Resident Evil: The Wings of a Chimera

[Atma]

August 16th, 1998

Lot 12, Warehouse 20, Corner of Fission and Fox, Raccoon City
Late Morning...

The mid afternoon light streamed through the slanted windows of the old warehouse. Officially it had belonged to a small scale shipping company, that due to economic issues, had to scale back on it's facilities within the city. This left many abandoned and ripe for the City Council's Zoning Board to repurpose for other companies. It may have been in the plans, but only several were repurposed in an immediate time frame. Some were given over to tech companies, others Umbrella, and the rest were lost in minutia. Warehouse 20 was one of them and because of this, there was still items that were never moved present inside. An office that had been converted into a small living space, a bathroom on the ground level that had intermittent running water, shelves in the back stacked with cheap canned foods and MRE's, and a shipping container/flatbed that had been left in such a state that the tires had deflated by weight alone. Someone was in the warehouse office as sounds of strain came from the room.

"Huh... Huh... 17,18,19,20...." A female voice muttered in strain. She kept at it, daily routines like this were a necessity, they helped pass the time and kept her mind from thinking about everything that happened. She paused, arched her back, leaned to her left side, and began to stretch her left leg to get it ready in case of anything. Again, she counted to twenty before releasing the form, resting, and doing it again. That was step 1 of her new life. Next came breakfast, then basic cleanup and she hoped the water worked this morning, checking the news via the battery operated radio
Barry had given to her shortly after finding the place and then weapon maintenance.

She was just about to tear open an packet when a smaller secondary radio began to squawk.

*Jill, this is Cohen, do you copy? Over.*

She looked at the radio and picked it, depressing the return button on the side with clawed fingers. *Yeah, I'm here. What's going on? Over.*

*Rebecca has something she needs to talk to you about. She's going to heading your way in five. She asked me to make sure no one was tailing her. Get ready. Over and out*

Jill swapped the radio to her larger hand and retrieved her sidearm before moving to cover the most visible door. After a short time she heard a short series of knocks. She responded in kind and then pulled the heavy bar up from the door. Rebecca quickly stepped in, followed by Cohen. She didn't necessarily trust him. Yes, he proved his worth a hell of a lot more than Wesker did in those nights but his story was still suspect. He may have lied about it to get out out of a jam or maybe it was indeed true and he kept to himself out of shame. She guessed he didn't expect to find out so much those two nights that would get him killed otherwise. It didn't matter, he was in the thick of it just as much as the rest of them now.

Rebecca looked up, gave a sheepish smile as Jill lowered the bar back and then hugged her. She pulled back before she began to speak. "STARS was disbanded today."

A cold pit settled in Jill's stomach. "Why!?" She asked in shock.

"It was Chief Iron's orders. He claims we're suffering from PTSD caused by 'Traumatic experiences and the loss of multiple squad-mates'. That the zombies and monsters we fought were our minds trying to cope with a band of cannibals that had been living out in the Arkaly Forest. We've been asked to seek psychiatric help and we even received medals of commendation, yours like the rest was posthumous..."

Billy sighed as he put a hand on Rebecca's shoulder, before looking at Jill. "There was an attack at a private clinic last night. Someone released T inside and Barry was there."

"Is he?" Jill asked, dreading the possible answer.

"He made it out." Billy responded. "Torched the place while he was at it too. Official reports are claiming that it was the result of gas leak."

"They're burying the truth, Jill. They'll keep it hidden until its too late." Rebecca explained, eyes downcast. "Barry, he asked me this morning if I wanted to leave with him and his family on a vacation to Canada. I..."

Jill placed her free hand on the younger girl's shoulder, trying her damnedest to ignore the resulting flinch. "Go, get away from here, but please start putting the word out any way you can. We can't let them win, not after what happened."

"Ye...yes ma'am." Rebecca whispered before speaking with more volume. "Officer Ryman, he said he'd keep in touch about any news. I gave him my radio, I hope you don't..."

"No, he's clean, you can trust him. I'll try him later well after the regular shifts are over. Be safe Rebecca."

"Will do." She said with a weak smile and a thumbs up.

"You've got her Cohen?"

"Yeah, I'll make sure she gets to and from without issue." He said as Jill lifted the bar and they began to leave. "Somethings going on though with homeless community. I'll let you what I find when I can." He said before he stepped out of the warehouse after Rebecca.

Jill closed the door and lowered the bar back down before trudging up the stairs to the main office. She didn't even bother to use the water to heat the meal up. All she did was turn on the radio to first station and worry about the future.
---------------------------
August 16th, 1998
Arkaly Mountains
That Night....


*Alpha Report.*

*Alpha 1 here, we're about breach the front entrance.*

*Bravo?*

*Bravo 1 reporting in. Securing the west side ground floor... Sir found a body, vest identifies it as a member of STARS.*

*What is it's condition?*

*Bravo 3 here, there isn't much left. The head is missing, no chance of V-Act."

*Leave it, the body will be disposed of when the mission is completed. Charlie report.*

*Charlie 1 here, East side of the mansion secured. Three Cerberi were present, all threats eliminated."

*Delta?*

*Delta 1 here, breaching the lab through heliport entrance.*

*All teams, acquire what information and samples that can be found. Alpha squad, head towards the lab complex via the catacomb entrance underneath the main staircase. Bravo, Charlie clear the mansion floors of all remaining subjects and secure the exit. Delta squad, enter the main laboratory, there will be the remains of the T-002. Acquire blood and tissue samples as well as the in house security footage for disposal. We already have our combat data.*
....
.......

*Command, Alpha 2 here, front foyer secure. There's a blood trail leading into catacombs, advise.*

*Proceed as instructed.*

*Command, this is Delta 4, several chimera were encountered, all targets down, proceeding to the main lab.*

*Command, Bravo 2 reporting in, east side secure, we're moving to the central area.*

*Coomand this is Delta 4, Tyrant-002 identified and samples acquired.*

*What's the Tyrant's status?*

*Destroyed sir.*

*Understood, and the security footage?*

*Still present, advise.*

*Leave the hard copies where they are, we already have the transmitted copies. Set the self destruct timer for fifteen minutes. Charlie squad report.*

*Charlie 1 here, second floor west-side secured, linked up with Bravo, clearing east side.*

*Understood, once complete, follow after Alpha squad. Alpha squad?*

*Alpha 1, most traps in the catacombs have already been triggered. Command... there are spider bodies present along the blood trail... they appear to be partially eaten and pierced by an unknown
object.*

*Proceed with caution. Delta be advised of a possible subject or subjects heading in your direction.*

Gunshots fill the air from Delta squad's transmissions. *sssssssssssss... Mo t h er.....sssssssss*

*Delta Squad respond! Alpha, Bravo, Charlie secure that laboratory now!*
.......
.................
..............................

*Command, Alpha 2 reporting in. Lab secured, multiple casualties."

*How many?*

*Alpha 1, Charlie 2, Delta 1-4.*

*The cause?*

*From our brief, it would appear that the subject Lisa Trevor was still active.*

*Current status?*

*Badly crippled but regenerating, Command advise on next course of action.*

*Get the subject over to the heliport, drag the body if the need arises and disable the elevator to impede escape. A UT squad will be dispatched for retrieval. Return to the lab and disable the self destruct until their arrival. Reactivate it and set the timer to ten minutes. Exit the premise immediately after.*

*Understood sir.*

 

[Atma]

August 17th, 1998
Lot 12, Warehouse 20, Corner of Fission and Fox, Raccoon City
Evening...

<Reports are coming in today that the fires that set the Arkaly forest ablaze were started by several campers in the area. Rescue workers are still looking for them as we speak. The fires have been contained to their initial points of origin, but fire fighters and other rescue services are still having difficulties preventing the fire from growing beyond that point. City officials are deliberating on whether or not the fire should be allowed to run its course under the belief that such a blaze would eliminate much of the undergrowth that helped give it it's fuel. The Chief of Police has this to say.

"It's a terrible tragedy. Forest fires like this one, have been at all time lows here in the area for the last five years. For one to begin now after the series of tragedies that have plagued our great city... Our hearts and prayers go out to the families of those lost to the blaze."

In other news, the Racoon City Police Department has begun to institute advanced piloting courses for officers who have piloting licenses. The initiative was put forward this morning and will be taught by Officer Vickers, formerly of STARS. Any relation between this initiative and the recent fires is at this point purely speculative.>

"God Dammit!" Jill roared as she punched the old shipping. The old metal could barely resist, as her fist made a large dent in the side. She breathed heavily in that position for several minutes before quickly turning the two way radio and tuning the frequency.

"Kevin.... We need to meet. That fire, dammit! I need to get out of here just for a few hours."
.........

..................

...........................

August 30th, 1998
Gorgos Park
Night

"So here's what I was able to pull up based on what you and the others told me." Kevin said as he handed Jill a large Manilla envelope. "Right there, you got correspondence between Wesker, Irons, and a third party."

"Irons?" Jill asked warning.

"Yeah, which was probably why he disbanded STARS the way he did. Whose gonna take zombies and monsters seriously? Cannibals though, yeah that'll do it.... Regarding that third party, I might have a lead on it." Kevin replied.

"Who do you think it is?" Jill asked.

"Saw this guy arguing with Irons a few days after the fires. Blond haired, looked sleep deprived, and an umbrella lab coat..." Kevin smiles before he continues. "He storms right into Iron's office like he owns the place and while we couldn't hear what was specifically being said, the tones said enough."

"And our mystery man is?"

"Ran his plates under the claim that he might cause an accident with the state he appeared in. William Birkin, born 1962, married, one kid, no priors, but some harassment claims were filed by and against him at separate times in his career. His position at the company seems to be a senior researcher here in the city and his current residence is a two story home at 64 5th Street."

"And let me guess, he wouldn't happen to have ties with Wesker and Irons.?"

"Aside from that argument? Not much beyond that with Irons, but with Wesker? Absolutely, he, his wife, and Wesker were sometimes seen in fine restaurants before the mansion incident..."

"Rebecca and Billy mentioned that someone had set off the self destruct in the training facility before they fought that madman. A facility that old wouldn't have had a remote switch... He could have been there, overlooking everything. With the facility detonated, the dogs out in the forest and the second mansion, he would have believed they died."

"That's assuming he was the one to do it."

"True." Jill said with a sigh as she adjusted the large coat she had on. "True, what was his address again?"

"64 5th Street, why?"

"When's the next city hall party?" She asked with something of a grimace and a smile.

..............

..................................

....................................................

September 1st, 1998
64 5th Street, Birkin residence
Night

Eleven days of practicing with her new hands and she was still making mistakes. Pushing with too much strength, fumbling a pick and so one. Thankfully for her, the safe that she did find, was not either a wheel safe or one with more traditional padlock, but rather a digital number lock. Of course that's when the radio went off.

*Kevin just rang, the Birkin's just left the party, you've got five to seven minutes.*

*Five will be all I need.*

She looked up from the safe, and checked around the office. It wasn't immediately obvious as to where a safe would be but there were three probable places in the house; Basement, Master Bedroom, or the small sitting room tucked away from everything else. The basement was checked off immediately. It was a bare room with the only interesting things being a washer, dryer, boiler and water heater. There was a closest but all it contained were winter coats. The bedroom looked promising at first, the ruffled bed sheets were a good lived in signed. but nothing important beyond a jewelry box and several wads of 100 dollar bills wrapped meticulously against the bed supports underneath the bed skirt was found. The sitting room though...

There was a small desk situated at the corner, a book on either side of the room filled with loose books and pictures and a large window that overlooked the back yard. The dust was what confirmed it for Jill. There was a fine layer on the shelves and their contents, but not on the desk. She checked it, found drag marks on the floor, and pulled the desk away. Feeling around the floor, she felt a large section wobble ever so slightly. Using her larger hand as a form of leverage, she pulled the board away to reveal of large digitally locked safe vertical inserted into the ground. That's when Billy called. She looked around at the shelves and pictures, tried a few dates until...

There was one picture high on the right shelf. In it was a younger Birkin, a tired looking woman presumably his wife, and a small child whose arms were being held by the doctor. She flipped it on it's back and carefully removed the picture from the frame. "Sherry's first steps - 1987"

She replaced the frame and the picture, went back to the safe and typed in the code 1987. Nothing...

"Babies usually start walking sometime after a year? Maybe that could work..."

She typed in the number 1986 and the light changed to green. She quickly opened the safe, and pulled out a series of large folders, some with the Umbrella logo and some blank. Jill shut the safe and replaced the desk before leaving as quickly as possible. She was just getting settled in the back of the truck Billy was using was using when a car appeared at the other end of the street. They didn't stop to see who was the owner.

 

[Atma]

September 2st, 1998
Lot 12, Warehouse 20, Corner of Fission and Fox, Raccoon City
Evening...

Jill looked at the radio, then back at the scattered files on the makeshift table in front of her and then back. She knew that this information needed to get out. The data described in the files was both new and old information for her. She began to make mental categories regarding the information that was before her.

The first category was the old or information she was already privy to via cursory examination and investigation of the facts:

• The files described the various monsters she and the STARS team encountered in the mansion that night and some that Rebecca had described in passing details. There was everything in the mansion that she had encountered up to and including what Wesker had called the Tyrant.
• The files indicated that the mansion and the lab were being fully utilized up to that point, so something altered that.
• The indication and standard use of a series of large scale bombs placed within the complex's structural basis in the the event of a bio hazardous outbreak that results in the loss of staff in numbers exceeding 90%.
• The utilization of, a chill went up her spine, individuals too close to company secrets and in situations where they're trust cannot be fully garnered. This would have explained the shambling creature within the caves.
• The training facility was where the outbreak originated from. Based on Rebecca's recollection of events, this would be the same complex. Then there was new information, this being documents that based on her experiences she would not have considered necessary to look for and investigate thoroughly.
• Aside from the zombies, every other creature had a name assigned to them which by extension meant that they're existences weren't technical accidents or if they were, then the company accounted for it and made them a part of their testing programs.
• There were plans to utilize the test data taken from what was Tyrant 002 to produce more streamlined models for active combat. But the file didn't have the specifics for that information.
• The main mansion was equipped with an active monitor system dubbed RED QUEEN, that scanned and transmitted test data to several servers, where that information would be analyzed and further disseminated
• There were several reports of payments being wired to Chief Irons... and that explained all too much.

She didn't need to read the rest to understand. Wesker and Birkin worked together to reopen the facility, an outbreak occurred before hand, then the mansion and at some point between all of that, Irons was paid off to look the other way and that part about the monitoring service. Did someone see her? Did they know she survived?... She needed to make a call.

September 3rd
City Tower Apartments, B4
Night

If a random passerby were to look at Alyssa Ashcroft on her return to her apartment, they would have seen two things. To a basic eye, she portrayed the very definition of a driven woman. To a more a discerning eye, there was an underlying sense of annoyance that was waiting for a spark to set it off. And it nearly was set off just as she was inserting the key to get into her apartment.

"Ms. Ashcroft?" A man's voice called out.

"I don't need this right now... Yes, how can I help you?" She said turning to the man, before catching sight of his uniform.

"Just wanted to talk to you about something." He responded with an attempt at a sincere smile.

"Do I need a lawyer for this conversation." She responded coolly.

He paused with a dumbstruck look before quickly recovering and shaking an obvious worn and battered briefcase. "Just thought you'd be interested in a potential... scoop?"
A few hours later a Alyssa had a new contact on speed dial, potential witnesses, and a headache the size of truck wondering how she was going to able to break this story and the potential nightmares that would come from this briefcase.

 

[Atma]

September 4th, 1998
NEST Facilities, Raccoon City
Time: ????

"William calm down!"

"I Can't Annette! Dammit!" The previously named William shouted as he grabbed a box and tossed it against the wall.

"Throwing your supplies around isn't going to help." Annette admonished.

"Maybe it can! Someone went through our things! They retrieved the files! You saw it!"

"I know." Annette replied in a low tone.

"We don't know who it was. Could it have been Umbrella? Did they think I'd talk? What about G!? Could they know how close I am to finishing it!? What if they know about...

*Slap!*

"Walls have ears William." She hissed before firmly grabbing his collar. "And what about Sherry? Her picture was moved. Do you think that whoever did this wasn't looking at
her for leverage. We need to think about this as calmly as possible. Now, was there anything of G within the safe?"

William paused and let out a long sigh before relaxing slightly. "No, just the files on the subjects within the mansion. Usable but it's still obsolete with G's creation. At most all they'll get out it is what's already known. There are enough liquid assets in place to divert attention away from Irons and I've arranged for Sherry to be looked after by the chief should anything happen. You know that already Annette."

"I know, but you needed to be reminded. You and Wesker made a mistake with Marcus, do you want a repeat? Because if you continue as you are, Umbrella will take action. William, get some sleep in one of the pods, I'll continue working on G and I'll tell Sherry that you've been swamped today."

"But...?"

"William?"

"Okay, but it will only be for a short period, and then I'll continue!" William said as he began to make his way out of the lab.

---

September 7th, 1998
Umbrella Facility, Siberia
Time: ????

"And are you sure that the parasites can be harvested from the subject?"

"Yes sir, Subject Trevor has displayed remarkable regenerative abilities and while we cannot extract NEa parasites en mass or in expedient quantities, we can extract them
consistently provided enough traces are left for them to uhhh..."

"Is something the matter?"

"No sir, just caught by Doctor Pavchenko's phrasing. Ummm, 'piggback' on her regenerating tissues. From there, they should reach partial to full maturity within several weeks."

"Excellent, speaking of the parasites, Lord Spencer tells me that the initial batch provided a complication. Your thoughts?"

"Hmmm, it could be that the NEa parasite increased intelligence of the Tyrants to a higher than understood degree... I don't mean to step out of line but have the Paris labs handled the matter?"

"Yes, though we don't know the exact details yet. We will get them with our next shipment from Moscow. Any other reports?"

"Just one Director, several of our researchers have asked whether or not we should begin tests on the secondary virus found in the subject."

"Tell them to focus on refining the NEa research data for now."

"May I ask why sir? For their benefit."

Director Vladimir smiled before responding, "Doctor Birkin is like an worker ant. He has most likely started his own research and if anything pleasant can be said about him, it is that he is completely dedicated to his own tasks without caring for the world around him. Why waste the time and resources when we can utilize his trials and errors?"

---

September 13th, 1998
Raccoon City, NEST, Level 3 BIO labs
Time: ????

The woman removed the cassette from her recorder and sighed before leaning back in her chair and taking a deep drag of her cigarette. She knew that it was a frowned upon action in the labs but she was too tired to actually give a damn. She paused, took another drag before leaning forward and grabbing a fresh cassette and locking it into place. She brought the recorder close her mouth, hit the well worn record button and began her personal notes.

"Recording number 104, Yuriko Cameron, Sub Director of NEST's vaccine branch. It's safe to say that D strains 30-39 of the potential T-Virus vaccine are complete failures. The strains show a number of catastrophic failures that range from;

• Lack of apparent reaction and a true lack of deactivation of targeted T virus vectors within the subjects bodies. Leading to of course death and reanimation
• Apparent strain caused by the test vaccines lead to extreme hemorrhaging within the heart and frontal lobe. Results include death but no reanimation.

So the D strain either does nothing, or it kills you. It impossible to get a beneficial result from this strain and based on other data pursuing research on this variant would be a waste of resources. The problem... lies with upper management. The parameters are clear, develop a vaccine to either counter T or suppress it enough to increase viability and bonding with infected subjects. Simple concept in theory but nearly impossible to execute though. The T-Virus just does not want to work with us or at least this vaccine doesn't at any rate."

"There is some hope, though not with D strain. Tomorrow I'll arrange for all test materials regarding it to be disposed of in the Dead Factory. The E strain... that may be a start. Not right now though, it requires further testing. Most issues are the same as the D strain. In fact, most strains exhibit similar complications, except for one, E Strain type 40. The strain does deactivate T-Virus cells and places them into a state of bonding dormancy. In theory that could allow for the parameters to be fulfilled. The only problem is the uncontrolled cancerous growths that result. These include a multitude of imperfect and repeating organ types, blood vessels, and tissues. It may be a break through, but much more testing is required before E40 can be considered useful. It's something though."

---

September 15th, 1998
Raccoon City General Hospital
Time: Early morning

"Dr. Hamilton! Thank God you here." A winded orderly stated.

"What is the matter here?" Hamilton asked.

"I'll explain on the way to the ICU." The orderly began as they started into the hospital. "Those cases from before, they began to multiply within the hospital."

"And no one's called the CDC?" Dr. Hamilton asked, anger seeping into his voice. "Have they been at least quarantined? We could have major Biohazard on our hands."

"Yes Sir, they have but..."

"But?"

"You'll have to see for yourself Doctor. There's a hazmat system and gas mask in the office here. You should change into it now before going in. Dr. Hersh will show you."

George Hamilton nodded and did just that. Methodically, he changed into the 'suit' provided to him. It wasn't exactly the best that was available, but a Level C hazmat suit was certainly better than nothing. As he began to wrap his ankles and wrists in duct tape, his mind wandered to when these mysterious cases appeared. It would have been late August to early September? All with similar symptoms and all with a high mortality rate. He left the office, nodded to the orderly and noticed several other staff in their level C suits carrying jugs of decontamination chemicals and the basic supplies for a decontamination chamber. As he entered, he saw the ICU ward was filled with patients, many of which he only just treated the day before.

"Dr. Hamilton" a voice greeted him.

"Dr. Hersh, I was told you wanted me to see something."

"Yes, please this way." Dr Hersh said before showing Hamilton to a patient. "While we can't say for sure whether or not this malady is airborne in nature, we are quickly ruling
that out to be the case."

"Why?" Dr. Hamilton asked.

"Look here." Dr. Hersh began before pulling the bed sheet of the patient back.

Dr. Hamilton noted that the patient was male, possibly early fifties, medium weight, profuse sweat, dry skin, gangrenous coloration that was spread intermittently across his skin and... "Are those bite marks?" He asked.

"Yes, though we're not sure where they came from. Look at them though they are too small and irregularly shaped to be from common vermin. They're oval shaped actually. We've sent pictures to local and out of state experts but we're not sure if we'll have them back in time. The bigger question is where they are coming from. I know you had off today but can you help the patients as best you can. I'll be trying to petition Dr. Jones for out of state assistance and CDC intervention."

"You mean there hasn't been a notification sent?"

"No, Dr. Jones wanted this kept as quiet as possible but I cannot stand here and allow this to continue."

"I understand, good luck and get some rest, I'll remain here for as long as I'm able."

"Thank you George."

"Your welcome Arjun."

---

September 17th, 1998
Raccoon City Streets
Evening

"911, what's your emergency?"

"There seems to be someone hurt outside my apartment."

"Can you describe them?"

"I can't tell if they're male or female. I think... I think they're homeless. They have this big beige coat on."

"Are they in any state of duress?"

"Maybe? They're lying face down in a puddle of vomit and they're not moving. I just saw them a few minutes ago outside my window. When I went back they were still in that position."

"How long would you say the time was between your first sighting and second?"

"A minute... maybe two."

"Understood we will notify an ambulance. What's your address."

"202 Jack St."

"Understood, dispatching an ambulance. May we have your name for the report?"

"... Yoko, Yoko Suzuki."

"Paramedics are in transit as we speak. Thank you for your service ma'am."


AUTHOR'S NOTE Time

I Started this story almost two years ago on Spacebattles (It's still there), and life more or less got in the way of going further. This was because of school, work, and the uncertainty of what to do during 2020's Covid lockdowns. I always wanted to come back to this story as well as my other main Fic 'Monarch in The Dark', but I never had the drive to really do it. Things seemed to have normalized for now and I intend to write more on this one. I have a whole time line and everything set up in my notes so, yeah I should have another chapter up in about a week or two.

 

[edboy49]

Interesting intro.
But still confused.
What exactly is the POD here and what is happening that is different from canon?

 

[néocorvinus]

Interesting intro.
But still confused.
What exactly is the POD here and what is happening that is different from canon?

Click to shrink...

As far as I know, Chris is the only RE protagonist (Jack Muller doesn't count) that can punch shipping containers, and make a dent in it without hurting himself. Jill just did that.