PART TWO: JOSEPH

Chapter 5

"Joseph!" was the last thing that Joseph Trevor Forst heard before death, coming from the mouth of Jill Valentine.

At least, that was the last thing until something occurred within him. Joseph had no clue what was going on, but before he knew it, his wide open, dead eyes, were suddenly alive once more. He blinked, but it hurt like hell to do so, and he could feel blood oozing down his eyelids from the movement.

"This is probably going to take longer than we have to wait," a Russian voice said. "We still have to retrieve Dr. Wesker."

Joseph didn't recognize who that voice belonged to. He didn't know anyone Russian, but he had said the last name of his Captain and had referred to him as a doctor. That was odd. Despite that he didn't really know Albert Wesker all that well, Joseph would've liked to think that he would've known if his Captain had also had a doctorate in something.

"Get him to the chopper, Ivan," the Russian said.

'Ivan?' Joseph thought. 'Who is Ivan?'

Before he could think about this any further, Joseph found himself being lifted off the ground. Joseph had zero function in his body. It amazed him that he'd even blinked, but perhaps that had been more of a reflex than him actually willing it. From what little he could remember, those monstrous dogs had seemingly ripped him apart. They were… eating him.

'The wild animal attacks,' Joseph remembered.

It was believed that a Cannibal Cult was out in Raccoon Forest, and there were also theories that they were using rabid animals. In this case, they were apparently dogs, but these dogs hadn't acted like they had rabies or something similar. They were all covered in blood, making strange vocalizations, and they smelled of… death. In fact, they looked dead too.

'My God!' the realization hit Joseph hard. 'It's like a horror movie. They were walking dead dogs. Zombie dogs. They looked like hell hounds. What did Hades call his three headed dog in that Disney movie? Cerberus! That was it! That's what I'll call them.'

It wasn't too long ago that Joseph had watched that movie in theatres with his little brother Bobby. Maybe that was why it had stuck with him now.

'I hope you're ok, little brother,' Joseph thought to himself, after suddenly realizing that if he had stayed dead, his brother would've been all alone. He was still in middle school, and Joseph was the one making ends meet. Their father had passed away the previous year from cancer, way too young, and their mother had taken her own life out of grief, selfishly not thinking about her children.

Suddenly, Joseph heard a door open, and then he was sitting down. Whoever Ivan was had to be really strong to have carried him as far as he had. Then the door closed, and he was alone. Trying to move his head proved to be impossible, and it actually hurt to do so. He'd wanted to see where he was and maybe what direction Ivan and the Russian had gone in, but he was practically paralyzed.

That was when the real pain began. Suddenly, Joseph's body was on fire, but not literally though. He'd never felt so much burning pain in his entire life. There were no true words for the agony, but through it all, Joseph felt as if perhaps his body was repairing itself. Maybe he was imagining it, trying to think positively at the end of his life.

'Is it the end?'

He wasn't honestly sure. As his eyes shot open wide, they burned red, the shape slitting into a cat shape.

As quickly as the pain started, it ended as well, and he was slowly starting to realize his surroundings. He hadn't known it before, but he was wearing a strange cloak, and the hood was up as well. Perhaps the Russian or Ivan had put it on him without him knowing or realizing it, but why? Were they trying to hide his identity? They were planning to retrieve Captain Wesker. Did they not want him knowing that they'd taken someone that was presumed dead?

Looking around took a lot of energy out of him, but he could tell that he was inside a chopper, in the co-pilot's seat. It looked like someone was strapped down in the back, but he couldn't tell anything about the person back there because of how dark it was. He wanted to say something to try to get the person's attention, but the words wouldn't come. His mouth wasn't working, and that probably meant that his vocal cords hadn't fully repaired either. He recalled his throat being ripped open by the Cerberus, so there was a good chance speech would take time.

Then he noticed something from facing forward finally: The Spencer Mansion Estate was just ahead in the near distance.

'Chris… Jill… Barry… Albert.'

He had to get to his team. He had to help them.

However, all of the effort he'd exerted, trying to get a feel for his surroundings took what little strength he'd gained out of him, and Joseph found himself closing his eyes, unable to fight off the sleep…

Muffled talking brought Joseph out of his slumber, but he still couldn't move.

'How long has it been?' he thought to himself. 'Thirty minutes? An hour?'

It couldn't have been much longer than that, and as the back door slid open, he could suddenly hear the familiar voice of Captain Wesker speaking to the Russian. He wanted to look up, wanted to say something, but the effort to do so simply wasn't there. The burning sensation was still within his body, and the pain forced him to close his eyes once more.

He didn't hear the conversation between Wesker and Sergei. He didn't know that the rest of his team had been rescued by Brad Vickers. He didn't know that Ivan was flying them away from The Spencer Estate. Hell, he didn't even hear the massive explosion behind them, as the self-destruct blew up the mansion.

Joseph's eyes shot open as they blazed for a brief moment before turning into a neutral and dull yellow. He sat up in the bed and grabbed his head, a headache immediately attacking his senses. He could hear traffic outside from the nearby window and groaned from how loud it was.

"I have something for that," an unfamiliar voice said.

Joseph pulled his hand down and turned toward the voice, surprised that it didn't kill him to move his head. Maybe he was finally on the mend. However, what concerned him now was that he didn't recognize whoever was in front of him. The man wore a trench coat over top of his suit and tie, and he was holding what he figured to be headache medicine and a glass of water.

"You're going to be feeling the after effects of the W-Virus for quite some time," the trench coat man said.

Joseph pulled his feet off the bed, moving into a sitting position, amazed that it didn't hurt to do so. Accepting the medicine and the glass of water, he looked it for a long moment.

"It's just Advil," the man said. "Trust me. I wouldn't have brought you back from the dead just to kill you all over again."

"You don't sound Russian," Joseph said, the first words coming out of his mouth since he was attacked. He sighed in relief. "I can finally talk again."

"Your body is fully repaired," trench coat said. "And no, I'm not Russian. You're referring to Sergei. He's an associate of mine."

"Are you Ivan then?" Joseph asked.

He grinned.

Joseph was taken back by the grin. It kind of creeped him out.

The man stopped smiling. "Sorry. It's a reflex. A wall I've put up around myself. Listen, normally this is the part of my script where I tell you that my name is Trent." He shook his head. "I'm not going to do that."

Joseph finally put the Advil in his mouth and drunk the water, hoping that the medicine would take affect quickly. "So, Trent isn't your name?"

"It's an alias," Trent replied. "I've been using it and playing my role for so long that I've basically fully embraced this identity. It's just one of many reasons that I needed you in particular."

"Why did you need my Captain?" Joseph asked.

"Dr. Wesker?" Trent asked in response. "Oh, he's fully for my character. Trent has a lot that he needs for him to accomplish from the shadows. Just like you, everyone believes that he's dead."

Joseph gulped. "Does my brother think I'm dead?"

Trent moved over and took a seat beside Joseph. "I need to make certain that I have your full trust and confidence, so I've taken the liberty of placing Bobby Frost under the protection of my associates from a small faction that knows the truth about me."

"A faction that you want me to be part of?" Joseph asked.

Trent nodded. "That's right. You and I are going to change the world, Joseph, and your new gifts are going to make that possible."

"New gifts?" Joseph asked.

"Bringing you back from the dead comes at a high price," Trent explained. "You're no longer a human as our world defines it. You're a form of evolution now. Within your blood is something that I'd almost consider magic. Dr. Wesker has that same gift, and the two of you are going to be using it for very different reasons."

"There's that doctor title again," Joseph said. "I've always known him as Captain Wesker."

"That was a fake title," Trent told him. "Albert Wesker was a head researcher at The Umbrella Corporation."

Joseph's eyes widened in shock, trying desperately to comprehend what he was being told. "I don't understand. What does Umbrella want with the S.T.A.R.S.?"

"A great deal, I'm afraid," Trent replied. "You're going to discover that a lot of people that you trusted and relied on are actually quite evil. I'm not devoid of that myself. I've had to do a lot of things that I'm not proud of to get to where I am, but it's all been for a greater good."

"So, this is about who you really are?" Joseph asked. "The man that you're desperately trying to cling to being despite your Trent character?"

Trent nodded. "My name is Victor Darius. I'm the son of two researches from Umbrella, much like Dr. Wesker. My parents were Dr. James Trenton Darius and Dr. Helen Black-Darius. They helped Dr. James Marcus and Dr. Edward Ashford discover the T-Virus through the even more destructive Progenitor Virus, a very powerful, but deadly strain from Africa. Some of the higher ups in Umbrella never liked the methods and vision that my parents had for the discoveries that were made. They thought Umbrella could become something greater. My parents were murdered in what was deemed accidental while I was away at school. They forgot I even existed. Dr. Ashford disappeared after their deaths, and then Dr. Wesker and a colleague of his murdered Dr. Marcus."

Joseph took a deep breath. "That's a lot to process."

Trent smiled, but his smile was quite genuine for a change. "Yes, I know. I don't expect everything to settle in right away. You've just come back from a traumatic experience. You need to fully regain your strength."

Trent stood up, but Joseph grasped hold of his arm. He looked down to him.

"Please, let me see my brother," Joseph pleaded.

"Soon," Trent told him. "I promise. We're not holding him against his will. He knows that you're alive, despite that others would tell him different. I will make arrangements once you're fully up to it. Right now, you're staying at Grady's Inn, second floor. I don't plan to keep you in Raccoon City long. There's much to do."

As Trent moved toward the door, Joseph stood up. "One last question."

Trent turned back and nodded.

"What the hell were those dogs that attacked me?" Joseph asked.

Trent sighed. "The terrible result of brilliant minds being murdered to further dark agendas. The Cannibal Cult that you believed was in Arklay County was actually Umbrella's failures coming home to roost. It is up to us to bring down Umbrella for what they've done."

"Let me bring in Chris, Jill, and Barry," Joseph pleaded. "If they survived our mission, they're good people. They'll believe all of –"

Trent put up a hand to stop Joseph's ramblings. "They are still alive, along with Rebecca and Brad." He could see relief on Joseph's face, and then continued. "Trust me. They're already involved. They just aren't in the know like you are. Now, get some rest, and, please, make certain the truths that I gave you about myself stay between us. I have many enemies, and none of them need to know who they're really dealing with. The future of the whole world depends on it."

Joseph nodded. "Your secret is safe with me."

Trent nodded. "Thank you. We're going to accomplish great things together. I promise."

With that, Trent moved out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Joseph could hear a locking mechanism going off outside the door, and he figured that meant that he was stuck for the time being, but it didn't bother him. He knew a good portion of what was going on, thanks to Victor's honesty. Out there, his brother knew that he was alive as well. It was a cold comfort, but at least Bobby was taken care of.

Grabbing a remote on the nightstand beside the bed, Joseph turned on the television, hoping to get an update on the outside world from Raccoon 7 News. He was disappointed to find that Terri Morales was giving a weather report. Rolling his eyes, Joseph took a seat on the bed and waited as patiently as he could for something more important.