Chapter XIV: Leadership

AN:

Hey there, Fan-fic-folks!

It's a Resident Evil AU, I had to get them going to the sewers at least once in the story. :D

Double update, this is chapter 2 of 2, so if you've missed the first then go back.

Thanks for reading and, as always, please review.

Chloe stepped back into the newly secured safespot to raised voices and aggressive stances. She went to stand by Dana, leaning in with a murmur. "What's eatin' them?"

"They're trying to work out what to do next. Nobody has any good ideas, and everyone is arguing so they don't have to think about that."

"Fair enough." She sat back to watch. When the argument descended completely into insults, a quiet, nervous voice spoke up.

"Hi, um-"

The argument went silent, and everyone turned to stare at Max. She flushed red and began to stammer. She looked over at Rachel, who gave her an encouraging smile and nod. The girl took a breath in, then tried again. "Rachel and I, we had a plan, before Matthew found us." Noticing everyone was listening, she stepped forward, finding herself more animated. "It's because of my mom, she works for the Prescott Foundation and she said they had a set of transport tunnels beneath the city. For all the dangerous stuff they have to deal with, you know? It keeps everyone safer than using trucks on the street or whatever. And! -and they were built in parallel with the sewer system, so some of the older drains have access points there too."

"The Prescotts built tunnels in the sewers?" One of the others laughed. "That some kind of illuminati bullshit? They couldn't keep that kind of thing a secret!"

"If they'd built it now, sure. It was a lot easier to build it without a city on top of it. And it wasn't secret at the time - they've just been around long enough that nobody really talks about it anymore. And they mainly specialised in underground construction, you know. Bomb shelters. It's even on public maps that the government has. I had to go searching to find the right way in, but I know how we can get down there. And they're deep, so even if we're still in town when the bombing happens, they won't be affected."

"We're not risking out lives based on- based on that!" The same man threw his arms wide in exhortation. "These bombs are real, we know that. And we need a real response - there's a bus depot south of here, we could get on them and drive our way out of here."

The debate got ugly. Words were shared, opinions opined, and insults delivered. Matthew simply watched and drank his tea - and where the fuck he'd gotten that, nobody knew.

Eventually, the man - they never got his name - put the final nail in the coffin. "Look, even if that shit is true, we'll be way faster up here! We can get out of here before the bombing even starts, no risk at all!"

"Aside from the risk of the infected." David drawled.

The man wafted a hand. "We can deal with them. Look at us!"

And that was that. Matthew, the Man, and everyone bar Chloe's group moved on from them again. For a moment, Chloe wondered if it was something about them that kept making this happen. After all, even David had agreed this tunnel thing was worth a shot. But no, they'd somehow managed to convince Matthew.

—

It didn't take them long to gather their limited supplies, agree to what is shared and taken and by whom, and leave. Chloe watched as the Shotgun Preacher gathered his flock and drove them all on, an amused ramble of encouragement and whimsy that faded as they did, off into the city.

She'd miss that guy.

Chloe's group, now with two more to their number, moved on a few minutes later. Chloe had asked where this tunnel complex had started, and Max had thought before saying "Laurelhurst Park."

When asked where Laurelhurst Park was, she'd thought again, but had no answer.

Luckily for them, Juliet had known where it was, and was able to play guide.

—

They crept quietly along the street, staying close to the buildings. Belmont Street was mostly detached single homes, so stealth wasn't much of an option, but the side passages and ginnels provided many ways to flee. Chloe had joined Max towards the rear. The two were still awkward, but something had compelled Chloe to try. "So… Vanessa seriously worked for the Prescotts?"

"Yes." She nodded. "I even found out that was the real reason we had to move. She was being transferred to a lab in Seattle."

"Shit. Never would've guessed. She doesn't seem the type."

"Oh, no, I don't think she was involved in… this." Max paused. "I don't think… do you think she was?"

Chloe shrugged. "I've not seen her in years, Max. And I just said she didn't seem the type. Fucked if I know."

The two of them shared a smile. Despite everything, they'd spent the better part of a decade in each other's company. Old habits, as they say. "Still. She knew about the underground tunnels. That's… bad, right?"

Chloe shrugged again. "Not that suspicious. Like you said, it's just… logistics and shit, right?"

"Right."

They were quiet for a minute. "Y'know, if we got another two people, we could be a fellowship."

"What?"

"We've got seven people. Me, you, David, Rose, Rachel, Juliet, and Dana. If we had two more people, we could be the Fellowship of the Ring."

"Good point, Frodo."

"Frodo? I told you, I'm Aragorn. I'm tall, cool, descended from ancient kings, older than I look, and Arwen would definitely-"

"Please no."

—

They walked past the little community garden and right up to the edge of the Park. "This is the one, right?"

"Yep." Juliet nodded. "Laurelhurst Park." She turned to Max. "So, where's this entrance?"

"Some kind of storm drain, I think? That's what the maps said, anyway. My mom said it should have a mark on, like a double-looped M?"

Chloe shrugged. "Right. Split off into groups?"

"No, Chloe. We're living a horror movie - you don't ever split the party." Rachel smirked.

Chloe just rolled her eyes. "You've been spendin' too much time with Steph. But fine. I guess we stick together."

They amble around the park's edge, poking through greenery and trying to spot any kind of storm drain or sewer grating or anything similar. It was a nice park, Chloe thought. There was this cute little sign on one of the fences about respecting the ducks and the water. Rachel had grinned as she pointed it out to Chloe, and the two had chuckled - Rachel had tried something similar back in the Bay, though to markedly less success.

Eventually, they found it. Big stone storm drain, oddly short metal access door. And emblazoned above the door was Max's funny-shaped M with two double-loops. They looked down at the drain. "Are we sure about this?"

"Yep. It's a storm drain, it's got the mark, I can't think of anything else it could be." Chloe pointed out. Max nodded.

Juliet sighed. "That's not what I meant. I meant that are we sure about going down there? This is our last chance to turn back and try for the border."

Chloe shrugged. "I'm still fine with it."

The group all nodded, or made vague sounds of affirmation.

Juliet took a deep breath. "Let's get this thing open then."

David and Chloe stepped forward and began to pull it open. The metal moved with an agonised screeching. Bits of rust even flaked off of it.

Max tapped the mark. "When we're in there, keep an eye out for marks like this. It's a bit of a maze down there, the marks are our guide - if we get lost or separated, find and follow the marks and we'll find each other again."

"Good plan, Maxie." Rachel quipped, Max grinning over at her. "Once more unto the breach, dear friends!"

Chloe sighed. Ever the thespian, Rachel was. And then the door screeched open and they quickly scrambled inside. It was a dark, small room with a small table and locker, plus a hole ahead. CHloe peered in, noticing a long metal ladder that vanished into pure black a few feet down. There were no visible switches to turn on any light.

They stared at the ladder, leading down into the dark. "Great. I guess we're going down there, then?"

"Yep." Rachel grinned. "Cheer up, Chlo'. This might be fun!"

"You did always talk about going caving." Max offered gently.

"See!" Rachel exclaimed. "It's like fate, Chloe. We've talked about what happens when you swim against fate."

"Pretty sure that's how we met, but whatever. I already agreed on this shit, you don't have to persuade me."

"Mmmhmm." Rachel hmmed. "So, Maxie, did your mom say anything else about what we'd find down there?"

"Just that we should follow the symbols. It's designed to be a bit of a maze, some old dead Prescott's idea of a security measure, I think? So remember, keep an eye out for them."

And with that repetition to really drive the damn point home, they descended, down into the depths.