Italicized: Flashbacks
(_): Thoughts
Bold: Monster
POV: James | Date: September 29th, 1998
Twelve survivors. He scoured over a hundred city blocks throughout the morning, finding only a dozen survivors spread throughout the city. An RPD officer named Keven Ryman, security officer Mark Williams, subway operator Jim Chapman, surgeon George Hamilton, plumber David King, investigative reporter Alyssa Ashcroft, waitress Cindy Lennox, student Yoko Suzuki, RPD detective Regan Mallet and her daughter Lucy, an Umbrella worker named Linda Baldwin, as well as another U.B.C.S mercenary named Mac Dowell. James had found eight of them in a hotel named the Apple Inn, which was not far from the hospital. Regan Mallet and her daughter were trapped inside a cabin over a mile from the safe haven. The last two, Linda Baldwin and Mac Dowell, were trapped inside an apartment building on the other side of town.
They were all situated inside the main lobby, taking a much-needed rest after the events of the last few nights. James himself admired the survivors as they rested. The eight he had found in the hotel were all situated in the corner of the lobby, having assembled eight beds around a small table they used to gather around. Regan separated herself and her daughter from the others, setting up two beds on the other side of the room near the hospital doors. Linda Baldwin took a bed in between the two groups while Mac Dowell grabbed a seat beside Tyrell at the desk. The two were still working on getting through to the government.
James was standing in the doorway leading into the side room closest to the hospital doors, where Jill Valentine was still unconscious. Carlos Oliveira had utilized the now-empty hospital and had ventured into the lab underground in search of the stockpile of vaccines created by Dr. Bard. James planned to join him, though he was interrupted when he cast his last "Homenum Revelio". While he had cast the spell over a dozen times, most had come up empty after he had relocated the survivors he had found. But now he was picking up five signatures. Three at the police station. Two below it. Where had they come from? No matter. It would take him only a few minutes to get to the police station, clear it, and relocate everyone in it to the hospital.
Stepping up to the front desk, James addressed Tyrell and Mac. "I've got five more signatures that popped up at the Raccoon City Police Department. I'm going to head over there now and bring the survivors here. Prep the med kit in case anything happens,"
Tyrell gave him a firm nod. "You got it," James turned away, peering down at his watch. 8:54 pm. He had plenty of time to get to the police department and back to assist Carlos in his search. And so with the turn of a heel, James disappeared in a POP!, reappearing moments later inside the Raccoon City Police Department. Only he was on the roof. He had never been inside the building, leaving him without a reference point for apparation. But with the glass sunroof peering down to the lobby, he could determine what the interior looked like. He made out a lion statue toward the back of the building. The front desk sat two shutters, both secured by two levers that needed to be pulled.
A small enclosure had been made in the center of the lobby, which was housing a wounded police officer. The man had been bitten. But he wasn't alone. A second man entered the lobby, moving up to the front desk where a computer sat. He was wearing a blue, grey, and white police uniform. He examined something on the monitor before turning back to the shutter to his right. A large piece of cardboard paper sat on the metal shutter, taped to it with the words 'Keep Out' written in sharpie. But the man ignored the words and instead pulled on the lever. The metal plating rose gradually, only opening so that the bottom was two feet from the ground.
The officer was not deterred. He instead dropped down to his abdomen, crawling beneath the shutters until he disappeared from James' line of sight. With the second officer gone, James decided it was best if he made his presence known. With a spin, he stood within the lobby, stepping up to the enclosure the first officer was hiding inside. His sudden appearance jolted the officer out of his hypnotic trance, which was most likely occurring due to the bite. The officer - whose nametag read 'Branagh' - raised his pistol to the wizard's head. James' hands rose in a sign of peace. Something he decided was worthwhile given that the man seemed less inclined to shoot him in the face.
James spoke. "I'm not one of them. And I'm not here to hurt you,"
"Who the hell are you then?" asked Branagh.
"My name's James. I'm here to rescue you,"
"Rescue me?"
"Yeah. You seem like you need some help," James motioned down to the man's bite wound. "We have a group of survivors. Over a dozen all at the hospital. We've already cured a woman who was infected. If you come with me, I can find you a vaccine. And I can heal that wound,"
"There is no vaccine. No cure. And how the hell do you plan to heal this?" Branagh motioned to the wound, which was oozing out blood.
James smiled, kneeling down beside Branagh. He outstretched a hand, letting it fall over Branagh's injury. The man let out a growl as the blood-soaked into his uniform began to retract back into the wound. The bite itself then healed, leaving behind the black coloring of the infection beneath the scar. Branagh took in a deep breath at the sight, visibly shocked at the display of magic. "What the hell was that?"
"That was magic. In case you need another demonstration," James waved his hand. The enclosure of room dividers surrounding them separated. Several bags appeared, hovering in the air by James' shoulders. "I'm a wizard that used to work with Umbrella. I don't feel like going into much detail, but the gist is that I'm the only one left of my kind, and I'm here to help. Once we get you and that other officer to the hospital, I can work on getting you the vaccine. They've got a stockpile beneath the hospital in an abandoned Umbrella facility,"
"Enough to save the city?"
"Possibly. But given the spread of the virus, it'd need to be dispersed as a gas to have any real effect. But I think I could change the composition enough to make it work," James explained. "And my name's James. James Potter,"
"Lieutenant Marvin Branagh. You said there's another officer in the building? Last I heard, Elliot was the last one. He was somewhere in the east wing," said Marvin.
"Don't know about Officer Elliot, but I saw a man climb beneath the shutters leading to that wing just a minute ago. I picked up a few other signatures in the area. Some in the building and some below. I'll find them and bring them back here. Once we're all together I'll apparate us all to the hospital,"
"Apparate?"
"A form of teleportation. I've got special...abilities. Some I've had since birth. Others I've only had for a couple of years. Umbrella's doing," James explained. "I've placed a number of protection on this refuge you've created, so you don't have to worry about any roamers stumbling into you while you rest here. I'll be back as soon as I can," Marvin - despite being confused - gave James a nod, allowing the wizard to turn on his heel. He disappeared in a flash of black light, reappearing around the front desk behind the front doors. "Homenum Revelio". Two in the police station. Two below. One had disappeared. But now there was another just outside the police station, drawing closer.
Swinging the door open, he found the person approaching the front gates of the Raccoon City Police Station. A woman around his age, who was wearing a red leather jacket and blue jeans. He couldn't make out her face from that distance, but he could see the pistol in her right hand, which she used to dispatch several zombies lined up at the locked gates. "Over here!" James exclaimed, rushing down the steps. He sent several cutting curses through the gate, slicing through the necks of several undead before he arrived at the gate. Sliding the protruded rod up, he slid the rod to the right, opening the gate. The woman busted through, shutting it once more while James slid the rod back to the left, locking it.
The woman bent over, resting her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. Deciding to help her out, James reached into his pocket and removed a modified Recreantur Potion. An advanced potion used to heal injuries and restore lost stamina. "Here. Take this," The woman peered up at him, her gaze falling on the bottle in his hand. "It'll help with the exhaustion," Expectedly, she didn't believe him. This wasn't surprising, given that no such thing existed in the muggle world. They had their herbs, which helped seal, numb, and protect wounds, but something to cure exhaustion had yet to be created. "Fine," Uncapping the bottle, James poured some of the contents into his mouth, swallowing it before extending the bottle once more. He felt the calming effects take over as the woman reached out to grab the bottle.
Without hesitation this time, the woman downed the contents of the bottle, which tasted much better than normal potions James had been used to. The simple addition of Mangelwurzel in the recipe removed the horrid smell and taste at the cost of slightly reducing the effectiveness of the potion. Something that could be remedied by just producing more of it. "What is this?"
James frowned. Jill. Carlos. Tyrell. Marvin. The other survivors. They all knew of his magic. Had seen him use it various times. Whether to save them, apparate them to the hospital, or kill various zombies. He had already exposed himself and saw no reason to hide his abilities without the existence of the Statute of Secrecy. "A special brew of Recreantur Potion. Should make you feel better,"
"Potion? Like a witch's potion?" The girl asked sarcastically, standing up straight as the potion had a visual effect on her. She was no longer out of breath, and the small cut on the left side of her chin was gone. He also got a chance to examine her for the first time. She had auburn hair that was tied up into a ponytail, though there were loose strands hanging down in the form of bangs on either side of her face. Her blue eyes shone brightly in the night, with the blue being amplified by the feather necklace on her chest, which had a bright blue jewel encased at the top. She was wearing a dark red leather jacket with an extended collar, a black tank top with a white undershirt beneath it, indigo jeans, and a black belt. Alongside these was a gun holster on her right leg, brown biker boots, and a knife holster tied around her right ankle.
"Yeah. Exactly like a witch's potion. Only I'm a wizard. Not a witch. Name's James. James Potter,"
The woman examined him for a moment, not sure whether to take him seriously. Then she nodded. "Claire. Claire Redfield. I'm looking for my brother Chris. He's a cop here,"
"Well, I don't know anything about that, but I'm sure Lieutenant Branagh will have some information for you. He's in the lobby," James said as he moved up the steps. With a wave of his hand, the doors swung open to reveal the main hall of the Police Department. "Marvin will be right around this wall inside some dividers. Tell him I sent you. I'll be back after I've -" James was interrupted by a commotion to his right. The shutters he had seen being closed earlier suddenly slid open slightly, allowing only a foot or two of space. The man he had seen before crawled through, trying to escape a zombie that grabbed hold of his legs, trying to pull the man back into the hallway.
Reducto. The silent spell slammed directly into the zombie's head, turning it into dust due to the spell's strength. The man spun around, facing James and Claire in a mix of relief and fear. He then turned to Claire, his expression softening slightly as he slowly got to his feet. Brushing off some blood and dust from his jeans, the man spoke. "Thanks. I'm glad you made it here in one piece," He turned to James. "Leon S. Kennedy," Leon was wearing a dark gray nylon jacket with an extended collar, a black long-sleeved loose button shirt, and a white short-sleeved undershirt. He also wore tattered blue jeans and white sneakers with brown soles.
"James Potter," James replied, reaching out to shake the man's hand.
"What the hell was that?" asked Leon, who motioned down to the pile of dust that had once been the zombie's head.
"That was the Reducto curse. Pretty deadly when fully concentrated,"
Claire turned to James, her eyes wide as realized the doors swinging open before had not been an automated sensor opening the doors. It had been him. "That's impossible. Magic isn't real,"
James let out a soft laugh. "You're right. It isn't real here. But it very much is where I come from,"
Leon frowned. "Where you come from?"
Not interested in providing his life story to strangers, James sighed. "Look. It's a little hard to explain, and I don't want to go into detail given I don't really know you. But the abridged version is this. I come from an alternate universe. Another reality of sorts. I ended up here and was captured by Umbrella. I then escaped and arrived here. I'm using my powers to help survivors and hopefully locate more vaccines for the infection. We have more survivors holed up in the hospital not far from here. Once I retrieve the two other survivors below ground, I'll take you all there,"
"That's...alternate reality?" Claire murmured, confused.
"Yeah. I'm sure your mind will find a way to rationalize it sooner or later. For now, we need to get you two to the makeshift sanctuary I created around this wall," He motioned to the wall separating Marvin's hiding spot and the front desk. "Lieutenant Branagh will be waiting for us," Without waiting, James moved around the desk, making his way up the left ramp before turning right. He stopped at the dividers, cracking one open to reveal Marvin. The man was no longer sweating, and his infection seemed to have slowed down with the closing of his bite wound. He was still turning, only at a much slower rate. "Marvin. This is Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield. Leon, Claire, this is Lieutenant Marvin Branagh,"
Marvin gave the two a nod, slowly getting to his feet. He turned to Leon. "Good to see you made it in one piece, Rookie,"
Leon motioned to James and Claire. "Only thanks to these two. And magic...apparently,"
Marvin raised an eyebrow toward James, who only shrugged as he cast another Homenum Revelio. Still two in the basement. "Do you have any picture of the basement? A reference? A mental image?"
"No...I don't go down there enough to remember what the place looks like. Only went down there for my orientation a few years back. I park across the street, and my duties didn't require me to go down to the basement," Marvin explained.
"Well then, guess I'll just have to get down there the old-fashioned way,"
Marvin handed James a map, motioning to the east side of the building. "There's a way to get there through the east side. Get past the shutters in the Watchman room and you'll find stairs leading down to the basement. There's a locking mechanism Elliot told me about that you might have trouble getting past, but once you're through the door, you'll be inside,"
"Thanks," said James, who pocketed the map before moving for the shutters leading to the east side. He heard the distinct footsteps of Leon and Claire behind him, though he paid them no mind. They were more than welcome to act as if they were covering his six as they stepped up to the now-closed shutter. With a careless wave, the metal sheet slid upward, disappearing from view. Without another word, James continued into the eastern hallway, easily dismembering a lone zombie that stumbled around the corner.
"Holy shit," commented Claire as she knelt down beside the dismembered limbs that had once belonged to a zombie. "How can you do this?"
"Again. It's magic. I was born with it. My universe has hundreds of thousands of others like me who can do it too. So far I haven't found anyone here who can do it. Though magic does exist here," James explained. "I can feel it. Inside you both. Inside Marvin. In the walls of this building even. It's everywhere. But nothing seems able to control it as I do,"
"And what exactly can you do?"
Leon fired a round into the head of a zombie as the rounded the second corner, coming up to the Watchman's room. He asked as they stopped in front of the door leading into the room. James swung open the door, sending a cutting curse into the upper half of the now-zombified Officer Elliot. "Well, my abilities before were limited. I needed a wand to cast spells. I could only cast spells with words. And I was only proficient in defensive magic. After Umbrella, I was pumped with so many viruses and additives that my magic was boosted as well. I can cast a wider variety of spells. More powerful spells. And I have a connection to magic I didn't have before. I can sense it. Feel it. Push and pull it. It's hard to explain...but it's different,"
"You were tested by Umbrella? You're one of those things?" Leon asked.
"I was. As of last night. But trust me when I say none of it was voluntary," James replied. The group made their way through the hallway leading to the basement stairs. Several zombies could be seen banging the windows lining the right wall, though James paid them no mind. He instead made his way down the steps leading to the basement, where he found a zombified dog. James proceeded to send a cutting curse through the dogs neck before passing through the door that led into the parking garage.
Stepping into the parking garage, James immediately took in the dim overhead lights and the stark smell of gasoline. Flickering bulbs revealed a wide space cluttered with abandoned police vehicles and a scattering of makeshift barricades. Low growls echoed somewhere in the dark. Likely more infected dogs. Leon and Claire fanned out beside him, weapons raised, each tense and ready for a fight. The door creaked shut behind them with a dull thud. Leon took point, stepping around an overturned cruiser parked near the garage's heavy metal gate. A single red exit sign glowed faintly in the distance.
"This place is huge," Claire remarked quietly, scanning the area. "Where do we even start?"
James consulted the map Marvin had handed him. "We need to get through the southeast corner of this parking area. Should be a corridor that leads to some holding cells. I'm picking up two signatures from that direction,"
Leon nodded, flicking on the flashlight attached to his pistol. "We find them, secure them, and then you're gonna...apparate us out of here, right?"
"That's the plan," James affirmed, giving Leon a brief look. "Once we gather everyone,"
They advanced another few yards in silence, ears perked for the sound of motion. Sure enough, a scraping noise and a distant moan drifted from behind one of the support pillars. Leon pushed forward, and James followed closely, scanning side-to-side with heightened senses. His magical awareness picked up no living presence near that particular pillar, though he felt the subtle flicker of infected animals somewhere deeper in the structure. Before they could proceed further, a deep, guttural roar tore through the parking garage, making all three freeze on the spot.
"What the hell was that?" Claire muttered, grip tightening on her handgun.
A second, distinctly different roar reverberated in response, practically shaking the concrete floor beneath them. This new one was a bone-chilling, resonant growl. Lower, slower, menacing. James felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up. Whatever these creatures were, they radiated the same horrible sense of twisted genetic engineering that he'd sensed from Nemesis. It was a signature. Umbrella's special brand of biological monstrosity.
"Stay behind me," he warned, stepping forward.
From the ramp that connected the garage to the streets above, something massive crashed down. Metal squealed in protest, the chain mesh parted as a monstrous shape barreled its way into the garage. Sparks skittered across the floor. James, Claire, and Leon spun around as a hulking, mutated figure slithered on elongated limbs.
Nemesis, transformed from its more human-like appearance into its hideous second form. Its flesh was partially melted away, exposing pulsing veins and elongated bones. One of its arms had grown grossly long, ending in a bone-blade ringed by sinewy tendrils. The creature howled, its elongated mandibles pulling back in a snarl.
"God! What is that?!" Leon shouted, backpedaling.
"Nemesis. An Umbrella bioweapon," James muttered, steeling himself. "I thought I'd destroyed it in the explosion, but it's adapted again,"
No sooner had he said it than another thunderous crash came from behind them, this time at the opposite end of the garage. A towering figure in a black trench coat stepped through the side stairwell door, wrenching it clean off its hinges. Skin pale and rigidly stretched over inhuman musculature, wearing a battered fedora that barely clung to its head. A Tyrant. Its heavy footsteps echoed across the cement, slow and inexorable.
"Now we've got two unstoppable tyrants," Claire muttered, eyes flitting between Nemesis and the Tyrant. "Perfect."
Nemesis roared again, apparently challenging the black-coated tyrant. As if in silent answer, Tyrant turned its blank gaze toward the three humans, fists clenched. James realized they'd been effectively caught in a pincer attack. The ramp behind them was blocked by Nemesis. The Tyrant stood between them and the corridor to the cells.
Leon's eyes darted. "We can't fight them both at once,"
Nemesis took a step forward, its mutated arm twitching as though preparing to lash out with a whip-like tendril. "Down!" James barked. He threw up a shimmering barrier just as that elongated limb snapped out. The tendril cracked against James's shield with a thunderous impact, fracturing the magical barrier and sending arcs of greenish sparks across the concrete.
In the same instant, the Tyrant bulldozed forward in that inhuman lurching sprint it occasionally employed. Leon cursed under his breath and dove to the side. The Tyrant's punch left a crater in the ground where Leon had just stood.
With no time for plan-making, everything descended into chaos. Nemesis released a furious roar and swung again. James and Claire dashed sideways, dodging the worst of it but taking a punishing wave of force that threw them off-balance. Leon attempted to flank the Tyrant, peppering it with pistol shots. The bullets barely slowed the tyrant's steady advance.
Nemesis's tendril lashed out once more, this time catching James full in the side. He braced, conjuring a partial magical shield around Claire to cushion her, but the impact was enough to send them both airborne. They crashed across the width of the parking garage, smashing into the side of an RPD van and through a cinderblock wall in a shower of debris.
"James! Claire!" Leon shouted, sprinting a few steps toward them. But the Tyrant cut him off, swinging a punishing blow that forced Leon to roll back.
Leon had no choice. Pinned between the unstoppable tyrant and the collapsed rubble, he had to retreat down a side passage. With a quick glance toward James and Claire's crash site, he silently hoped they could survive. "I'll come find you!" he called over his shoulder, vanishing into the hallway. The Tyrant, single-minded in its pursuit, followed unhurriedly after him, footsteps echoing.
Now, only Nemesis's rasping growls and the flicker of fluorescent lights punctuated the battered parking garage. James and Claire were nowhere to be seen beneath the collapsed wall and twisted remains of the police van. With a predatory snarl, Nemesis stalked forward, but an abrupt sway of its monstrous head suggested it had lost track of them beneath the rubble. Rancid drool oozed from its jaws onto the floor. Then, as if summoned by some other directive, Nemesis lashed the van with its tendril arm and, not finding what it wanted, roared in frustration. It stomped away, smashing a nearby pillar in the process, its footsteps receding deeper into the concrete labyrinth of the basement.