Colorless Spectrum
You are the spring I've waited for a long time
Simone
September 22, 1998.
Linda held the plastic card tightly in her hands, feeling its smooth edges dig into her palm as she walked over to Simone. “I’m doing this because I think you're my best shot. I don't trust you, not fully but my hands are tied and all I can do is have faith.” She took Simone's hand on her own and handed over the card. Monica. Researcher. The picture of a blonde woman was printed over it. “Don't ask how I got this…” Linda looked around the vicinity to make sure no one was near enough to hear her.
“I just assumed you asked politely.” Simone commented, matching the level of her voice with a sardonic tilt of her head.
“You’ll have to be quick, Dr. Birkin’s lab is guarded because Umbrella found out that he tried to cut a deal. They have him locked up in his lab to continue his research.” Linda then handed out a piece of paper and a floppy disk in the agent’s hand, small but filled with instructions. “I am putting my faith in you. Umbrella has to go down, and every research along with it.”
“A small burden to carry. I’ll make you proud.” With a swift slide of her hand, Simone pocketed the card and disk into her coat.
After a quiet exchange of knowing looks, Linda left, leaving Simone in the cold streets of the night. There was a buzz of people who decided to go to the nearby bar, unruly and unaware of their surroundings as they bumped into Simone. “Sorry, miss!”
Simone merely put a hand up, her other one unfolding her latest assignment.
The contents of the letter are as follows:
1. Tomorrow in the dead of night. Fewer guards, less light, easier to sneak around. The guard who watches over surveillance usually falls asleep by 1 am.
2. This floppy disk has a schematic of the Laboratory. You’ll find the elevator to the N.E.S.T. at the very end of the 3rd hallway. Press B4F. Then take the ladders that bring you one more floor down to B5F. Birkin’s laboratory isn’t hard to miss, take the left once you see the containment units of these monsters… You’ll understand when you see them.
3. Be careful, Birkin’s Laboratory is also next to a security office. To escape, go down 3 levels using the ladder. B8F will have a train that will lead you straight out of the city.
4. Meet me at J’s Bar on the 24th, I’ll be waiting for you there.
Good luck. -Linda
“Well, looks like I’m in for another fun night in Raccoon City.” The piece of paper in her hand crumpled with the curl of her fingers, its edges soon meeting the tip of her lighter’s flames. Inch by inch, the fire licked the parchment like a beast tasting its first meal of the day, threatening to taste her skin until she tossed it at the ground and trampled it with her foot. “Love this place.” She whispered underneath her breath before slipping a cigar on her lips, the smell of embers pervading her senses as she brought the fire ever closer.
September 23, 1998.
Simone held the plastic card tightly in her hands, feeling its smooth edges dig into her palm as she approached the entrance of Umbrella’s Incubation Laboratory. With a swift swipe of the keycard, the metallic doors smoothly slid open, revealing the winding yet empty hall of closed-off chambers and shuttered-off window panes.
With a steady composure, Simone walked forward, one hand holding a medical kit box while the other was deep in her lab gown’s pocket, tracing the outline of a pistol hidden and strapped on her thigh. Hopefully, she would have no reason to use it tonight.
The next part of the hall was littered with rooms and glass panel walls, making it easy to see the work that they had been doing down there. It made it especially easier to see which way Simone needed to go. Every other room had its lights off, except for one. It was a large room, about ten square meters in length, filled with running wires and pipes connected to glass columns.
Simone’s eyes widened as she stared at the transparent chambers, each of which containing silhouettes suspended in chemical liquid. She could feel her pulse race, the true nature of her mission dawning on her as sweat formed on her brow.
Umbrella was creating monsters.
Simone took a step closer into the pane and peered closer, eyes honing in with thorough inspection. The subjects were human in form but nothing else. Its skin gleamed like a snake’s, with teeth and claws as sharp as talons. Inhuman. This was what Umbrella was truly about. This was what Linda meant. This was one of the reasons why she wanted to bring Umbrella down.
Nonetheless, she had to trudge forward. Birkin’s Laboratory was nearby, and something told her that she had to make haste if she wanted to see him alive.
“Making contact with Birkin. Do not let anyone pass this door. I repeat, do not let anyone pass this door.” A faint distorted voice echoed through the hall.
Simone kept to the walls as she snuck closer, pulling her gun from its holster as she peeked from her cover. A group of armed personnel stood outside Birkin’s lab, separating into pairs as one headed inside while another stood guard outside.
“Looks like the party started earlier than I expected.” She muttered to herself as her mind calculated for a strategy. Eventually, she settled on one as her arm reached out for an empty glass vial sitting conveniently on a nearby crash cart. “Here goes.” In a swing of an arm, the bottle flew through the air and collided with the tiles, a crash echoing through the hall as it broke into fragments.
Knowing it was bound to catch the guards’ attention, Simone kept to the walls and waited by the corner with her knife.
“What the-” One of them says in confusion. All they knew was that there was supposed to be no one else on this floor other than them and Dr. Birkin. “Who’s there!?” He shouted, pointing his gun in the direction that the bottle flew from. He then motioned for his comrade to go and look at the empty corner of the corridor.
The female guard took slow quiet steps, her partner lagged behind her. She rolled her eyes at him, even when she knew he wouldn’t be able to see or tell. “Every employee has been instructed to vacate the premises, you are not supposed to be here.” She reminded the stranger as she grew closer. She pointed her gun at the stranger as she rounded the corner.
One foot in, a strong grip found its way on the soldier’s arm, followed by a sudden force that yanked her downwards. In a split second, the stench of blood pervaded her senses as pain ruptured from the side of her neck. She choked and gasped as she looked at the knife buried in her skin before shifting her blurring gaze to the blue-eyed agent.
“Sorry, ‘was never an employee.” Simone promptly pulled the knife back as she felt the soldier’s body fall limp against her, taking advantage of the shock, she threw the knife towards the second soldier, aiming for a clean shot at his glass-covered right eye.
He was able to evade quickly, but the knife was able to cut his mask free. “Shit.” He held on to his MP5 and pointed it at Simone. “You messed with the wrong team.” The coolness of the trigger pressed against his finger. His screams echoed as he fired bullets towards her. “Eat this!"
Propping the corpse over her body, blood splattered all over the agent’s pristine coat as the soldier’s Kevlar and flesh soaked the bullets. In moments like this, Simone knew two things. First, speed was everything. Second, she rarely missed a second shot.
With a flick of her wrist, Simone brought out the gun holstered on her other thigh and aimed it at the goon, her eyes narrowing right as a flash of hesitation coursed through his face. In an instant, a sharp whoosh cut through the air as a grappling hook shot across the hall, like a viper striking its prey.
The hook found its mark with a wet crunch; the projectile piercing the man’s chest with a searing grip. Amidst his gurgled cry, his MP5 clattered to the floor as he stumbled backward and pulled the wire taut. As his vision waned, he saw a flash of white and blue zoning in his direction at a terrifying speed.
Simone delivered the final blow with a flying kick, slamming the soldier’s body against the tiled floor with a gruesome thud. Silence filled the corridor as she landed on her feet, the wire retracting to her gun before she bent down to pick up the knife she had thrown earlier.
“I guess Kevlar’s good for something.” She muttered to herself between ragged breaths before picking up the fallen MP5. “Now then, where was I?” She looked at the fated laboratory.
The door to the laboratory hissed open to reveal the two agents from earlier and the scientist that Simone was supposed to meet, William Birkin.
BANG!
A bullet fired straight into Birkin’s chest. Umbrella had no need for traitors, HUNK knew that well. With the G-Virus samples inside the briefcase in his hand, there was no need to dawdle in the NEST any further until he saw her and one of his allies down on the floor.
Before she could make any move, the agent by the door immediately launched himself at Simone. He aimed the butt of his MP5 at her stomach before throwing her to the wall. HUNK took this opportunity to get to the other side and away from the spy that infiltrated the NEST.
HUNK sent bullets flying Simone’s way, his comrade took this chance to distance himself from the spy and rolled over to take refuge behind a stack of dense crates.
Ksshk. “Calling for reinforcements in B5F. We’re down two and we’ve encountered a possible spy.” The call ended with a placid “Copy that.”
A groan left Simone’s lips as she felt the burn on her abdomen and back. Nevertheless, a greater problem was facing her in the form of Birkin’s body lying limply on the ground a few steps away from her. Unfortunately, she didn’t have the luxury of a cursory look to check whether he was still breathing.
“Shit.” She cursed beneath her own breath as gunshots continued to roar, tearing through her fragile cover and knocking a few of its contents out. A curious bottle rolled its way to her foot, an idea formulating in her mind before she picked it up. Once she heard the familiar shuffle of a reload, she threw the chemical towards their direction.
As the bottle shattered, a puff of cold and thick smoke blasted from the center. Liquid Nitrogen. Non-explosive, non-flammable, but nonetheless distracting. Banking on their reactions, the agent rolled out of her cover and open-fired using her looted MP5.
Although most of the rounds were aimed at the gunmen, a few were tilted upwards, hitting the running pipes which released thick streams of steam that fogged the hallway. Abandoning the now-empty submachine gun, Simone switched to her pistol and swiftly made her way to Birkin, hoping that the mercenaries were too disoriented to find her.
“Dr. Birkins, where are the vials?” She checked his pulse in a rush.
“Ugh..” William could only groan in response. He felt his body grow weak by the minute. He pointed out towards the door where Simone had just come from. “U… S… S… Won’t get away that easily.” He said shakily. With his last remaining strength, he pulled out a vial from his pocket and injected himself with his last vial of the G-Virus.
“AAARGH!” He lurched from where he sat, he found himself gagging over nothing while he felt a hot stream shoot up his right hand. From his fingers and up to his shoulder started expanding. His skin began to tear as his muscles became inflamed, his flesh contorted as a giant eye sprouted itself from his chest and settled on his right shoulder.
“Kill…” William bellowed as he thought about the men that took his life’s work from him. Half of his clothes had torn from the transformation while his skin started to cling like sinew. He turned to look at Simone and hurled her to a nearby counter before leaving the lab in the hunt for the USS Agents.
Simone winced as she grabbed onto the table’s edge and pulled herself up, watching the monstrous Birkin disappear into the thickening smoke. As horrifying as watching the doctor’s grotesque transformation was, she still had a job to do. Obtain the vials and get out of Raccoon City.
Right before she could run after the enraged doctor, a series of gunshots and visceral screaming rang out from her intended direction, followed by an explosion and the sound of shattered glasses. Simone didn’t have to be a genius to figure out what was happening on the other end, nor the glass columns holding Umbrella’s mysterious projects.
“Shit, looks like the USS stole the vials. Here’s hoping at least one of those idiots makes it out of Birkin’s wrath.” She commented before heading inside Birkin’s lab, recalling the exit she pathed for her and the doctor’s escape. “As for me, time to get out of here.” She then looked up the ceiling where her targeted vent waited, aiming her grappling gun at its hatch before clambering in.
September 24, 1998.
Neon lights flashed as the sound of jazz filled the early evening scene of J’s Bar. Chatters laced with music as friends drank and lovers danced, yet pushing past the dance floor was a platinum-haired woman with one hand clutching her abdomen.
Eventually, she found her way to the bar counter, quietly taking a seat and scanning the room for a familiar face. “And here I thought I was late.” Simone glanced at the clock before waving a hand for the barkeeper. “A glass of whiskey. Pure.” She told the man once he came before leaning forward and eyeing him inquisitively. “And have you seen Ms. Linda tonight? You know, dark hair, brown eyes, big scowl on her face like she’s carrying the world’s heaviest burden? Ring any bell?”
The bartender let out a short laugh at Simone’s description of one of their well-known customers. He poured the liquor into a small glass and handed it over to his customer. “Whiskey. Pure. As for Miss Baldwin… She usually comes around nine-ish? So, you’re a bit too early.” He said as grabbed another glass and wiped it with his piece of cloth.
“Usually, when she’s meeting someone she comes around seven.” Chimed a waitress with blonde hair, Cindy, who happened to eavesdrop on the conversation. “Linda always comes here like clockwork, she’ll be here don’t worry.”
“Ah, is that so? I’m a bit disappointed, here I thought she’d be itching to see me.” Simone replied with hints of sarcasm before gulping down her glass of alcohol. “But don’t worry, ‘won’t be my first time getting stood up by one of the brainy types. Another one?” She raised her glass and swirled it around, mind poking around the different possibilities of Linda’s fate.
Code by Nano
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