Signaling to Four Eyes that I was going in, I headed for the cabin entrance while she covered my back—dagger in my left hand, claws extended on my right. Unfortunately, daggers aren't something you can really rely on when fighting Hunters; they tend to break far too easily.
I speed up and rush into the room.I notice the strange color of the Hunter—yes, it was him—finishing off some guard. Slipping the knife back into its sheath, I begin the attack with my empty hand.
My first surprise struck at that very moment, when sparks literally flew from beneath the Hunter! What the hell!? Its silvery scales were clearly far tougher than those of its kin. As I understand it, this must be the 'masterpiece' created in this laboratory.
I jump away from the monster, crouching to dodge the blow still coming at me, then close the distance again and try to break the scales on its belly. No luck. The entire damn thing is covered in uniform scales! Fucking vivisectors removed this species' weakness. Impressive work, sure—just not something I'm in a position to admire right now.
The monster's paw finally swings over me, and at the same time a solid stream of bullets slams into it. Four Eyes is clearly firing with both hands. And why not? Any recoil she feels now is negligible, and bruising herself or getting a mark was impossible for the undead. More precisely, it's possible, but it wouldn't affect her actions in any meaningful way. We don't feel pain, and regeneration takes care of the rest.
A moment later, I have to dodge a ricochet as well. The bullets don't penetrate that hide. Fine. What if I multiply force by speed?
I dash to the opposite corner of the room, barely brushing the wall, push off it, and rush back, driving both hands into the monster's chest and exposing myself to a blow. I press in even closer, trying to force its body backward, dodge the strike, and punch through the scales that are finally starting to give way.
One of the creature's claws still manages to graze me, getting lodged somewhere in my right forearm. But its grip on the floor fails. We're both carried along in the direction of my charge and slam into the wall.
At the moment of impact, a strange click sounds—and the wall moves inward while we keep going. Damn the Resident Evil world with its hiding places and secret rooms! How I hated that nonsense in the early games of the series. Now I'm cursing it out loud!
Another click, and something throws us upward.
And it throws us hard!
Even while flying, I don't forget to punch this reptile—if only to vent my pent-up irritation. We shoot out… outside, through some kind of hatch (I practically had to hug the Hunter to squeeze through), right next to the building. We don't even have time to fully clear the opening before a car slams into us, pinning us against the wall.
"What the hell?" I hear a man's voice. For a moment, I'd already decided the car was part of some elaborate trap.
"Leon, behind you!" Now a woman's voice.
With effort I turn my head that way and, through the gap in the crumpled hood, I see a girl and a guy jumping out of the car from opposite sides. What's wrong with them? They've pinned us down by every rule of monster neutralization, so bolting now would be pretty stupid…
My thoughts are cut off by the blare of a truck horn—one that's rushing straight toward the car.
God. Why?
I press myself even tighter against the Hunter, literally using him as an improvised monster shield, bracing my bent arms against his torso. Better broken arms than being smashed into pieces.
The impact is tremendous—enough to disorient even me.
The screech of tearing metal. An explosion, with us almost at its epicenter. I hide behind the Hunter's flesh as it's roasted alive. My arms crunch, breaking right before my eyes, losing their shape, becoming something closer and closer to minced meat—the very thing I could have turned into myself.
I kick desperately, trying to fall backward. No use—the grip is so tight it feels like I'd have to tear my lower half off entirely. If I can't go down, then let's try up!
Twisting, I push off with what's left above my elbow—essentially just bare bone, since the rest is already no better than "ground coffee." Not sure about the drink, but ground—that's for sure. On top of that, I wrap my legs around the Hunter, trying to shove my body upward, pushing off him again and again, using the monster as leverage.
And on the next jerk, I succeed.
And how.
I'm flung into the air, beyond the blast zone, and the shock wave even adds to it, tossing me back even farther.
After a couple of tumbles in the air, I land on the edge of the roof of the building beneath which the hatch had been.
Phew, I'm alive!
I lean over the edge, looking down at the wrecked car with the Hunter somewhere beneath it, the burning truck—and, on either side of it…
Leon Kennedy and Claire Redfield!
Awesome. Except—does that mean Four Eyes and I crawled through half of Resident Evil 3?
Funny, but I really need to get back to my partner… Easier said than done, unfortunately. First priority is finding food to restore myself, then clearing the debris and jump—or crawl—back.
Which brings us to the first item on the agenda: whether or not to eat the main characters of the entire Resident Evil series?
That's quite a dilemma.
Still, aside from the swarm of zombies around, they're the most preferable food option available.
(End of Chapter)
P@treon: /SadRaven
🥳Joining P@treon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰