I ascended to the first floor, where my team was located.
During my absence, caused by unforeseen circumstances involving a monster and a shower stall, I missed nothing important. Moreover, I managed to significantly simplify Sherry's rescue. The team of brave girls did not abandon the child in need and began searching the scientific complex for information about a vaccine.
Despite the difficulties, the girls actually found a laboratory for creating an antidote, instructions for synthesizing an experimental vaccine, and the necessary components. This was largely thanks to the U.S.S. mercenary, HUNK, who effectively performed all tasks as if striving to set a record time, while the others morally supported her. This created all the conditions for the hero, that is, me, to arrive at the last moment and simply correctly synthesize the vaccine. Or rather, to do it completely incorrectly, using a weaker concentration.
If my calculations are correct, in a few years, Sherry will stop aging, and the virus will give her extraordinary strength. She will become my best laboratory employee and a bodyguard in everyday life. A perpetual worker!
— So, you defeated that creature with your bare hands?
— Beat it to death, — I answered Claire's question. She was sitting in the corner of the room, nervously looking at the girl lying on the couch. It was unclear where her maternal instinct came from, but such a strong attachment to an unfamiliar child, not with the goal of turning her into a mad scientist, seemed strange to me.
At the moment the antidote was being finished in a special capsule, an announcement from the Red Queen echoed through the complex. The AI reported that a signal had been received from the main headquarters, activating the complex's self-destruct system. However, thanks to our agreement, the Red Queen opened all the doors leading to the underground train and activated all safety protocols. In other words, the zombies were in for trouble, and our path to freedom was cleared. In theory; in practice, the Queen is a mediocre janitor.
— All barriers are removed, — Jan noted with disbelief, peering into her tablet. — Could this be a trap?
— It looks more like a dry analysis, — I shrugged, injecting Sherry with the antidote. Radical changes began to occur on Birkin's daughter's face, which had been bluish and covered in sores: her skin color returned to normal, the pustules stopped festering, and the peeling ceased. The virus concentration significantly decreased. If the girl isn't riddled with bullets, her immune system should cope and enter into symbiosis with the small parasites.
Thus, my employee will be much stronger, and no zombie apocalypse will pose a threat to her. By the way, I wasn't doing this out of the goodness of my heart. After all, disasters can occur all over the world, and it would be a shame to lose a good employee.
— What are you talking about? Dry analysis… She's not…
— Umbrella is falling apart, and the artificial intelligence has not yet reached the level of Delamain to independently sustain and support itself from the physical world, — the unsuccessful comparison made me freeze impassively. Sometimes memories from another time and world are superimposed on my stream of consciousness, preventing me from choosing the right words. — So the girl is looking for a new father to pay for her whims, like a fancy data server. And the internet, too. Oh, these kids made of zeros and ones.
— Delamain? So such artificial intelligences do exist, — Jan nodded seriously as Ada entered the room.
The spy looked a little agitated, probably due to the warning about the approaching complex explosion. She urged us to head to the train faster, which everyone agreed to.
In such an unpleasant situation, I picked Sherry up and headed for the exit, followed by the other members of the criminally good squad of not-so-good guys: Jan — a hacker stealing network data; Claire — carrying a weapon without permission; Ada Wong — a former criminal and current spy; Lady HUNK — a U.S.S. mercenary; Sherry — the daughter of two people involved in the Raccoon City incident.
— Stop! — A middle-aged woman in a lab coat and with a pistol in her hand, who came out of the corner, was not part of my plans.
The complex was supposed to explode.
— Annette Birkin, — I greeted grimly, trying to be quiet so as not to wake the girl. — If you don't want a bullet between the eyes, I advise you to come with us instead of stopping us at the moment the self-destruct system is launching.
Calm tone and reasonable arguments did not work. She fearfully shifted her gaze between me and Sherry. A problem… It would be better to encounter a mutated Tyrant than a woman who cannot be eliminated because of my good guy reputation. I invested a lot of effort into the aura of goodness to now wring the neck of an unpleasant variable, revealing my true nature too early.
— Let her go! — she ordered, continuing to keep me in her sights.
HUNK slowly and subtly changed position, preparing to knock the weapon out of the opponent's hands with a single shot. The girls distracted her attention, preparing for a return fire from their empty magazines.
Amusing.
— Do you want us all to die because of your stubbornness? — I smirked, preparing to signal the mercenary to open fire, but I was too late. From the passage next to where Annette stood, a heavily mutated Tyrant appeared. The battle with Birkin in the parking lot had severely battered him, causing him to bloat and gain muscle mass. His left arm, consisting of sharp growths woven into a huge, curved blade, cut the affected woman in two with a single swing. Sherry was lucky that she was unconscious due to adapting to the virus. Otherwise, the last relative who could interfere with my plans would have died before her eyes.
— Take her, — I asked Claire, quickly approaching her and handing over the girl.
Hurriedly sliding toward the Tyrant, I sent him flying into the ceiling with a powerful kick. Like a cannonball, he broke through a section of the ceiling, getting stuck in it like a Christmas ornament. This worked out even better than I expected. After the battle with Birkin, I seem to have unlocked "something" and become stronger, without the slightest desire to protect others. As a good guy should! But to be honest, I should avoid getting wounded, or I might end up with a tailbone tail or a third eye on my forehead. I need to find a virus that will balance the abilities of Golgotha and the Tyrant, strengthen them, and allow me to control the mutation processes. Temporary tentacles are better than permanent ones.
Run…
The strategic retreat into the depths of the NEST-1 complex went smoothly. Everyone quickly moved toward the central elevator leading to the underground supply train.
And running across the raised walkway, we stopped at the elevator. Jan was about to hack the access codes, but the Red Queen preempted her, unlocking the elevator and allowing the doors to open. Claire, the most tired and carrying the child, entered first. Jan was the last to enter, and I, turning away, went to the control panel and pressed the down button.
The elevator doors had barely begun to close when a scream rang out.
A metal pipe plunged into the elevator, narrowly missing our hacker's back. The Tyrant, bold and impudent, decided to eliminate my valuable hacker. He flashed in the doorway and hurled the piece of metal as if participating in a javelin throwing championship.
The elevator sped downward, and the Tyrant was left with nothing. For now…
— Are you okay? — Claire asked worriedly.
— I'll live, — Jan frowned, rubbing a bleeding scratch. She had divine luck, and I didn't have to take responsibility for her. Losing a fighter who honestly follows orders and helps the team would have damaged my plans for world domination. But if I quickly seize the Red Queen's core, the artificial intelligence could become more effective, although behind every machine is its technician. Jan is very useful.
— That guy could have killed any of us, — Ada added coldly, tightly holding the container with the virus samples.
— So, are we a lucky team? — Claire asked cheerfully, causing the unconscious girl to wince. — That's worth celebrating, if we survive.
— Let's first get out of Raccoon City. If we hang our heads, someone will chop it off; if we get drunk on dreams, we will choke, — I reminded coldly, cooling their hot heads.
The elevator descended, and we headed toward the supposed rescue zone, looking around for the Tyrant. He is probably hiding somewhere, harboring treacherous plans that could prevent us from reaching the train. His program will not allow retreat; I wouldn't be surprised if he reached the train before us.
Passing through the complex corridors, we had to exert ourselves more than once in the fight against zombies. However, even without the support of a heavily armed team, I easily managed the creatures, regardless of their numbers. The simple specimens served only as targets for training. The Red Queen hadn't managed to destroy them, but I was coping, venting my indignation over the complex's impending explosion. Thanks to my anger, we quickly overcame the hordes of zombies and reached the train.
Excellent, the train was in place. I didn't have to think for long… What the hell?!
The driver's cabin exploded.
The reason was obvious: the Tyrant had cut the route, jumping onto the walls of the raised room with the elevator, and reached the train before us. He quickly covered the distance and sacrificed himself, depriving us of the possibility of escape. This was not typical of his usual behavior; most likely, he was ordered to. A transmitter for receiving commands was built into his head.
There must have been wrinkles on my forehead.
— Five minutes until the explosion! I repeat: five minutes until the explosion! — the mechanical voice of the Red Queen sounded like a death sentence for all of us. But this is no time to lament over spilled salt or bad weather. One must grab a broom or an umbrella, depending on the circumstances. Luck already saved Jan, so this time it abandoned us. But no time to despair; it's time to take matters into my own hands. Literally.
— What are we going to do?! — Ada asked sharply, with indecision in her voice.
— You know, — with slight irony, I drew attention to reduce tension in the team. — I am a train myself, in a way.
I would like to bail out myself, saying, "That's not my problem anymore." But instead, I explained the plan in detail. The team didn't particularly like it, but the alternatives seemed even less appealing. For example, we could try to leave the boarding area and head to the sewer, but five minutes gave us little chance; the explosion will wipe out the complex along with a part of the sewer.
So I picked up Claire, who was holding Sherry. My old friend's sister had the most comfortable position. Jan settled on my back, Ada Wong took a spot on my left shoulder, and HUNK, displeased, was on my right.
They should really eat less…
Grumbling mentally, I waited for them to secure themselves with weapon straps to prevent accidental falls. In addition, the container with the G-viruses was placed in my hands. Thus, I was about to lose nothing valuable: neither my comrades nor the prize.
Jumping onto the rails, I hastened to accelerate, rushing into the depths of the tunnel. Due to the sudden acceleration, my team naturally felt oppressive pressure.
The speed increased gradually, like an ordinary car, not a supercar. But even so, I was pushing my body to the maximum. Thanks to the symbiosis of the Golgotha and Tyrant viruses, I surpassed humans, physically inferior to no one in the world.
Minutes passed one after another.
Ahead, the light at the end of the tunnel was already visible! This was excellent news, promising my departure from Raccoon City and the impact zone of the doomed NEST-1 complex.
As soon as I ran out of the tunnel and turned left, I was first overtaken by the echoes of the shockwave, and then by the residual flames.
— Is everyone alive? — I asked relaxedly, casually setting the living cargo on the sandy ground. Everyone was alive, but only the mercenary remained conscious. HUNK stoically endured the superhuman speed, while the others had lost consciousness from the pressure differential near the end of the tunnel. After checking for injuries, I nodded with satisfaction. In the worst case, they will wake up in half an hour.
— What will you do? — the mercenary asked.
— We'll get as far away as possible. If the city isn't hit with a tactical strike, the military will be sent here with the task of testing the antidote created against the T-virus. It was delivered yesterday by a former S.T.A.R.S. operative, — I shared the secret information. — I will take Jan with me; she has work to do. Ada Wong, hmm…
I slowly approached the spy, checked the integrity of the vial, and also found a pen and notebook in her hip pouch. I wrote down my contact details for communication there; our cooperation was just beginning.
— Ada Wong worked with me in exchange for a sample, — I scoffed, concluding this conversation and taking Sherry from Claire's arms. — The girl is infected with the virus. If left here, the US military will seize her as a guinea pig. That must not happen. Despite my attitude towards her father in his mutated form, we were friends and rivals in the past. I will personally take care of the talented child.
With these words, I threw Jan over my shoulder. Claire will stand up on her own and contact Chris. Ada will soon leave and contact me. I suppose we will all meet soon.
— So… — HUNK kept her gaze on me, realizing the situation. — You will take two people and the container, and then leave?
— Of course, and you too. I haven't prepared a contract for you yet and haven't paid for your special services, — I revealed, which surprised the mercenary. This was evident by the nervous sway of her submachine gun.
— You are a frightening person…
— Don't scare me with such a blatant lie.