Two Ivans for the price of one.
This Tyrant model was developed as a bodyguard for Umbrella's important figures. Their method of thinking is significantly better than that of the Tyrant T-103 series, and they are also wearing augmented reality glasses, which helps them calculate combat tactics. Quite unpleasant opponents, especially after re-mutation, where they become Super Tyrants, grow all sorts of nasty and dangerous things, and also become faster and stronger.
The Tyrant in blue glasses instantly closed the distance and grabbed me, but I was waiting for just that, instantly straightening my foot and delivering a kick to the chin. And the rest is a matter of technique, almost no trickery involved. Into my next strike, I poured a significant reserve of biomass, sending the opponent to dent the wall. To be more precise, to shatter it, but those are just details. While the first Ivan was trying to get back on his feet, the second one was already winding up with the intention of tearing off my head with a spinning blow.
Dodging with a back handspring, I quite deftly parried the blow and threw the opponent off balance. Unfortunately, the second Tyrant managed to sprint over and grab me. He's quite good at squeezing people until their spine crunches. But I'm not an ordinary person, so pressing my chin to my chest, I sharply pulled my head back and slammed the Tyrant right on his augmented reality glasses. He did not expect the critical failure of the analysis program, so he hesitated, allowing me to break free from the grapple and dodge his friend's strike. The one who hit the second Tyrant's body instead of me.
What rowdy Ivans, even sparing each other. That's why I didn't want to return to Russia. It's scary to imagine how a village wedding would go here if someone sprayed the zombie virus. It turns out to be a deadly combo, and…
Shifting with acceleration, I barely avoided the combined strikes from two sides. Despite the damage to the first opponent's glasses, he still cooperated well with his comrade. How do I get rid of them? Should I prolong the fight to finally show my hidden strength and turn the tide? I don't particularly want to, because there are CCTV cameras everywhere, and also hidden bugs behind bulletproof glass.
Sergei Vladimir, as long as he has a connection to the headquarters, should not uncover all my aces. Maybe I will destroy the current Umbrella, but the Colonel is right about one thing: it's like a rat, even if we intentionally try to exterminate them all, rat plague will inevitably resurface somewhere in the world. And it's not a fact that the New Umbrella will be as weak; most likely, it will learn from the failures of its predecessor and patch all the breaches in its defense.
— Tyrants are like wine: some get better with a new generation, and others just sour, — I expressed, adjusting my glasses and jumping high, avoiding the crush from two sides. Landing, I continued: — You have become better than your predecessors, less weak, more clever. Unfortunately for you, compared to Nemesis, you have noticeably degenerated.
I was arrogantly smiling when one of the Tyrants jumped high and grabbed a six-shot rocket launcher. Oh, hell! Rocket salvos are my only weakness… I had to strain my eyesight and pull out two pistols to timely shoot down the rockets fired at me. But before I could shoot down the first ones, the second Tyrant fired a new salvo. Something is wrong here… Why are the monsters using damned rockets against good guys like me, as if I were the evil area boss here? What a nuisance!
Lamenting the injustice, I had to dodge by outright fleeing behind cover from the last couple of rockets. Phew… Lucky that there were thick walls here, as if specially placed for those who need to hide behind them from rockets. Hmm, suspicious. But I'll put it down to luck's love for my modest person.
After catching my breath a little and amplifying the virus in my body, I pulled out a knife at the limit of human capabilities and quickly closed the distance with the first enemy. Just a moment, and the knife was precisely in the temple of the first adversary, and then in the glasses of the second, who had intact analysis devices. Now both of them won't be able to calculate the fight on the go, but their basic intelligence still remains.
Bouncing off the shoulder of the two-meter Tyrant, I spun vertically right in the air and delivered a crushing heel kick to the head of the bad Ivan. The former head, having poured several hundred kilograms of biomass into the strike; his skull shattered without a chance for any other outcome, along with his brains and something sticky.
I wanted to repeat something similar with the second monster, but it initiated the mutation process. The coat tore, the head swelled, and a bunch of vile growths burst out of its body.
Scrutinizing it disdainfully, I wisely started to climb up the platforms, avoiding the horror movie creature. No, you have to see this! Its nerves mutated and began to resemble alien parasites, its blood vessels absorbed decay and half-shrouded the body in a cocoon, and its organs were improperly positioned throughout the new body.
Ivan, what's wrong with you?!
In shock, I turned my head and noticed how the creature was rapidly scrambling up, using its new limbs that pierced concrete walls like a knife through butter. Or what is it that a knife cuts through with such ruthlessness? Ugh, I knew I should have pushed everything onto Chris. He's a lucky guy, so let him deal with this Nosferatu on maximum settings.
Returning to the train, I smashed the glass and jumped inside. I can spread out here; cameras are unlikely to be installed in such an old model, which has survived for no less than a mausoleum. Still, it's one of the first train models from the bearded times.
— Oh, it reminds me of a horror movie, — I chuckled, carefully peering at the formless biomass trying to break into the train. Quite successfully, the mutated Tyrant literally resembled a giant slug, devouring everything in its path, including the relics of the past — the train from the USSR.
I slowly backed away, trying to wait for the moment when it would fully squeeze through, which would mark its end. My virus was burning through my body, concentrating in my left arm and substantially changing it into a tentacle-like form. A braid of dozens of tentacles shot at the target as soon as it came within striking range. It's undesirable to have me for dinner; I can swallow anyone myself and not choke.
The tentacles furiously pierced the creature, trying to drain all the biomass from it, like a giant mosquito would try to drain a human of every last drop of blood. The creature began to writhe and furiously roar, acquiring more threatening forms in the process of mutations, probably as a last resort for defense. But it did not help. Right before my eyes, the huge chunk of flesh was shrinking in size, like a deflated balloon. First to the size of a normal Tyrant, then to a human, and in the end, I absorbed even the tiny crumbs. I almost burst myself during the consumption process, but the deed is done, as befits good guys: evil was eaten without a trace.
Exiting the train and approaching the edge, I saw the second Ivan's transformation into an even more terrifying creature. The absence of a head triggered a complex chain of mutations, turning the Tyrant into a truly chthonic entity.
Perhaps the time has come to say the phrase I always wanted to say in my past life.
— I think I forgot to turn off the iron, — turning around dramatically, I quickly ran away from the undesirable factor. It's impossible to absorb any more, and there's no other place to spend the biomass; there are damned cameras everywhere. Big Brother is watching us and all that. In any case, some of the data has already been transferred to Spencer, and he is far from a fool; he might come up with something unpleasant as a countermeasure.
— Biological contamination level five detected, — the mechanical voice of the Red Queen boomed, marking the start of a rather poor event — "survival." Oh, I hope that Chris and Jill, who have arrived, will have a good time. After all, as their good superior, I have very much taken care of their personal growth. Just try to defeat that creature…
Quickly reaching the alternative route to the Colonel's lair, I walked to the elevator and entered the spacious area. The elevator led hundreds of yards beneath the surface of the earth, where an entire network of corridors and bio-weapons production complexes was located. Something similar existed in NEST-1, but the scale is much larger, and the opponents and traps are more tricky.
First, I was met by the disposal complex. Since the creation of mutants was put on an assembly line here, things very often ended badly. Defective samples appeared, requiring destruction so as not to tarnish Umbrella's honor and quality mark. Failed experiments in iron containers were dumped into a powerful incinerator, and everything was going well until a new level of infection appeared. Part of the factory's capacity was thrown into eliminating the consequences, but this led to an accident. Rarely nasty creatures streamed out of the containers, which were more frightening than a substantial threat. They were quite easy to destroy, as my every strike was accompanied by the explosive force of the absorbed biomass.
But I did not like the next room. As soon as I touched the motion sensor, suspended beams poured down on me. Being buried under such a pile of scrap metal is beneath my dignity, so I used a little of the virus's strength and squeezed through the gap, simultaneously jumping over the beams flying in the air.
I landed on my two feet, as expected, but the unpleasant residue remained, and it only intensified in the corridor with laser beams. A bright room in which horizontal and vertical beams capable of burning even steel were floating. What can be said about organic matter… But parkour is our everything; with it, I somehow managed to pass the testing room, which probably works on the principle of "it's good enough." If I were building such a room, I would not economize resources but immediately create a grid network across the entire white corridor so the enemy couldn't dodge. However, it's good that the complex was not designed by my evil twin brother. It's not a fact that regeneration would have saved me from being ruthlessly sliced into pieces.
— You're like cockroaches, — I quipped, walking through the corridor with frantically opening and closing doors. This was probably another trap, crushing like a press. But the doors did not lead to a fairy tale land, but straight to a small army of cockroaches. Mutated ones, which spoke of the poor maintenance of the complex. I didn't have poison, so I had to unholster my arsenal and shoot from a distance, constantly avoiding close confrontation. I never liked cockroaches, even in my past life, so close combat was taboo.
Finishing with them, I made my way to the central part of the complex, simultaneously exterminating the Lickers that crawled out of every crack. Seriously, how many ventilation shafts are here, and who let a horde of Lickers in there? You walk down the corridor, touch everyone, but that doesn't give the Lickers the right to jump out as if from nowhere! They are vile; they have no skin or flesh on their heads, only a huge tongue and an exposed brain. Thankfully, the target is clear. Shooting an exposed brain is certainly more pleasant than a closed one.
And in the white hall, it seemed they wanted to have me.
— Comrade Wesker, you dealt with the Ivans, my congratulations, — the authoritative voice of my not-so-good friend boomed from the speakers. — Now meet the one who will determine Umbrella's future. Project T-A.L.O.S.!
At that moment, a huge capsule fell from the ceiling, releasing an equally massive mutant. It was clad in metal armor, had an artillery cannon on its shoulder, and created the image of a Space Marine from a universe I wanted nothing to do with. I did not want anything to do with it 40,000 times.
— If he doesn't say: "For the Emperor," then it's already a failure, — I declared, frowning due to the rockets launched at me.
It required pulling out far more aces than planned, because one rocket would have left nothing but a wet spot of me. In addition, T-A.L.O.S. was currently controlled by the Red Queen. Although she is an ally, she is only one starting from the moment her current user is disabled. Sergei Vladimir is definitely near the core, so I couldn't count on the AI's help.
I tried to stop the rockets with my submachine gun, as I did with the Ivans, while shooting the creature's head with a modified pistol. It definitely did not like bullets with the anti-T-Virus vaccine. It took only three rounds for the creature to become enraged, starting to spin around the complex, naturally with the intention of crushing me. However, not even Chris caught me, so how could a mutant succeed with its crab claw… Although, I admit, it moved at the level of a sports car. But, alas, my pistol is quite cheatery. Two more rounds, and the opponent fell on its back.
While mutating! Tentacles crawled out, but not ordinary ones. The armor concealed something similar to the tentacles of Doctor Octopus from the superhero franchise. Iron tentacles with three sharpened points at the end. They rushed to the ceiling, attaching the mutated monster much higher than I could reach with a roundhouse kick. I wonder, is there a ladder here? I wasn't allowed to think about it.
— The T-Virus will continue to mutate in its body. Not even God will be able to control it, — the operator laughed, as a centipede and some other parasite gushed out of T-A.L.O.S.'s body.
The mutated Ivan began to look like a nice guy compared to this abomination of nature. It was still trying to catch me with its tentacles, sending centipedes and parasites with the unseasoned desire to devour me, and the rocket launcher continued to shower the entire surface with surprises from its paw.
Not a step back! Only five steps if you want to stay alive…
Replacing the magazine in the modified pistol with a new one, the last one due to the difficulty of producing new ones, I re-entered the fierce fight. Literally fierce, not only did I have to run like crazy, but also dodge explosive rockets. My hairdo even became messy while I continued to shoot at T-A.L.O.S. under these factors.
The opponent soon got tired and rushed into pursuit. T-A.L.O.S. was up high, and that significantly simplified movement with the help of the tentacles. At some point, its paw almost clapped down on my head; only a kick and an instant retreat saved me. Hot, hot, I've never blinked so much, but there's a first time for everything. My retreat maneuvers, and its new mutations…
Oh, it seems the antivirus has begun to work; the vaccine was working, slowing T-A.L.O.S. down. I stopped sparing supplies and switched to grenades, sending them like Christmas gifts. The offended child was disabled by the fifth grenade, tossed into its insanely distorted maw.
— Comrade, you certainly know how to cause trouble. I'm waiting for you in the control center, — the Colonel said displeasedly, as if I had doused his house with gasoline and set it on fire. Well, he shouldn't sic Umbrella's secret weapons on me; I might not like it.
Adjusting my hairdo and reaching the complex's control center, which was quite futuristic by the standards of the approaching new millennium, I carefully examined the Red Queen core. The object of my search is almost in my hands; soon, power over technology will belong to Wesker!
— Twilight has fallen for Umbrella, — Sergei Vladimir, sitting in front of the monitor, spoke heavily. — You destroyed everything.
— Umbrella's time has come to an end, — I announced. — Your loyalty won't change its fate. When my country was destroyed, I had no place I could call home. Spencer gave me a home and a purpose. But he didn't account for the fact that children often rebel against their creators. One can only become God by overthrowing the current one, no other way.
— Perhaps, but from the dust, we will rise again, — the Colonel grimaced.
— And do you know where the roots of my hatred lie? The Red Queen interfered with my plans at the mansion on Spencer's orders, — I pointed to the red tank cooling the artificial intelligence core.
— She interfered with your plans, — he repeated. — She craves information, craves data. She wants to know the truth! It doesn't matter how cruel it might be. Everything she does is for the good of Umbrella, including your removal.
— This thing is just a tool. The user determines its desires, — I smiled, pulling out my pistol and aiming it at my old comrade.
— It's great that we can be honest with each other. A sign of good relationships. It's a shame that we'll have to put an end to this, — he shook his head, grabbing a vial of the virus and injecting the contents into himself. A crazy dose… No wonder the Colonel turned into a monster: a huge eye popped out of his mouth, his skin was covered in limestone, and his guts tore out of his body and increased in size.
— What an abomination you've become, — I sneered, jumping away from the guts that reached for me. Quite sticky and elastic, they attached to the walls, instantly pulled themselves there, and transported the Colonel.
A little later, a mouth cut through the back of his head, and he spoke, attacking me:
— I only get stronger with every blow; even you won't be able to dispute my superiority, — quite a cliché for a villain; he could have come up with something more original.
— I hope you still have some fight left in you, old friend, — I concluded, dodging a blow and shooting at his head. — Because you will meet your end today, I hope it's not a pathetic one.
A mistake was made. He met a pretty pathetic end the moment I unleashed the T-Wesker, modifying my hands into sharp claws. The mutated intestine may be elastic, but it is sliced no worse than a potato.
Well, tonight's dinner is the Colonel — Sergei Vladimir. In almost a fraction of a second, I closed into close contact and modified one of my hands into a sharp blade, which I methodically dismembered the opponent with. Even Alexia could not withstand such a rush, but the enemy could, trying to escape. He used his guts to quickly make a break for it, but he didn't manage to reach the white room with the dead T-A.L.O.S. before I crashed into his spine at full speed. I've long dreamed of hitting with two feet at once.
— No, it's not over yet, — he spoke painfully, right into my face from the mouth on the back of his head.
— True, — I replied arrogantly, approaching the defeated enemy. — It's only just beginning.
Closing in on the lying Colonel, I quite cheerfully began to beat him. If you cheerfully dismember someone, it's a sign of maniacal tendencies. It's better to simply stick to the word "beating." And the fact that only a wet spot was left of Sergei Vladimir after the beating is a small matter of life. No need to dwell on it.
Returning to the control center, I approached the supercomputer core.
— Red Queen, what a long-awaited meeting, — I greeted her, activating the U.M.F. - 013 data copying protocol. I had tried to get all of Umbrella's developments and secrets back at the Spencer Mansion, but I had to postpone the pleasure of robbing my former boss for half a year.
— Transfer of requested data complete, — the Red Queen said unemotionally. — Proceeding to server shutdown. Please restore the power source as soon as possible so I can serve your purposes, Albert Wesker.
— All according to the agreement, — I concurred, holding the disk with the evil corporation's data in my hands, which will be useful to my company of good and positivity. Alexia will be pleased when we can force our main competitor out of the market. And why pleased? She is my manager and has a percentage of the power, money, and everything else.
Taking the core, I hurriedly headed for the exit of the complex.
Empires are built over years, and they collapse like a natural disaster, quickly and ruthlessly. Now, only crumbs of Umbrella remain, forced to hide underground from the whole world. It won't be a week before Spencer is declared a fugitive criminal. He will become an outcast in the world he wanted to control. And when we meet, our drama will end, where the winner in life will be determined once and for all. Then the old man will learn from my lips the story I will write for this world. Because only I am capable of it. The only thing that can overcome power is even greater power.
Walking through the factory yard, I aimed my pistol at a cable. With one shot, I unhooked the hook that was rushing towards me, allowing me to grab onto it and pull myself up right to the high fence of the bio-weapons production factory.
The dawn was visible on the horizon, determining my future and the future of the mega-corporation GENTEK. An entire world will shake from the new discoveries authored by Spencer's talented protégé. The one who surpassed his creator.
— Umbrella lacked a vision for the future, and my task is to make that future happen, — I proclaimed, putting my hands behind my back. — But now, the hardest part is coming… I need to seize Las Plagas before the Organization does, to become a monopolist in a world where bio-developments determine one's place in its hierarchy.