Chapter 9

Commander Chamberlain's Office, September 25th 2004. 0845:

"Officer MacFarlane, a pleasure to meet you" The Commander greeted his newest officer. "I've read and heard all about you, and I must say I can not wait to get you strapped up and out there." Brian didn't say anything. In his mind, he hadn't really done anything great, but that's just how he was. "I want you to accompany the S.P.F on a raid as all the other S.T.A.R.S members are occupied. You think that's going to be okay? Great- My assistant Gary will take you to the office and get you equipped. Some gear is waiting for you in the changing rooms. Any questions? Off you go, and good luck." Brian just nodded, shook the Commander's hand and left the office to prepare for the mission...

Security Office, October 6th- 0600:

Alpha team awoke off their sleeping shift and let out a large stretch. In total all they had was about two hours worth of sleep, as gunshots kept ringing out as zombies were dropped left right and centre. Chris rallied his team together, plus the security guard who had written the S.O.S note. Rebecca had given him a Daylight capsule and had bandaged his wounds up, and he was starting to feel a tiny bit better.

"We'd better head to the roof" Chris explained. "I can call the Osprey back in while we're up there." He led them out the office, with Jill helping the injured facility worker. They found a lift and crammed themselves into it, with Richard just being able to press the button for the roof. After what seemed a slow and long ride for three floors, the lift let out a ping noise and the doors opened revealing an incredibly large lounge, where researchers awaited their helicopter transport to Hancock before getting a flight into Detroit or Green Bay and then to wherever their destination was. There was a bar, and a lot of seats, set out just like the departure lounge for an airport. There were a set of large metal doors at the end of the lounge that led out onto the two helipads via a small set of stairs, as the lounge was slightly set into the building to add a bit of extra room and prevent the windows smashing when the helicopters landed. Chris looked around to see if everything was clear, and led everyone out into the room. However, he stopped when he saw someone standing in front of the doors. He was dressed in all black, had blonde gelled back hair and wore a pair of black sunglasses.

"Wesker?" Chris asked, shocked, "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I was going to ask you the exact same thing" He replied with a surprised look on his face, not expecting the S.T.A.R.S to have figured out his plan to destroy them one team at a time. He stared at the teams, every single one of them bar Brian, Ryan, Brad and the rescued security guard survivors of the Arklay Mountain or Raccoon City incident. Thinking that Richard and Rebecca had died that night, he stared at them like he was in some kind of nightmare.

"So it was YOU who shot that assassin, butchered all those drug dealers and held Brian at gunpoint." Jill continued. Wesker gave a sarcastic clap, the sound muffled by his leather gloves.

"You ARE clever Jill" he replied sarcastically, adjusting his sunglasses. "Did you work out the other piece of the puzzle? I would have thought that would have led you to me sooner."

"Wait" Richard had a brainwave. "T Virus, G Virus, T- Veronica Virus."

"Well done, and it was the T Virus I released into this facility, and once I had thought everyone was dead, I released the Hunter to see if he could track any survivors down, and knowing you'd somehow end up here, I could then watch you all die." Wesker noticed the facility worker being held up by Jill. "Looks like he missed one, but it looks like one of my men got to you first." Chris was fuming with rage.

"You sick, twisted bastard!" He ran at Wesker, but Wesker was equal to him and unleashed an elbow blow that was superhuman in strength, Chris was sent flying backwards into the lift door, buckling it slightly. He got up to his feet slowly with some help from Brad. Wesker looked at the group standing in front of him. "Any other takers?" and adopted a martial arts stance. Chris took his position at the front of the group again, holding his abdomen.

"Just me." He said bravely, "You started this mess six years ago, and it's my duty to make sure I finish it." He dropped all his weapons and Kevlar jacket and adopted a martial arts stance as well. "Everybody go to the roof and wait there. Leon, you send a transmission out to Greg and have him pick us up, as well as getting an air strike called in." Leon did as he was told, and was given an ETA from bomber command: 15 minutes. He started a countdown on his watch, as did Chris. Rebecca stood beside Chris and begged him to reconsider.

"Chris, there has to be another way!"
"No Rebecca. I'm gonna make sure something like this never happens again." Wesker drew a handgun from his holster.

"Rebecca Chambers..." He sighed, "Why won't you die?" Rebecca turned to look at him and Wesker pulled the trigger. The bullet grazed the side of Rebecca's neck and she put her hand over it instinctively. She felt something running down her right hand... Blood... The bullet had burst one of her veins and blood was being sprayed everywhere. In the commotion, Leon led everyone onto the roof, but Wesker didn't put up much of a fight, he just let them go, Chris was the one man he wanted dead. Rebecca stumbled over towards the doors to the lift, blood still going everywhere.

"REBECCA!" Richard called out in horror. He dropped everything and immediately rushed to her aid, as did Brian. Rebecca let go of her neck and took off her rucksack so that Richard could make an attempt at helping her. Richard sat her down, propped up against the wall and Brian ran straight over, sliding in a similar way to a soccer slide tackle over to them so he was on the floor and helping as quickly as possible. Brian pushed hard on the wound, trying to stop the bleeding, but it was no use, he was getting showered, and in no time at all a pool of blood had started to appear around them on the linoleum floor. Suddenly, he remembered something from an ice hockey game he saw way back in 1988, when goalkeeper Clint Malarchuck accidentally got his throat slashed by an opposing player who was checked into him, and remembered reading in the paper the next day how the doctor saved his life. Brian pinched the vein and he was able to slow the severity of the bleeding.

"Richard..." Rebecca said weakly, "The haemostat... It's in a clear bottle, green coloured liquid..." Richard rummaged through the bag and found it. He quickly loaded it into a syringe and injected it into the artery in Rebecca's wrist.

Chris and Wesker meanwhile had engaged in hand to hand combat, and Chris was losing badly. Wesker's superhuman strength had overpowered him. Wesker let out a violent punch that sent Chris flying into the bar. He jumped in the air and was about to deliver a final punishing blow, but Chris was some how able to dodge it, and dodge the barrage of kicks and punches Wesker was throwing at him, and managed to get a couple of hits in himself, including a roundhouse kick that sent Wesker crashing into some of the chairs.

Back in the corner by the lift doors, Brian and Richard had used Rebecca's haemostatic medicine in an attempt to stop the bleeding. Brian kept pinching the artery until he felt the blood start to go sticky and clot. He let go to make sure it worked, and sat Rebecca upright, holding her. Rebecca took hold of Brian's hand.

"Brian" She said with a pleased smile, practically whispering, "It works... It actually works..." Brian tried to keep a brave face on things, and smiled at her.

"Yeah, you're quite clever when it comes to medicine, aren't ya?"

"There's something you should know" Rebecca continued, and told him what she wanted him to hear. She started to breath deeply, and was on the edge of consciousness.

"Rebecca... I don't know what to say..." Brian admitted. Richard then ran outside to tell Leon to have a medical evac sent over with an AB blood transfusion as quickly as possible, but told her what he had been wanting to say for a while. Rebecca smiled at him. He kissed her on the forehead and held her hand tight, talking to her to keep her awake, but he could not help but periodically glance at the fight happening behind them.

After asking Rebecca if she was comfortable, Brian jumped to his feet, removed his protective jacket and charged at the former S.T.A.R.S Alpha Team captain as he laid Chris out on the floor. Brian unleashed a devastating football tackle that he was famous for in school that sent Wesker crashing to the floor. Wesker cracked Brian in the side of the head with his elbow and using his free leg was able to send Brian a few feet from where he was. With adrenaline rushing through his veins, Brian was on his feet in no time and drawing his Beretta opened fire upon Wesker, but due to his fast reflexes and speed brought on by the virus inside him, Wesker dodged each shot. Brian got closer and closer and the pair grappled in the centre of the room, this time Brian punching Wesker in the gut and letting a high kick impact into Wesker's chin, dazing him and causing him to stumble before aiming his Beretta at Wesker's body. The young S.T.A.R.S member had an opportunity to end this here and now, and made an attempt to shoot Wesker while he had the chance. It was impossible to react quickly enough as Wesker shot over to him and they wrestled with the gun in their hands. A shot was fired that went straight through the ceiling, and in the struggle, Wesker was able to eject the magazine and send the gun over to the doors to the helipad, where the surviving S.T.A.R.S members were standing at the edge, watching for their rescue craft. The thing that felt strangest to Brian and Chris is that this fight was a little too easy. The last time Chris and Wesker fought Wesker had nearly walked all over him, only being saved by an explosion separating the two, vowing to finish the fight the next time they met.

"His virus is dying." Chris thought to himself. "That's the only reason we're able to stand a chance in this." Wesker used a last burst of superhuman strength to throw Brian towards the wall near where Rebecca was; hitting it hard upside down and falling to the floor face first, winding him.

Brian crawled around on the floor coughing and spluttering and holding his Beretta in his hand that he put back in the holster as there was no point in using it anymore. Chris was able to use his extreme will to get back into the fight, punching Wesker in the face and smashing a chair over his head. Wesker, not even dazed by the tactic his former subordinate used, threw Chris hard onto the floor and pinned him down as he drew a combat knife with the S.T.A.R.S emblem engraved on it.

"This belonged to a friend of yours" He told Chris coldly in his instantly recognisable voice. "Does the name Joseph Frost mean anything to you?" Chris grunted and groaned as he tried to free himself from Wesker's vice-like grip.

"Joseph and the others were just normal people" Chris replied, "Why did you let them get caught up in this? And why do you still want us dead?"

"A game of chess can not be won without pawns" Wesker continued. "Edward, Joseph, Kenneth, Forest, Brad, Kevin and Enrico were just expendable pawns in my plans. But you, Jill, Barry, Rebecca and Richard just wouldn't die, despite my best efforts. That Leon fellow seems to be highly skilled too, as well as Kevin. One of my few regrets is not letting the latter join… He would have made the perfect guinea pig for the Tyrant. They're both survivors of Raccoon City, they know far too much for my liking…"

Over in the corner, Brian was finally able to lift his head and get his bearings on where his was. Everything was hazy and his vision was off focus. He turned through 180 degrees on his hands and knees to see how Rebecca was. She was still breathing, but only slightly, and was hanging her head as she was so weak she couldn't keep it up. Very slowly, she turned to face her friend, slowly reaching down towards her leg and drew the desert eagle Brian had given her earlier in the night. She passed it to her left hand, put the gun on the floor and slid it across to him. The gun was covered in blood, but Brian had no time to look at it, he had to end this fight and get Rebecca some medical attention immediately. If he couldn't save his Staff Sergeant in Afghanistan or at the rate things were going Rebecca, he should at the very least try to save Chris. He stood up gingerly, barely able to stand, and hobbled over to where his captain and the bio-terrorist were, clutching the gun in his left hand. As he got closer, everything seemed to be returning to normal, and his strength was now at the point where he could mount a final attack. As Wesker was about to stab Chris, Brian rushed him and kicked him hard in the side of the head, knocking the former S.T.A.R.S captain to the floor, unconscious. Brian stared at Wesker, and slowly raised the gun so the sights were aligned with Wesker's head. Without thinking, he squeezed the trigger, the magnum round ripping straight through the head of the Umbrella scientist. Chris picked himself up and stood next to his latest recruit. Looking down at the handgun, they noticed that it was empty- the slide locked back as it awaited a reload. They looked at each other, battered and bruised, and then at Rebecca. Brian tossed the gun away as they ran over to her to get her out before any of the zombies figured out how to get up the stairs.

Chris picked up Rebecca's limp body and heading towards the doors to the roof. Brian picked up his L85 and jacket and they ran outside, leaving everything else exactly where it was.

"What a magnificent sight…" Brian thought. They headed outside to see three Ospreys descending down to the helipad, and the pilots, using their extreme skill, hovered inches from the edge so that once everyone was aboard they could pull out straight away. Chris ran straight for the medical evac plane, carrying Rebecca in his arms, and handed her to some doctors who had stepped onto the helipad, and explained to them what had happened. Brian stood next to Chris and watched as she was loaded onto the plane. He took off his blood soaked beret and placed it into Rebecca's hand. Chris put his hand on Brian's shoulder.

"Come on" He said sympathetically. "Let them do their jobs. We'll ride home with the others." As they ran over to the transport that would lift them back to Raccoon City, the doors burst open, and a very pale, bloodied and exhausted man, dressed in black combat gear with a navy blue T-shirt came out, limping heavily. He turned around to see that there were zombies following him. He tried to run as quickly as possible towards the others. The zombies must have worked out how to use stairs. Kevin, along with Leon, Brian and Jill, saw what was happening and immediately dashed back across the helipad to clear some zombies and allow the person to get to the evacuation planes. Leon and Kevin opened fire on the undead beings, buying the man more time. Jill led him over to the medical plane and handed him a Daylight capsule.

"Here, take this, quickly!" She said with a lot of urgency in her voice. The man took the pill and climbed onto the plane, where the injured facility worker and Rebecca were being treated, although more focus was on Rebecca more than anyone. When they found that the man was aboard the plane, Kevin and Leon headed for their respective transports, and the planes took off with a minute to spare on Leon's watch. They watched as the zombies swarmed the helipad, their arms outstretched as they desperately wanted fresh meat. Chris could see through the skylight of the departure lounge some zombies feasting on the corpse of Wesker.

He let out a sigh, as although he had succeeded in rescuing his friends in Bravo team and eliminating the world's most feared terrorist, it was a rather hollow victory. One of his men was bitten multiple times and another was lying on a stretcher on the brink of death. Brian was sat in the co-pilot's seat of the Osprey. He stared down at his hands, where he saw nothing but Rebecca's blood. It was all over his hands, all over his shirt, up his arms, on his combat trousers, on his face and had soaked through his beret into his hair. He had been completely showered in it. Chris poked his head through the door to see if Brian was ok.

"You did a great job back there" He praised, "Rebecca would have done the same for you, and for all of us. Once we get back I'm recommending both you and Richard for the R.P.D Medal of Honour."

He gave Brian a congratulatory pat on the back and headed back into the main hold, where he informed Jill of what was going on.

"That medical plane is going to take Rebecca, Ryan and Darryl the security guard to Green Bay to get proper medical attention. They'll let us know everything that's happening, and will update us on Rebecca's condition." The rest of Alpha team just sat in silence as a mark of respect for her, as not only was she was the youngest S.T.A.R.S member, she was the brightest member in terms of personality, a very outgoing person who looked up to everyone else, especially Chris, as older brothers and sisters. Meanwhile, in Bravo team's transport, Brad watched as the medical plane took a right turn and headed towards Green Bay, Wisconsin, smiling as he knew that Ryan was in fact alive and that gunshot he heard was him shooting the zombie in the head. As they got about a mile away from the facility, they heard the roar of a B-52 bomber escorted by several F-16 Falcons flying over them. They had released entire payloads of laser guided bombs at the building, which reduced it to a pile of burning rubble in seconds...

Over Raccoon City, October 6th- 1255:

After getting some much needed sleep on the Osprey, Alpha team awoke to find themselves coming over the flatlands in the east of the city. The plane banked slightly to the right and aligned itself for a final approach to the R.P.D's roof helipad. The engines started to move to their upright position and descended from around 1000ft down to just about 50. It slowed right down and hovered over the helipad. Richard looked out the window and could see a large gathering of people in the police station gardens, with officers attempting to hold them off. He saw flashes as they started to take pictures. He gave Chris a tap on the shoulder.

"There's a massive media circus down there" He exclaimed. Chris looked out of the window and saw them all down below.

"Aw shit!" He sighed, "I hate talking to the press!"

The Osprey touched down and Alpha team disembarked. It then took off and they cleared the helipad so that Bravo's transport could land. They headed into their respective offices and began the process of recovering. However, Brian walked straight through the changing room, taking his apartment key with him, and out the office door on the other side. Jill followed him as far as the changing room door and called after him.

"Brian! Where are you going?"

"Jill" Richard said from the back of the changing room, "Let him go, he's just a little messed up after what he's seen in there and what happened just before we escaped to the roof."

"No… Something else must have happened in there" Jill argued.

"Well, those two are mighty close" Leon continued, "Just let him go and calm down, he'll come around."

S.T.A.R.S Office, October 6th- 1330:

Alpha team sat down at their desks filling in the paperwork when Chris started getting concerned as to where Brian had gone to. He looked up and called out across the office to Richard and Leon.

"Richard, Leon: Go to Rebecca's apartment and see if Brian's there. Just a welfare check, but I suggest showering and putting your civilian clothes back on first; you're both quite bloodied up as well." Richard and Leon immediately got up and headed to the changing rooms. They too were concerned for Brian's well being. Richard was there when Rebecca confessed her love to Brian and knew that was the reason why he had run off. But he didn't mention it to anyone. They quickly got changed and headed down to the car park where they took an unmarked car round to Rebecca's apartment. When they arrived, they knocked on the landlord's window.

"What is it?" He asked rudely. "Wait, I know you" he said to Richard, the tone of his voice completely changing "You're one of Chambers' friends aren't you? Her roommate came through here a few hours ago totally covered in blood and looked rather disorientated. You'd better check on him, he was pretty messed up." Richard and Leon ran for the lift and pressed the button for the fifth floor. Richard led Leon up to Rebecca's apartment and Richard started knocking on the door.

"Brian!" He called, "It's Richard! Are you ok? Chris sent us on a welfare check, can you open the door?" There was no response. Leon then knocked, this time harder. Still no response. He thought he could hear music from the other side, and knew Brian was inside. Richard put his back to the opposite wall and kicked the door in hard. Looking inside the apartment they saw Brian sat at the kitchen table, with his head on it, bottle of Jack Daniels whiskey in hand, and an empty bottle of vodka next to the other, which was extended over the table. The music Leon could hear turned out to be Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven that had been placed on a constant loop on the stereo. Richard switched it off while Leon tended to Brian.

"He's passed out" he confirmed, and shook Brian to try and wake him. After a few good hard shakes he started to come round, and fell off his chair. Leon picked him up and Richard helped keep him stand up. It looked like Brian had gone home and immediately started drinking, as he was still in uniform and had made no attempt to clean the blood off him.

"God damn it Brian!" Leon joked, "You're totally wasted!" He pulled out his mobile phone and gave Chris an update. Upon hearing the news, Chris let out a sigh of relief. Leon put the phone away and they thought about what they should do with Brian.

"What does Chris want us to do?" Richard asked.

"I think we should try and sneak him back into the station and put him in the drunk tank." Richard thought that would be best, as then they could at least keep an eye on him in there. They didn't get him as far as the front door before Brian started to vomit all over the floor. Richard picked up the bin and held it so Brian could be sick into it. They carried him downstairs and out to the car, where they put him in the back seat and strapped him in.

Upon arriving back at the station, they carried him all the way down to the holding cells and placed him on the bed. The officer in charge came up to them and asked them what was going on. Richard invented some sort of story about Brian being shaken and beaten by what had happened in Michigan and he just needed somewhere to rest. The officer headed over to his store cupboard and took out a pillow and a blanket, and Leon put the pillow under Brian's head, and lay the blanket over him to keep him warm. Leon stayed to watch over him while Richard headed back upstairs to the S.T.A.R.S office, where everyone had finished their paperwork and was taking a well deserved nap on their desks in their civilian clothes. He went in to the medical room and started to rummage around for any personal effects that Rebecca had left in there and should take them back down to Brian in the cells, as he was expecting the worst. There was a picture of Rebecca in her S.T.A.R.S uniform standing in between her mother and father, as well as her university certificates, and her R.P.D Academy graduation certificate. In a drawer in her desk he found her wallet, which contained $50 in two fives, two tens and a twenty dollar bill, her driver's license and her credit cards. He picked them all up and was just about to leave when Chris's phone rang, waking everyone up. He picked up the phone and put it to his ear. It was the hospital in Green Bay where the injured S.T.A.R.S members and the security guard were taken to. Richard headed back over to his desk and made sure he was sat down for the news that Chris was about to pass on to the rest of the team...

Raccoon City Cemetery, December 24th 2004- 1200:

Christmas in Raccoon City would be loved by small children in warmer parts of the US as it is usually snowing, and today was no exception. Brian had headed to the Raccoon City cemetery, dressed in his Army Greens, black shoes, leather gloves, long black overcoat, and wearing all his medals, one of which being the R.P.D Medal of Honour, which the President of the United States George W. Bush himself had awarded to all the members of S.T.A.R.S, including Brad, Ryan and Darryl. Brian was carrying a bouquet of Freesias, his mother's favourite flowers, to a gravestone in the centre of the cemetery. The gravestone was made of a blue marble, and had 'Chambers: A friend to everyone and loved by all who knew her' engraved in gold letters, and other bouquets of flowers had been placed there.

"I hope these are ok" Brian smiled.

"Yeah" said Rebecca solemnly, approaching him from his left hand side in her ceremonial S.T.A.R.S uniform, with a black overcoat like Brian's keeping her warm "They're lovely." Brian handed the flowers to her and she placed them down on her aunt's grave. The pair saluted, relaxed and stared at the grave momentarily. After a brief cuddle, Brian took hold of Rebecca's hand and they headed through the snow back towards their apartment. The future looked bright for both of them. Because of the money they made after selling the haemostatic medicine to the largest pharmaceutical company in the US after Umbrella's demise, they were able to move into a larger house in a quiet suburb of Raccoon City on the south west side. Brian sobered up and quit drinking, after admitting he was in fact an alcoholic, although Rebecca allows him to have a couple of beers over the course of the Christmas holiday.

Barry Burton on the other hand announced his retirement just after he turned 45, instead of waiting until he turned 50. The incident in the test facility was just too much, and took a lot out of him. The decision was taken incredibly well by everyone in S.T.A.R.S and by everyone else in the R.P.D, as Barry was an extremely well respected man who was, as many would describe him, as 'The nicest guy you could ever meet'. Billy Coen would be promoted to the leader of Bravo team after Barry's retirement, with Carlos Oliveira being his second in command, the decision being made based on military rank- 2nd Lieutenant and Corporal respectively. Ryan Williams and Brad Tucker, as well as Daryl Parker the security guard, joined as full time members after Ryan's slow but thankfully full recovery, finally bringing the Bravo team squad number to the six that Chris preferred to have in each team. Impressed by the piloting skill of Greg who flew them into the facility, Chris begged Commander Chamberlain to hire him as S.T.A.R.S' official pilot, as well as securing two Ospreys to replace the small and cramped helicopters they usually used, selling one of them and using the other as a traffic watch helicopter that serves the area. The roster was finalised two weeks after Barry's retirement, with no changes to be made for a long time. Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine Leon Kennedy, Richard Aiken, Brian MacFarlane and Rebecca Chambers made up Alpha Team with Greg Martin, a former Marine Osprey Pilot, as their pilot. Bravo Team consisted of Billy Coen, Carlos Oliveira, Kevin Ryman, Ryan Williams, Brad Tucker, Daryl Parker with Eddie Marshall, another Marine, as pilot.

As for the OICW assault rifle that was the centre of the investigation, it was returned to the Government, only to have it sent back two weeks later as a trial weapon. Although Brian was the only person who could use it properly, he found it was too big and hefty compared to the L85 and the P90. So the OICW, like most of the other weapons down in the armoury, just sits on the shelf, gathering dust, but forever being remembered in the R.P.D as being the murder weapon of the decade.