(I seriously hate Capcom for making Chris take a beating in almost every one-on-one fight he has. Seriously, against Wesker it's understandable, but all the fights he had against Arias? Ah fuck you capcom).
Chris threw his torso backwards in one swift movement, dodging a piercing blow from Krauser's knife. He then tried to counterattack, but Krauser was quicker and threw the knife into his other hand, attempting a slashing blow to Chris's stomach, which he dodged back.
Krauser quickly stepped forward and tried a vertical attack from below, which Chris dodged again. Not letting Redfield counterattack, Krauser threw himself at his opponent, hitting him with a body slam that pushed him backwards and tried to drive his knife into Chris's eye. Chris grunted as he felt his back being pressed against the wall and put his arm against Krauser's forearm, preventing the blade from piercing his right eye.
The two men stared at each other angrily, and Krauser smiled provocatively.
"What's the matter, Redfield? Scared?" Chris grunted angrily, and in response, he shoved Krauser's forearm down and hit him in the nose with a hard headbutt, temporarily stunning the man. He then elbowed his opponent in the face and kicked him in the stomach, causing the ex-military man to stagger back a few steps.
Chris quickly grabbed his pistol and aimed. However, Krauser turned his body and landed a back kick on Chris's arm, knocking the pistol aside.
"Didn't they teach you that knives work best in close combat?" Krauser said, striking Chris again, who blocked the attack by holding the man's arm. Quickly, Krauser spins his body again and hits Chris in the face with the back of his fist, causing the man to stagger a few steps to the side in a grunt of pain.
Super strength... Chris felt one of his teeth soften, and his vision blurred slightly. However, he recovered quickly and reached for his machete. The blade was black and rather long; he had gotten that machete a few years ago.
Krauser smiled slightly and advanced. Chris tried a piercing attack, which Krauser deflected by throwing his torso to the side and countered with a low cut. Chris widened his eyes slightly and dodged as he threw his body backwards, but grunted in pain as he felt his thigh being cut.
Krauser advanced again and tried to pierce Chris's neck, who in turn dodged by ducking and throwing his torso to the side, opening a small window for him to try to pierce Krauser in the stomach. However, the ex-military man dodged by throwing his torso to the side and pushed Chris's arm against himself in an attempt to make him lose his balance. However, Chris used the momentum of the movement to rotate his body and try to attack Krauser again, who defended by rotating Redfield's attack to the side.
"What a disappointment, Chris. Not what I expected. But I guess I was foolish to think that the BSAA's best shooter was decent at knife fighting." Krauser teased, circling Chris at a slow pace, who began to do the same.
"And I expected you to be a complete freak for selling yourself that way. But is that all you can do? Hit a little harder? Run a little faster? Oh, look, I'd ask for a refund." Chris teased back, and Krauser laughed lightly before attacking him again.
Chris dodged and counterattacked in an attempt to pierce Krauser's neck, but Krauser dodged by ducking. Chris didn't let him counterattack and, turning the machete in his hand, he tried to stab Krauser in the back, who in turn turned his body and walked away a few steps.
Chris admitted that knife fighting was not his specialty. However, he was known for something similar.
Krauser turned the knife in his hand, making an inverted grip, and tried a side thrust. However, Chris sidestepped and reacted quickly. Before Krauser could pull his arm back, Chris grabbed him by the forearm, preventing him from moving away.
He then punched Krauser in the face, followed by a straight left. Krauser grunted in pain and tried to counterattack, but Chris stepped to the side and landed a right hook to the ex-military man's chin.
Krauser grunted again and stepped back, landing a kick to the side of Chris's body, who also grunted as he was hit. However, he grabbed Krauser's leg, preventing him from moving away. Krauser, in turn, jumped up with his other leg and tried to kick Chris in the head, but the man dodged as he crouched down and punched Krauser in the kidney, making the man cringe in reflex.
Letting go of the man's leg, Chris positioned himself behind Krauser and grabbed him around the waist, Chris grunted as he lifted Krauser off the ground and threw him backwards, performing a not quite perfect but certainly devastating suplex.
Krauser grunted loudly as he felt his head hit the ground, but then a groan of pain and anger escaped his throat and he got up quickly, landing a kick to Chris's stomach, causing the man to roll backwards and stand up with his hand on his stomach. Even with the tactical vest, he could feel the force behind the blow.
Nevertheless, he smiled provocatively. He might not be a master with the knife, but no one in the BSAA had ever managed to defeat him in a one-on-one fight.
He got into position, both circling each other. Chris spat beside him as he thought. So far, he had managed to hold his own in that fight, however, he had a strong feeling that he would tire out faster than Krauser. In other words, he had to end the fight as soon as possible.
And to do that, he had to take that knife away from Krauser. He was too dangerous with that blade, and Chris didn't want to risk being pierced every time he made a move.
Krauser took a step forward and Chris took one back, the two of them staring at each other. Krauser then threw the knife in his direction and Chris's eyes widened slightly, dodging the blade as he threw his body to one side. Krauser quickly jumped towards him, grabbing the knife that had embedded itself in the wall next to him and trying to slash Chris, who dodged it by jumping backwards, but grunted as he felt his forearm being cut.
Not too deep, not too wide, so he just ignored the pain.
However, Krauser didn't stop there and tried to pierce Chris's neck, who held the man's arm only for Krauser to drop the knife and catch it in mid-air with his other hand. However, Chris was quicker and kicked him in the side of the leg, bringing him to his knees.
In one swift movement, Redfield twisted Krauser's forearm, forcing him to drop the knife, and landed a knee to the man's face, who grunted in pain but quickly recovered and counterattacked with a low kick to Chris, who jumped backwards.
However, still on the ground, Krauser spins his body and lands a kick to Chris's stomach, pushing Redfield backwards and heading for his knife.
However, Chris quickly picks up his machete and leaps towards Krauser, trying to pierce the man's back, who in turn rolls to the side, causing Chris to drive the blade into the ground.
Krauser kicks Chris in the face and grabs his forearm, trying to get his machete. However, Chris hits him with an elbow to the face, only to receive a kick to the handle of his machete, strong enough to throw the blade and drive it into the wall.
Krauser leapt up and spun his body while still in the air, hitting a spinning kick to the man's chest, sending him backwards and kneeling on the ground. Krauser picked up his knife and turned around, only to have his blade hit by a shot from Chri's pistol. No, not a pistol, a revolver, and he continued firing at the man who was moving with superhuman speed, dodging the shots with surreal speed and flexibility while at the same time closing in on Chris.
Close enough, Krauser kicks Chris's hand, throwing the revolver away and hitting Chris in the face, sending Redfield crashing into the wall.
However, without stopping there, Krauser grabbed him by the tactical vest and landed two more punches to Chris' face, who felt the metallic taste of blood invade his mouth and run down his cut cheek.
Kruaser tried a third punch, but Chris grabbed his arm and kicked him in the stomach, followed by a punch to the face and a low kick, which Krauser dodged by backflipping.
Chris advanced towards the man and tried to attack him with a punch, but Krauser dodged it using Chris's own momentum against himself, causing Redfield to go straight through.
Chris gritted his teeth and turned, just in time to block a right punch from Krauser. The ex-military man attacked again, attempting a straight left, but Chris sidestepped and landed a hook on the man, stunning him briefly, but enough for Redfield to advance on Krauser, grab him around the waist and lift him into the air as he ran with all his might towards the wall.
The rotten, abandoned structure gave way easily to the weight and force of their movement, causing them to run through the wall to another part of the factory, where Chris threw himself to the ground next to Krauser, who grunted as he felt his back hit the ground.
Krauser then landed a punch to the side of Chris's torso, who grunted in pain from the force. He landed two more punches in a row, until Chris grabbed his arm and landed a headbutt on his nose, causing Krauser to scream in annoyance and pain and land a punch on Chris's face, followed by a kick that made Redfield get up.
Krauser also stood up, with his back to Chris and his hand on his nose, blood dripping down his face. Chris had broken his nose and that pissed him off.
Chris, taking advantage of Krauser's back, looked around quickly. They were in some kind of office/waiting room, next to which were some wrecked chairs and a table.
Redfield quickly ran to the side and grunted slightly as he lifted the large wooden table. He then spun his body around, gaining momentum and struck the table at Krauser, who had started to turn and was hit full on by the wood which exploded on contact with his body, and the ex-military man was thrown backwards.
Krauser shouted angrily and got up quickly, punching Chris in the face so fast that Redfield barely had time to react. Krauser then hit Redfield in the stomach and grabbed him around the waist, lifting him off the ground.
Chris, realizing that Krauser was planning to throw him to the ground, turned his body in mid-air and used the momentum of Krauser's movement to throw the man off of him, and they both rolled to the ground.
Kraser ran towards Chris and grabbed him around the waist, again lifting him into the air as he ran at full speed towards the window. Chris knew what he was planning to do and began to land punches to the side of Krauser's torso as well as elbows to his back, but nothing slowed the man down, and Chris grunted loudly in pain as he felt his back go through the window and hit the concrete of the floor.
Krauser changed position, getting on top of Chris as he began to strangle him. Chris, in turn, began to strike Krauser's face, and despite causing damage due to the blood that flowed more abundantly with each punch, Krauser simply seemed to ignore it.
"Give it up..." The ex-military snarled, and Chris grunted as he felt his breath run out.
"Go... fuck yourself!" He roared back, and began to strike at the elbow joint, causing Krauser's grip to loosen, and after realizing that the grip had become weaker, Chris lifted his lower body and threw Krauser over himself, standing up and coughing a little soon after.
Both men were panting, both were bleeding from their wounds and were getting up at almost the same pace.
They looked at each other with a certain fierce gaze for some time, until Krauser simply somersaulted backwards. An incredible leap, impossible for an ordinary human, and he watched Chris from the roof of a nearby building.
"What the fuck?" Chris snorted in defiance. "I didn't know you were the cowardly type, Krauser. Running away from a fight? I thought you were better than that."
Krauser made a disdainful face.
"I underestimated you... I admit it." Krauser said, and soon he began to grunt as he raised his left arm.
Chris saw the mutation take place before his eyes. The muscles in Krauser's arm twitched, his veins turned red and bulged as an abnormal amount of mass was created. And soon, Krauser's left arm became a kind of sturdy long stake protected by a long sharp blade of bone. The sharp tip of his arm was long and slightly curved, similar to a Licker's claw, but much larger.
"You're dead, Redfield!" Krauser growled, and Chris shook his head.
"Poor bastard." He whispered with a certain regret. Despite his constant intrigues with Krauser, he respected him as a soldier.
Well, that would have to wait, he had something else to worry about now. And this time, hand-to-hand combat wouldn't be enough, he'd have to get his weapons back.
And to do that, he'd have to get an opening.
Claire limped backwards in a hurry as she fired non-stop with the shotgun. The constant kick left her arms slightly numb, her body had suffered considerable damage that day, and she wasn't talking about her fucked-up leg or anything like that, but rather her mind.
Neil's mutated form roared as it ran towards Claire, who gritted her teeth and widened her eyes slightly as she saw the creature her boyfriend had become raise its huge arms to crush her.
Ignoring the pain in her leg, she leapt away with all her might, jumping a few meters to the side. Not as far as she had imagined, but in the situation she was in, it would have to do.
Neil roared again as his mutation was completed. He had tripled his normal size, his body mass had grown exponentially. Bone spikes appeared in his left arm while his right arm stretched almost to the ground. His hand grew and his fingers became three. Claire had no doubt that if she were grabbed by that arm, it would be extremely easy to crush her.
On his chest, a yellow eye seemed to stare deep into Claire's soul.
Neil turned and grabbed the huge tank next to him, pulling the huge object out of the ground with extreme ease. Electricity practically exploded from the ground and the lights went out. The monster then threw the huge tank towards Claire with great ease.
Redfield ducked and grunted slightly from the impact and the noise of the loud explosion behind her.
She couldn't stay there. She didn't know if she could defeat Neil in that state, but at the moment, things didn't seem to be going her way.
The ground shook as Neil approached, quickening his steps the closer he got. Claire took two grenades from her tactical vest and threw them towards Neil.
The grenades exploded, halting the monster's advance, giving her time to limp towards the nearby door, she had to get out of this place.
As she limped, she reloaded her shotgun, again hearing Neil approaching a few moments later.
She went through the door and up a few steps of the staircase. Before she could climb any further, the concrete wall behind her broke. The whole place seemed to shake and Claire fell to the ground, feeling chunks of concrete hit the side of her body.
She turned to Neil, who raised his huge arm to crush her again. The woman gritted her teeth and rolled onto her side, grunting as she felt the metal ladder destroy her and send her crashing to the ground.
Ignoring the pain, she raised the shotgun and fired into the eye in Neil's chest, causing the monster to roar and stagger back a few steps, then put his huge right arm in front of the eye in his chest as a form of protection.
Claire put the shotgun on her back and picked up the rifle, unloading the magazine completely.
Neil roared again and tried to attack her once more. A punch that would break all her bones and probably shatter her internal organs.
Claire dodged as she ducked and grimaced as she saw the concrete being destroyed with some ease. He had become a kind of tyrant in a mixture with the G-virus... quickly and with incredible destructive power.
The woman stood up and jumped onto the part of the staircase that hadn't yet been destroyed, pulling her body up shortly after throwing her last grenade at Neil's feet.
As she climbed the ladder, she heard and felt the metal creak under the weight of Neil, who had his gaze fixed on her.
Claire managed to climb to the last rung of the ladder and got out of there as quickly as she could, running as fast as she could while reloading her weapons. However, she expected that she wouldn't make it very far, and shortly afterwards, the iron door and the concrete of the wall were thrown violently in her direction.
Neil stood up and leapt at her, who could only roll to the side and avoid being crushed by the monster's huge arms. She crawled backwards while shooting at Neil, who again put his arm in front of his chest for protection.
Neil raised his arm again to crush her, but Claire was quicker and backflipped, getting to her knees and unloading the shotgun's magazine into the creature's chest.
Neil roared and attacked her horizontally with his huge right arm. However, Claire was quicker and dodged the attack by jumping over it. As she landed, she grunted in pain as she fell on her stricken leg and ended up losing her balance, at which point Neil landed a hook on her small body, and all Claire could do before being hit was put her arms in front of her body as a form of protection.
The blow was so powerful that she was lifted a few meters off the ground, and while still in the air, Neil grabbed her.
Neil throws her to the ground twice and then tosses her aside. Simple, strong and fast. Claire spit blood as she felt her back hit the ground with unbelievable force, and grunted as her body bounced twice more for a few more meters.
Her ribs were broken, sure, her left arm most likely too... but apart from that, she was alive.
Something that would have been impossible, but at this point, she was no longer surprised by her body's physical capabilities.
She blinks a few times, spitting out some more blood. Some dripped down the side of her forehead and into the center of her eyes, staining the ground red.
The woman began to crawl towards the rifle that had fallen a few steps in front of her, but her speed was insignificant compared to the speed with which Neil was approaching right behind her.
She managed to grab the rifle, and grunted as she began to turn around with difficulty. Her eyes watched the huge creature approaching at a rapid pace, ready to deal it the final blow.
She futilely raised the rifle with just one of her arms and fired, unloading the magazine in the futile hope of causing some damage. Well, that only annoyed the monster that was Neil, who soon started running towards her.
Claire gasped a few times, lowering the gun as she gritted her teeth and felt thick tears run down her face along with her blood. It was amazing how quickly things could just go to shit.
However, she heard the sound of gunfire coming from just behind her, and to her surprise, Neil staggered a few steps to the side as he was hit in the eye, kneeling on the ground as he tried to protect himself from the powerful projectiles that pierced his flesh.
Claire turned her head to the side as she heard rapid footsteps approaching, and her eyes stared in surprise as the masked agent, Ghost, from what Sherry said, stopped right next to her with a desert ealge in his hands, pointed at Neil.
He didn't say anything, just looked at her. His blue eyes seemed troubled, they penetrated deep into hers, and she didn't even notice that they were staring at each other for a few moments.
He seemed... worried at first, seemed to analyze her from top to bottom, in a silent question as to whether she was all right. After that, his eyes took on a stronger tone, as if they were glowing an icy blue.
Without saying anything, he took a bottle of herbal mixture from his tactical vest, since the ones Claire had were crushed, and handed it to her. Claire took the bottle with a trembling hand, and as soon as she did, he simply ran towards Neil without saying a word.
The woman swallowed the herbal mixture along with some saliva and blood, her trembling hand wiped her wounded face and she watched as Neil tried to crush the agent, who simply let himself slide under the creature's legs.
Ghost shot Neil in the back, and the large creature turned quickly while brandishing its arm to strike him. A move that Ghost had expected and dodged by crouching down.
Kneeling just below Neil, he fired all the bullets from his desert eagle's magazine, causing the creature to stagger again. However, before he could reload his weapon, Neil threw himself towards him and raised both arms upwards before trying to crush him again.
Ghost dodged, throwing himself to one side. Rolling on the ground, he got up and ran towards the creature once again. Neil turned and tried to land a punch on his body, but Leon dodged it by stepping to the side and sliding under the creature's legs while leaving a grenade where he had passed.
The grenade exploded as soon as Neil turned around, causing the creature to stagger once more, giving Ghost the opportunity to unload another magazine into Neil's chest.
The creature roared in annoyance and tried to grab Ghost, who rolled forward, once again going under Neil's legs and reloading his desert eagle.
Neil then turned around at great speed, attempting a hook on Ghost, who took a step back and threw a flash grenade at the ground.
Neil roared, but contrary to what Ghost had thought, the creature grabbed him. Apparently Neil wasn't stunned by that kind of grenade, and Ghost grunted as he felt his body being squeezed.
However, he heard shotgun blasts right next to him, and Neil let go after being hit by a hail of bullets from Claire, who unloaded the last magazine of the shotgun.
She noticed Ghost staring at her as he stood up.
"What? I'm tired of letting other people fight for me." She said, still gasping slightly, and although he didn't reply, Ghost just turned his head to the side before firing at Neil while Claire reloaded her rifle as fast as she could.
Neil roared and put his huge arm in front of his body as he ran towards Claire, who was the closest. However, Ghost interrupted his attack with his desert alge and climbed up the side of Neil's body, kneeling on the creature's shoulder.
Neil began to struggle as he tried to pull Ghost off him. However, his left arm was much smaller than his right, and he couldn't reach the insect, which plunged the knife into his neck and hung on his back while Claire fired with the rifle.
Neil struggled more violently, and at one point, he jumped high and lay still in the air. Realizing what the monster was planning to do, Ghost jumped to the side before Neil hit the ground.
Taking advantage of the fact that the creature was down, Ghost quickly tore out the eye in its chest and put up a c4 and moved away.
The moment Neil got up, Ghost pressed the button on the small device in his hand and the c4 exploded. Pus, pieces of flesh and blood exploded together in a cloud of smoke.
Claire put her hand in front of her face and grunted slightly at the noise, and as soon as she lowered her arm, her eyes followed Ghost putting two more c4s into Neil's still-moving body.
She closed her eyes and put her hands over her ears. An explosion even bigger than the previous one happened, and Claire almost lost her balance from the impact.
Claire lowered her arms again, letting the rifle fall to the side of her leg as her eyes surveyed what was left of Neil's body. Just a pile of flesh, two huge deformed legs.
She didn't move a muscle. She didn't know exactly what to do at the moment, and she didn't want to think about it too much. She didn't even have the strength to cry anymore, nor did she want to. To be honest, she wondered how she was standing at the moment, she knew very well that it wasn't that mixture of herbs.
She closed her eyes, remembering the times she'd had with Neil. All those conversations, those nights out together and the hope he had given her, thrown away.
Maybe she wasn't good enough for that...
Ghost watched Claire for a while, feelings conflicting inside him. She looked so... tired. Similar to the way she looked when they left Raccoon City. What she must have gone through there.
She didn't know the man that giant infected had been, but apparently he was important to her. Perhaps a colleague or a dear friend, or something else.
He swallowed some saliva, annoyed with himself for feeling so nervous. How could he, after all that training, feel so nervous in the presence of just one person?
He didn't know what he should do, but she looked so... lost... so shaken, and he felt something he never thought he would feel again. Worry... he just did what his instincts told him.
The woman was brought out of her thoughts when Ghost put his hand on her shoulder, just briefly. Her eyes met his, which seemed a little nervous, conflicted even.
"... You should sit down. Your leg isn't looking too good." His thick voice woke her up, and only then was she struck by the pain of her injuries.
She turned around and started toward a small pile of dirt ahead, ignoring the sensation his voice caused her. It sounded so familiar...
She heard him following her closely, and after she sat down, she watched him kneel down next to her. It almost made her roll her eyes, usually she would have taken care of it herself, but she wasn't in the mood at the moment.
Without saying anything, he began to analyze her leg.
"... Your wound has started to heal... but there are still pieces of the capsules in your flesh." He said, and Claire ducked her head as a disdainful smile appeared on her face. What a fucking day...
"... I..." She began, not really wanting to talk at the moment. "I don't suppose you have a medical kit lying around, do you?"
Without answering, he took out his knife and pulled out a small compartment in the handle. There was a small pair of tweezers wrapped in a small cloth and a small bottle of an orange liquid, and Claire arched her eyebrows slightly. That was curious. There was a hidden compartment in the handle of his knife... that wasn't something you saw every day.
"I'm going to take the pieces of the bullet out of your leg." He said, taking some bandages from a back pocket of his tactical vest, as well as a small bottle of saline. "That'll hurt. In the meantime, I'll warn your brother."
Claire blinked a few times as she stared at him.
"Chris? Is he here?" she asked, and Ghost stared at her for a few moments.
"Due to some... circumstances, I'm helping him for the time being. We came together. He should be in that town now." He said, and Claire suppressed a groan as she felt the saline drip down her wounds, she lowered her head and bit her lips, feeling the tweezers penetrate her leg and search for pieces of bullet.
"Damn... you almost lost your leg... either the person who shot you had terrible aim, or very good aim." He said, bandaging the wound for the moment. "I've done what I can here, but you're going to need a hospital."
Ghost put the objects in his vest and stood up, still watching Claire.
"... Thank you." She said in a hoarse voice, shaking her head a little and letting out a tired sigh. "Why isn't Chris with you?"
"We were attacked by some infected... we got separated. But he's probably alive." He said, hiding the fact that Sherry was there too. If he was worried about the girl, Claire would definitely be worried, and she wasn't in a situation where he could let that happen.
"Probably huh? Um, you don't seem very positive." She said, sighing once more.
"Do I have to be? If that's the case, he's not as skilled as I've heard." He said, picking up his bottle of water and handing it towards Claire, who accepted it without a second thought. "And speaking of him, I'd better let him know I've found you."
"Wait." She stopped him after drinking all the water in the bottle. "Don't tell him yet. I have a favor to ask you."
He looked at her with a neutral face, his hand still on the radio on his shoulder, but waiting for her to continue.
"Sherry said that your job is to kill everything and everyone related to bio-terrorism. The woman who brought us here, Alex. She's responsible for all this and I want your help to kill her." Claire said, resting her arm on his thigh as she stared at him.
Ghost's eyes shone in a strange glow, and he slowly lowered his hand from his radio.
"A woman called Alex, huh... who knew." He said as he shook his head and let out a nasal laugh. "If this Alex is who I think she is, then I definitely have to warn your brother as soon as possible."
Claire blinked a few times, staring at him, waiting for him to continue.
"Alex Wesker... Albert Wesker's sister... my team and I were aware of some of the hiding places she's been using over the last few years. We had plans to go after her. Albert was the priority, of course, but we already had this mission in mind." Claire lowered her gaze to the floor, her eyes distant...
Well... it made sense then.
"... What the fuck..." She said with a sigh. "Then we really need to kill her now, that's our priority."
Ghost shook his head.
"I agree, but, Redfield, there's no 'we'. You're in no condition to keep wandering around this island." Claire blinked a few times.
"What? You're kidding me." She stood up while raising her voice. "Do you have any idea what she's done? Not just to me, but to thousands of other people?"
"It must have been horrible things, for sure, but you're in no condition."
"Oh, fuck that! What are you planning to do? Leave me here alone waiting for Chris to come and get me?!" She almost shouted, feeling her heart pounding in her chest in frustration.
"I would never do that. I'll take you to your brother, and he'll take you to safety while I call my team and go after Alex myself." She shook her head, her wide eyes not believing it
"Are you kidding me?"
"I have no reason to do that, Redfield. As Sherry has already told you, this is my job. And by going after Alex I'm only doing what I was created to do." Claire took a few deep breaths, running her hands nervously through her hair.
"Okay... okay... look, I can help."
"No, you can't, not with that leg."
"But I can't just be left behind in a fucking hospital bed while you stay here fighting that bitch!"
"I'm sure your brother would like that idea very much. It's what's best for you." She clicked her tongue in irritation.
"And since when do you know what's best for me?"
"I know what's best for civilians."
"Oh, so I'm just a civilian now?"
"Training or not, you're not part of any military institution, your career doesn't follow that area. You're not a soldier of any kind, so yes, you're a civilian, and right now I'm just doing what I'm supposed to do in a situation with civilians, get them to safety." Ghost said, his tone controlled, neutral, perhaps even a little cold at times, strictly professional.
And perhaps that was exactly what was irritating Claire so much at the moment.
"I don't care about this fucking procedure, I'm going with you. And if you don't let me go, I'm going alone." She said, her tone now a little lower, but still venomous and acidic, almost making Ghost sigh.
"Miss Redfield, I don't think you can get past me, especially in the state you're in. As I said, I'm going to take you to Chris, and if he can't come here at the moment, I'll stay with you until he arrives. That's what I promised." He said.
"Fuck!" She shouted in frustration, grunting slightly in pain as she suddenly moved her leg.
Ghost watched her for a few moments. He felt a little bad, which didn't make any sense, since it was only for the best.
Oh, but you're going to regret this so much... what happened to all your training, agent?
He shook his head and picked up the small bottle with the orange liquid.
Agent, this is a bad idea, are you really going to throw away everything you've learned over the years? For what? Out of a sense of compassion? For fuck's sake, it's only been a few nights. Not even a week.
He simply ignored what his agent side was saying and held out the bottle to Claire, who looked at him with some confusion.
"What the fuck is that?"
"That's a special mix. Used for longer missions or when our agents suffer massive damage. It's twice as strong as a regular herbal blend, plus it energizes you due to the caffeine. You won't feel any more pain, no matter the injury." Claire took the small bottle, and a slight frown formed on her face.
"Okay... what consequences?" She asked, opening the small lid.
"At first, none. After a few hours you'll feel heavy and sleep for a while. When you wake up you may feel a little dizzy, blurred vision and very, very thirsty, but that's all. The only problem is with constant use."
Claire drank from the bottle and waited. In a matter of minutes she felt her body warm, the pain disappeared and she felt energized, as if she had just woken up after a good night's sleep.
She felt good, very good.
She stood up and looked down, no longer feeling the pain in her leg or in her broken ribs, which were probably already healing.
"I'll tell your brother. You've got about five hours, after that, you'll sleep no matter what." Claire walked over and picked up the rifle that lay on the ground, checking the empty mag afterwards.
"Well... we'd better find Alex before then." She said, and Ghost cracked the bones in his neck, wondering if it was a good idea to have done that.
Well, fuck it, it's done.
"Ghost to purgatory, do you copy?" He said as he started walking, waving for Claire to follow him.
"Ghost, any problems?" Claire, despite being a few steps further back, could clearly hear the conversation they were having, and just stayed silent while he talked to his people.
"More like an opportunity. How's the reaper?" Reaper? The other agent, Sherry had mentioned him that time.
"He's fine, you know he recovers quickly. He's asleep at the moment." From the voice, it was a woman on the other end of the radio.
"Well, unfortunately we're going to have to wake him up. It's possible that Alex Wesker is on this island, I need you to find out everything you can about this island, find out Alex's location if possible and send a spy helicopter and a team of five to the concentration trap. If Alex is here, bring everything, I want her dead and this island destroyed." He said, and Claire could hear the woman starting to type something, even though she was so far away.
"Starting to investigate... I would need something more to be faster, I should contact you in a few hours." The woman said, and Ghost sighed.
"It'll have to be enough, I'll call you if I find anything. Ghost, out." He cracked the bones in his neck once more as he changed the radio channel.
"Redfield, are you there?" He called over the radio and waited for some time, but there was no answer.
"Valentine, Luciani?" He tried again.
"Ghost, good, where are you?" Jill asked over the radio, and in the background, they could hear the sound of gunfire. They were probably dealing with some infected.
"Outside the city, near the crash site. To be honest, I wanted to go home, but little Redfield here wanted to go for a walk in the city." Claire looked at him with an arched eyebrow, she didn't know he had a sense of humor.
"You found her?! Really? Can I talk to her?" Jill asked, and Ghost turned to Claire, who came a few steps closer. They both looked at each other for a moment, curious. They could still hear the sound of gunfire coming from the background.
"Jill."
"Oh, Claire, thank God! You have no idea how much you've worried us." Claire smiled slightly at the woman's preoccupied manner as she looked around. Apart from the infected and the situation in general, this place had a certain charm.
It could even be... peaceful.
"Sorry... they took me by surprise." She said as she ran a hand through her hair.
"I'll come and find you, okay? Ghost, call me when you get close to the city, I'll set off the flare."
"That's fine, but... um... Jill? We're hearing gunfire... what's going on?" Claire asked with a confused little grimace.
"We're going to Chris. We got separated because of some infected, and Krauser showed up." Claire straightened her posture immediately, her eyes slightly wide.
"Krauser?! That piece of shit is here? Fuck, he's the one who brought me here!" She scolded.
"We figured... Parker's going there and I'm going to find you. Any sign of Sherry?" Claire grimaced and looked at Ghost, who just shrugged.
"Is Sherry here too?"
"Oh, Claire, come on, do you really think she'd stay behind?" Claire sighed.
"No... of course not."
"Anyway, she's going to see the flare too. We'll meet up in a bit." Jill said, ending the conversation.
"Why didn't you say Sherry was here?" Claire asked as soon as they were walking again.
"Because it wasn't important at the moment, you didn't seem in any condition to be worried." He said, casting a quick eye over the area they were in. That part of the forest had several infected bodies scattered across the ground.
"Worried? More like surprised, I didn't think Chris would let her come here." She watched him pick up a knife and head towards an infected further on. He didn't sneak up behind the infected, and ended up being noticed.
He stepped to the side, punched the infected in the head and finished him off by stabbing his knife into the neck of what had once been a man.
"Well, he didn't have much of a choice." He replied, looking at the small hills around him and walking towards the highest one.
Claire followed him. He was... a little different from what she had imagined in her mind. Was he more... gentle? Well, it was undeniable that he had a somewhat menacing aura and his eyes caused a pressure she wasn't used to feeling, he was dangerous and just one look into his eyes made her body go on alert.
However, there was something else about him.
Ghost ignored the feeling of Claire's gaze on his back and climbed to the top of the hill, looking around for the best route to the city. Not far from there was a small village, a little further to his right. To his left, he could see the wall that surrounded the town. Maybe twelve or thirteen minutes' walk.
"So, what's this? From what Sherry said, you wouldn't get involved with the BSAA. Why are you helping my brother?" Claire asked, wanting to think of anything but the last few minutes. She'd have time to feel like crap later, she didn't need to start now.
"A little setback called Albert Wesker. This mishap attacked my base, I had no choice but to team up with people who hate him as much as I do." He explained, walking towards the wall.
"So it's only a temporary alliance." She said, and he confirmed it.
After a few minutes of walking, they approached the wall.
"Valentine, we're close to the city." He said over the radio, and in a matter of moments, they both saw a flare go up into the sky.
They quickly descended the hill and jumped over the wall surrounding the town. It wasn't too difficult, as the wall wasn't that high.
Ghost continued to lead the way with his rifle raised and took quick steps towards the beacon. They walked down the deserted streets until they found Jill watching them from the top of a building ahead.
"There's a ladder in the alley." She pointed to the side, and in just under a minute, she was walking towards Claire with her arms open.
"It's so good to see you..." She said, squeezing Redfield against her body, and Claire did the same, closing her eyes as she enjoyed that squeeze. She needed it.
"I hope you know that from now on, Chris won't leave your side. Your apartment? Gone, you're moving in with him." Claire smiled.
"I know." She said, and they both looked at Ghost, who approached.
"Sorry to interrupt, but where's the third Redfield?" He asked.
"I don't know... Sherry should be here by now." Jill said, and Ghost grunted softly.
"Sherry, do you copy?" He called her on the radio, and sighed impatiently after some time without an answer. "Sherry, can you hear me?"
"How did you split up?" Claire asked.
"We were attacked by infected on the bridge. The bridge gave way and she and Ghost fell, but a long way from each other. We said we'd set off the flare and, if anything, we'd radio each other." Jill explained, watching Ghost's back.
"Damn, girl, are you listening?!" He spoke louder, mentally scolding himself for showing more than he wanted to, but fuck if they saw him worried, he didn't get that far just for the girl to die in a place like that.
"It's not... the best time, Ghost!" He finally had an answer, and everyone could hear the girl's panting voice, as well as the destruction going on in the background.
"Where are you?" He asked, changing the magazines on his rifle to incendiary ammunition.
"I'm... near a warehouse! In a dead-end street!" She said over the radio, and they could hear the roar of something chasing her.
"Launch the flare, I'm coming to you." That's all he said before turning to the two women.
"We're coming with you." Claire said, and he shook his head.
"No, you're going to Chris. And that's not up for debate, Redfield." He said firmly, not joking.
"What? You don't-"
"No, shut up and listen now." He interrupted her rudely. "We're going after Alex, but I promised Chris I'd help get you home safely and I like to be a man of my word. You and Jill go to him, and I'll go to Sherry, we've wasted enough time already." He said, turning back after hearing the beacon.
She was maybe two or three blocks away.
He turned again, facing Claire, who had a very unfriendly expression on her face.
"I think it's for the best. At least we can be sure she'll be in good hands." Jill said, not wanting to give Claire the chance to intervene.
"Good." Was all he said, before turning and running towards the beacon. The two watched as he started jumping from rooftop to rooftop, from lamppost to lamppost towards Sherry.
(Just one thing, usually I'd make the fight scenes much longer than they are, especially Chris's since there's a lot of hand-to-hand combat, and I think everyone who's come this far has realized that I like to write fight scenes xd. They're fun to write and I take a lot of inspiration from Boyka's movies lol. However, I've had to cut back a bit and even rush them because of time.
So, if you notice a tone of urgency in the chapter, it's because I've run out of time. I don't know when I'll be posting again this month. On the bright side, though, I'll have a lot more time in December. Thanks for understanding)
Ps: Seriously, this site should have an easier way to alert readers, I don't know, like a chat room for each story, or a place like a timeline, so it would be easier to alert readers without having to post a chapter for that. I know how frustrating it is to see a story update and realize it was just a heads-up.
