clear as day that the attacker, or likely a group of attackers, were specifically after Umbrella's employees.
Only a few days after Juarez disappeared, similar disappearances and murders started to occur in Mexico. The only difference was that this time, mysterious attackers immediately cut to the chase and started targeting key personnel in the Mexican branch's viral research program. While reading the list of missing and deceased researchers from both Mexico and Argentina during this time, Spencer realized that the people killed in Mexico were either his personal friends or those who worked under them while Argentinian killings were initially random but quickly started to follow the same pattern as Mexico. Then, it became obvious that this wasn't an ordinary crusade against Umbrella, but rather a calculated attempt to remove his power base south of the US border; Just to be safe, he immediately phoned Sergei in Caucasus facility and ordered him to increase the security.
However, when three researchers from Hunter production facility in Idaho were shot dead over the course of the same night in their own homes, professional manner of their executions bearing all hallmarks of the Security Service's hit, walls started to close in as Spencer realized that not only were the attackers rapidly closing in on Raccoon City but that they also had agents within his own Security Service! They could strike him down at any time! As March went by, Spencer started to increasingly isolate himself while also trying to reassure the public that everything was fine as murders of researchers in Mexico and Argentina came into focus once they were connected with the trio murdered in Idaho. USS obviously could no longer be trusted which only left Sergei and his UBCS troops as a potential allies for the war once he found out who betrayed him and won USS over. Due to that, USS was effectively dissolved on March 18th and UBCS gained their role as Spencer's private army as more of Umbrella's researchers in midwest started to turn up dead in increasingly brutal circumstances. Every single one of them was connected to someone in Umbrella's upper management.
On March 26th, it finally happened; Group that has been attacking Umbrella since the year started struck in Raccoon City itself for the first time; Their victims, doctor John Clemens who assumed control over NEST and was put in charge of G-Virus research once Birkin was forcefully "retired" back in September 1998 and his girlfriend, researcher from Arklay facility named Ada Wong. Some civillians found their corpses floating near the Victory Lake docks that morning, both remains burned to the point where Clemens could only be identified by a small portion of his ID card which wasn't destroyed along with the rest of his body while Wong's identity couldn't be ascertained as her name didn't exist in the official databases until investigation of Clemens' private relationships uncovered that they were dating. According to the reports, RPD S.T.A.R.S.' medic and coroner fainted when she came to examine the corpses after they were pulled out of the water to be bagged up by the forensics; Local newspapers and tabloids already refered to Clemens' and Wong's deaths as one of the grizzliest murders in the history of Arklay County and the one that had no immediate suspect, much to the public outcry. But the biggest issues were that Umbrella was definitely under the microscope now and Wong's status as everything pointed towards the fact that she was a corporate spy prior to her death. If she didn't die, then she'd be sent straight to Rockfort.
It was the night of April 1st, 1999. Spencer could hear the screams beyond the door of his office along with the sounds of gunfire, crashing and what sounded like crackling of fire. Spencer himself was armed with a revolver, aiming it at the door while sitting behind his desk. By now, it was obvious that the mysterious killers had come for him after carving their bloody path through half of the Americas and although his body had started to betray him under the duress of his age, Spencer wasn't intent on going down without a fight. However, despite his own conviction, Spencer's resolve started to falter as the sounds of the ongoing fight drew increasingly closer to his office, to the point where he could recognize the disgusting sound of bones being snapped repeatedly along with other disgusting sounds that were accompanied by the screams of UBCS mercenaries guarding this floor so anguished that they genuinely chilled the blood in 75-year old's veins. Whoever- no,whateverwas attacking Umbrella could hardly be human and it was coming straight for him!
Just then, all sound from the outside ceased in an instant. Spencer could hear footsteps just outside of his office; It sounded like bare feet scraping against the carpeting accompanied by several people who wore what sounded like boots. Footsteps stopped as the door handle wiggled slightly and then hard as the attacker tried to forcefully open them. As handle stopped moving, a loudthudwas heard against the door, leaving a hollow dent in the sterile white metal; Spencer immediately realized that the attacker was going to kick them down!
Two more kicks and the dent turned into hole through which unnaturally-looking green-skinned hands slithered into the office, pulling the destroyed door apart as if they tore through paper. As the office was breached, Spencer had to steel himself as he pointed his revolver at what looked like green-skinned woman. Her skin was covered in dark chitin-like substance that also made up what appeared to be her hair and was visibly stained in large splashes of blood and other gore. Her inhuman orange-red eyes immediately zeroed in on Spencer, causing him to gulp as he tried to steady his aim; His hand was shaking.
"W-w-what the-" Spencer stammered out, nearly losing his ability to speak from sheer horror. Even though he had been involved in developing numerous abominations that defied every single law of nature for the last twenty years, Spencer never felt this kind of fear. Before he could even squeeze the trigger of his revolver, green-skinned woman was standing in front of him, ripping the gun out of his hand and throwing it aside before she wrapped her hand around his throat and lifted him up. That was when Spencer made out several figures clad in black combat uniforms that entered the office behind the green-skinned woman; USS. They simply stood at the door, observing the scene with their rifles lowered, in obvious gesture of passivity whose meaning Spencer infered even though he was fighting for air; They weren't here to help him.
Before he could think about anything else, Spencer screamed as he was hurled into the nearby wall. His sight went dark for a moment as he hit his head against the wall. As it blinked back on, he saw that the green-skinned woman was joined by one of the USS agents. They looked at each other before the agent approached Spencer and crouched at his level, removing his helmet and gas mask while the green-skinned woman stood behind him.
"A-Ashford!" Spencer managed to grit out as he recognized blonde man. Seeing the man usually wearing the red blazer and white dress pants in full combat gear usually used by the elite squads of USS suddenly made sense; Rockfort Island was the site of the USS' training center and was in some ways the group's headquarters. As he recalled that Alfred was put in charge of their training when he was given control of Rockfort base, Spencer realized something else; Alfred was responsible for hiring and training all members of USS' retrieval squads currently working for Umbrella! Bastard was creating an army of loyalists right under his nose! Dissolving USS probably only made things infinitely worse as they all flocked to Ashford's side, bolstering his power. That green-skinnedthingtoo! If he had paid better attention to Ashford instead of writting him off as a low-risk lunatic, he could've realized that he was cooking something up. Considering everything, Ashford was nearly as smart as his late sister.
"Mister Spencer, i'm afraid it's time for you to retire. But don't wory, Umbrella will be just fine in our capable hands." Alfred said, chuckling darkly. This was it, his moment of triumph, no, the moment of triumph for the entire Ashford family. For the very first time since the days of his grandfather, Ashford family will be relevant in Umbrella's politics with the staunch support of Umbrella Security Service as a welcome bonus. Even though Alexia was more than capable of eliminating Spencer's main supporters in South and Central America on her own, news that Spencer had decided to disband USS once Alfred paid the USS unit stationed in the training facility extra to kill three virologists in Idaho presented a golden opportunity of such magnitude that even Alexia was impressed with his idea. That good impression turned into proper pride once first boatloads of disgruntled ex-agents started to dock onto Rockfort, accepting Alfred's invitation to start working for him. One of the first agents to accept his offer was one of his best students, agent known only as HUNK. Within barely two weeks, him and Alexia had majority of ex-USS personnel under their direct command. To Alfred, it proved just how powerful a mass disdain could be. It was something he'd have to remember once he takes over as CEO.
Alexia felt powerful, no longer like a queen but rather like a deity. With full power of T-Veronica harbored in her body unleashed, she could cut through anyone and anything in her way as her blood became oxidisive agent capable of burning in contact with oxygen. She has also gained increased speed, strength and became impossibly flexible, capable of moving in the ways that would litterally break the lesser person in half, all that while she could switch between her current form and her human form. Of course, her powers were just a half of her effectiveness as majority of the targets she went after in South and Central America could easily be seduced with a right word here and a right touch there; That was something doctor Ramon Gonzales, responsible for research into viability of aquatic B.O.W.s learned first-hand when his SM escort invited for an evening of bondage and sexually thrilling degradation tied him up to his own bed and ripped him apart with her bare hands. Alfred's idea to recruit USS to their cause was admittedly a good idea; Such large and well-trained force will be useful for ensuring that his grip on Umbrella remains nice and tight and they could easily be discarded along with Alfred once they wouldn't be a factor in Alexia's plans anymore. Of course, there were more important matters to attend to now. With those thoughts, she approached Spencer and Alfred. "Good evening, mister Spencer. I take it that you don't recognize me?" She said, crouching next to Alfred.
As he heard the green-skinned woman speak in the voice laced with Londonian accent, Spencer felt like he was going to have a heart attack. This wasn't possible! That thing couldn't be late doctor Ashford! "Impossible..." were the only words that left his lips as he looked at the two; Alfred and Alexia Ashford, results of Alexander Ashford's dabbling into genetics were about to take his life's greatest achievement from his hands. Wherever he was now, Edward was probably dying a second time from how hard he was laughing and James probably wasn't faring much better either; It was going to be one hell of a reunion.
"From this day forth, Ashfords will be running Umbrella." Alexia said, laughing menacingly as she looked at Alfred. "Do it, brother."
Without hesitation, Alfred got up to his feet and aimed his assault rifle at Spencer, aiming straight between the old man's eyes. Spencer started to laugh weakly. "You two don't have any idea what you're getting into. The moment you take over, every executive worth his salt is going to be at your throats." Spencer said, coughing slightly. Sergei was still alive, if no one else, he'd fight to avenge him and return Umbrella to his ideals. He wouldn't leave this office alive, but he could take one final solace in knowledge that Sergei would personally snap both Ashfords in half like dry twigs. Maybe not tommorrow or a day after that but one day, he would.
"That's not something that should concern you, mister Spencer. Goodbye." Alfred said coldly before dark office was momentarily lit up by a muzzle flash.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
A burst of gunfire ended the life of Ozwell Eric Spencer, aged 75, messy crimson bullet holes visible on his face as his head slumped down, leaving a bloody trail across the wall.
"We did it, Alexia. This whole city is ours now." Alfred said, turning away from Spencer's corpse and towards his sister who had also gotten back on her feet.
"Not just the city, Alfred. By the time we're finished, whole world is going to move according to our whim." Alexia said, suppressing the twinge in her mind; Few years should be enough to bring the company under control provided that some sort of biohazardous leak didn't occur and then, the real purge would begin, a purge which Alfred didn't have a chance of surviving. This world had a place for only one of them and Alexia intended to be the one who'd survive because it was her birthright.
As air outside became heavy with the approaching police sirens, Alexia turned towards USS agents standing near the door. "Head out and stall the police. Don't resort to deadly force unless it becomes absolutely necessary."
"If they brought in S.T.A.R.S., don't be too rough with them. We don't need their attention." Alfred cut in. He didn't know much about them, aside from the basics; Officially, they were Raccoon City Police Department's special forces trained to deal with unconventional threats such as terrorists and organized crime while unofficially, they were esentially Umbrella's private unit within RPD, their weapons and other equipment having been bankrolled by Umbrella. In addition to that, Umbrella's intelligence division had a mole in one of the teams who was to keep an eye on the situation in RPD, although their name currently eluded Alfred's recollection. For all intents and purposes, it would be smart to watch out with them.
"Yes, sir, ma'am." One of the agents said, leading the remaining agents out of the office and leaving Ashford twins alone.
Turning around, Alfred walked towards the large window behind CEO's desk, shining his uniform and face in pale moonlight as he clasped his hands behind his back, overlooking the sprawling skyline of Raccoon City. This was Umbrella's city,hiscity now. Alfred turned around to see Alexia, once again in her human form and stark naked like when she was pulled out of cryostasis, walking towards the window as well, standing next to Alfred. She wordlessly put her arm around Alfred's back with Alfred reciprocating by pulling her closer and putting his own hand around her shoulders as they silently watched over Raccoon City.
This was their city now.