Chapter two:

Inside the ship, Artemis handed out cups of water to Alice, Carlos, and Claire. She stopped beside Claire, gently checking the cut on her forehead. "That's a bad cut. I have something I can put on that for you."

"Thank you," Claire said.

Artemis consulted the first aid supplies on the ship and returned. As she gently cleaned Claire's cut, she looked over at Alice. "You look familiar."

"You noticed that too?" Alice returned.

Artemis nodded. "Hard not to. We even sound the same."

"Would you mind explaining what's happened to us?" Claire asked.

"Let me guess. You were in a terrible storm. It was unlike any storm you'd ever seen. Before you knew it, you were here," Artemis said. She finished bandaging Claire's cut and smiled. "There you go."

Carlos downed his water like whiskey. "That's a hell of a guess."

"It happened to me and my men. We were looking for some missing soldiers when the storm brought us here. The monsters in this world killed them all. I tried to get home, and I was back in our world for a little while. The problem was that the portal wouldn't close. The monsters that live in this world were free to come into ours. I couldn't let that happen. Not after what the Rathalos did to our people. So, I came back here and made damn sure the portal would remain closed."

"Then how are we here?" Alice asked.

"That's what I want to know. No one in this world has gone near the Sky Tower in years. That much I can tell you. That means that someone in our world figured out how to reopen the portal from that side. Which shouldn't have been possible," Artemis responded. She got a hard look about her. "So, who are you? What do you have to do with the portal?"

Alice glared at the accusation. "Nothing. We're just survivors. We were on our way to get supplies from Las Vegas when the storm hit."

"Survivors? Of what?" Artemis wondered.

"How long have you been here?" Carlos asked.

Artemis stopped to think. "Time moves differently in this world, but as far as I can figure? About five years."

"Then you left before T-virus took over," Claire realized.

"What's that?" Artemis asked.

"It's the virus that destroyed our world," Alice said. "It reanimates dead tissue and turns people into walking corpses that only want to feed. It laid most of the planet to waste. There aren't many people left. We've had to keep on the move to survive."

This was a tough pill for Artemis to swallow. She reached into her pocket, gripping the little tin that housed her wedding ring, as tears filled her eyes. "Is everyone dead?"

"Most people didn't make it," Claire admitted.

"How did it happen?" Artemis asked.

Alice sighed, feeling bad for the strange woman. "The T-virus was manufactured and then released by someone who wanted to profit from it. No one could contain the infection once it started."

"I stayed here to protect our world from the evils of this one," Artemis softly said. "I guess I couldn't protect us from ourselves."

"I'm sorry," Alice replied.

Artemis ignored the few tears on her cheeks. "That still doesn't explain how you're here. Who could have figured out how to reopen the portal?"

"I don't know. The only people left with the resources to do anything like that would be Umbrella," Alice said.

That gave Artemis pause. "Who's Umbrella?"

"Surely, you know the Umbrella Corporation. They're the biggest commercial entity in the world," Carlos said.

"I've never heard of them," Artemis answered. Everyone exchanged glances. She thought that perhaps Umbrella had come into existence after she left, so she figured she should ask for context. "Maybe I've been gone longer than I realized. What year did you just come from?"

"2007," Claire replied.

Artemis felt herself laugh. "That's not possible. When I left, it was 2019."

"You can't be serious," Carlos said.

"I am serious. Look at this," Artemis answered as she turned. She showed one of her tattoos, which read 11-03-07. She turned back to her new friends. "I got that tattoo to commemorate the day I joined the Army. Whatever world you're from, I don't think it's the same one that I came from."

Alice was stumped. For a moment, she had assumed that Artemis was her clone. It would make sense, given Umbrella's fondness for genetic research. If they weren't clones, how did they look so similar? Alice knew she didn't have a long-lost twin, and upon closer inspection she noticed that Artemis was somewhat older than her. Could it be that Captain Natalie Artemis was Alice—but from another reality?

"But you are from Earth, right?" Claire asked.

Artemis held an amused smirk. "Yeah. I'm a human, from a planet called Earth. But my world never had this Umbrella Corporation you're talking about."

"That explains why you didn't have the T-virus," Carlos commented.

"So, someone has opened a portal from a different earth. I think we're getting into some serious science fiction stuff that is way beyond my paygrade," Artemis said.

Alice nodded at that. "Somehow, Umbrella found a way to reach this world. And I think I might know why. I don't think it's a coincidence that we look so similar."

"What do you mean?" Artemis asked.

"I think you're me and I'm you…just in different worlds. In my reality, Umbrella exists, and I went to work for them. There was an incident, and I ended up becoming their prized experiment. They made me into whatever I am now. They need me for their research, but I've been evading them for years. If they want to continue their experiments, and they're worried they might never catch me—"

Artemis was quick. "Umbrella is looking to capture me instead. Is that what you're saying?"

"It is. They'd do anything to get me back, but to have a human version of me? You're a blank slate. They could start over. Do all kinds of new things to you. That's assuming that they figured out how to access an alternate reality and open a portal," Alice said.

Claire held up a hand. "I'm having trouble with this multiple reality theory."

"We just had a sand dinosaur creature the size of a building try to kill us in a desert we've never seen before," Carlos said. "I think we have to keep an open mind."

"This is great. I have a shady organization hunting me from a parallel reality because they want to use me as a lab rat," Artemis mumbled. "And I thought the monsters in this world were bad."

"Umbrella is the worst monster of all," Alice said.

"If that's the case, they need to stay in your reality with the walking dead you told me about. The ones infected with the T-virus," Artemis grumbled. She got to thinking about the portal and let out a groan. "And those things could now cross over into this world at any moment. Then, your plague would be our plague. This is not good…"

"We have to close the portal. We can't let the virus spread even further than it already has," Alice said simply.

Their conversation was interrupted by the appearance of a tall older man, the Admiral, and a wiry fellow, the Hunter. The Hunter spoke in a language that Alice, Carlos, and Claire did not quite understand. Artemis, after five years, had learned it. She spoke to the Hunter and then looked back at Alice and the others.

"He wanted to know if you're friends or if we needed to break out the chains," Artemis translated. "I told him to wait on the chains."

"What is the situation?" the Admiral asked.

Artemis grumbled. "In plain talk? It's bad. The portal opened from their world. If we want to close it, I bet we have to go there. The problem is that their world is ending. They'd be better off staying here."

"I don't know about that. You have some serious monsters," Claire commented.

"They're not so bad if you learn how to live with them," Artemis returned.

Carlos jumped in. "She has a point. Our world is dying. It might be safer for the convoy here."

"We can't offer passage to more than a few," the Admiral replied.

"We could find somewhere else to live. Surely, there'd be a place for us," Carlos said back.

The Admiral nodded. "There would be room, but once people from your world nearly destroyed mine. I don't make a habit of befriending your kind. Artemis is an exception to my rule."

"Their world sounds like hell on earth. I think a few people could stay," Artemis replied.

"What about the portal? How do we close it?" Alice asked.

The Admiral pointed out the window at the tower in the distance. "The Sky Tower has controlled the portal for ages. We remain the area to ensure no one reactivates it, and no one here has. That means there is a similar structure in your world, one that serves the same purpose. You should be able to deactivate it, if not demolish it. However…"

"When the other Sky Tower is out of commission, whoever goes back to our world will be stuck there," Alice figured.

The Admiral took a closer look at Alice. "Artemis, you didn't mention you had a twin."

"Yeah. I didn't know either," Artemis replied. It was easier to go along with the twin theory than explaining what was truly going on to the Admiral. She felt the tension rising in her neck. "I guess we can help this convoy of yours find a new home here. Then, I'll need a few volunteers to go back to your world with me. I'll help you destroy whatever opened the portal."

"No. We can't risk Umbrella getting its hands on you," Alice disagreed.

"You don't know anything about this world or how the technology works. I've learned over the last five years. You'll need me with you," Artemis said.

The Admiral nodded. "You'll need her. I hate to see her go, but someone needs to go there and ensure this can never happen again. A guardian for the portal in either world. I'll keep watch here. Artemis can keep watch in the other world."

"Unless you want monsters in your world and the T-virus to ravage this one, I suggest we go with this plan," Artemis said.

Alice relented. "All right. We'll go with your plan."

"We'll now find your friends," the Admiral agreed.

The Admiral went up to the deck. Artemis got ready to leave with the Hunter, who was again talking in his language. Although, Alice thought she recognized a few English words. Artemis said something back to him and then glanced at the trio. "He wanted to know if you had any chocolate. I told him you don't. We'll be up top. It'd help if one of you could let us know which direction you came from."

"I'll go," Claire offered.

Claire joined Artemis and the Hunter. They went up top as Carlos and Alice stayed behind. Alice bit her lip anxiously, glancing over at Carlos. "If Umbrella gets their hands on more of my human DNA…"

"Artemis was right. We can't allow a portal between our worlds. Imagine if the undead came here. What they could do to these people," Carlos said. He got a smile. "At least we found a safe haven for our people after all. Somewhere better than Alaska."

"Alaska doesn't have giant sand monsters."

"So, we'll tell everyone to stay off the sand," Carlos said, shrugging.

Alice got a small smile at that. "I like your positive attitude."

"I try. It's crazy to think that Umbrella found a way to connect to an alternate reality. How is that even possible?"

"I don't know. I don't know how they did it or how they knew where to find her. I just know that's why they opened the portal. And we'll be bringing her right to them."

Carlos reached out and took Alice's hand. "I won't let them take either of you."

She smiled sadly, knowing that—when push came to shove—there might be only so much anyone could do against Umbrella.