| 10:54 pm |

Laura's POV

"How much further, Laura?" Tyler whispered to me, whilst the both of us continuously crawled through the dark, sizable air duct.

I peered down at the PDA screen in my hand—overlooking the coordinates on the GPS that the little girl sent us.

"We're almost there Tyler, just a couple more feet," I whispered back at him, just as I noticed rays of light coming from far ahead of us. Even with wearing the gadget-like shades. 'Thank god for the night vision mode on them, or else I would be about as blind as a bat crawling around in here.' I thought thankfully to myself.

Out of all the situations I've been in today, this one was by far the most uncomfortable. Not the air duct wasn't a tight fit or that it was too dark to see in, it was the fact that I could feel Tyler's eyes on me. In particular, on my ass. I was the one who decided to climb into the duct first, with him following right behind me. I'm starting to regret my decision a bit.

"Tyler, is there anything else you can look at that isn't my butt?" I questioned him, using a slightly annoyed tone of voice. Trying to not lose my temper.

"Calm down, Laura. I know that it's one of your pet peeves when it comes to anyone staring you inappropriately. Especially when they gaze at your bottom, but what else could we've done back there? Think about it Laura. Where we would be if didn't act fast and hadn't escaped through here?"

'He's right though. We would've been in a hell lot more trouble if we hadn't chosen to escape through the duct like the young girl suggested to. Can't blame him for that.'

"Besides, you really do have a cute butt," Tyler smirked.

Halting for a moment in the duct, I lifted my right leg and kicked Tyler in the shoulder in a punitive manner. As a warning. He unpleasantly groaned in pain, wincing when my thick-soled boot came into contact with his clothed shoulder.

"Come on Tyler, seriously," The two of us resumed climbing through the duct. "You need to be more focused at the task at hand right now. Sometimes I just don't understand you when you can joke or even flirt at a time like this," I opined, stopping in place upon reaching the end of the duct where a vent was.

Gazing through it, from what I was able to make out it was some sort of lavish office up ahead. The room was approximately the size of my bedroom, maybe a bit bigger. The walls are all painted black with a few various grey and white sequenced pictures, hung up all over the office just for personal decoration. Despite the dark color scheme it has, the fancy wood flooring was birch white. Topped with a large round grey carpet and a black ornate desk, with a matching black leather chair near the back of the room. Along with a black coat hanger rack, and a couple black filled bookcases leaned up right against the wall behind it.

To the left of the desk, there's three identical metal filing cabinets. With a black bookshelf positioned right above it on the wall. On the other end of room to the left of the door, there's a mini lounge area with a huge black fancy leather sofa, and two black leather armchairs surrounding a well-polished grey coffee table. Not to mention, it also has its own little coffee bar with a vast variety of coffee grounds and sweeteners.

According to the directions on the map, we're almost there. After we exit the air shaft and pass through this office, we just need to walk down the hallway for a little bit. Take a few turns left or right in case we have to, without getting noticed, until we reach the door that leads to the laboratory.

When I was about to open the vent, I immediately stopped. I thought I heard a door slowly creak open, somewhere within the office in front of me.

"Laura, what are you—"

"Shh!" I abruptly cut him off, momentarily turning around and holding my finger against my lips. Motioning him to be quiet.

Tyler immediately went silent within seconds; the sounds of heavy footsteps got louder and closer to us. I took off the sunglasses, storing them in one of the pockets within my black leather jacket since it was now bright enough for me to see visibly in the air shaft. Thanks to diagonal openings in the vent in front of me.

As I glanced through the narrow openings, a tall figure came into view. It was the man I saw from before, from the surveillance footage from earlier. The tall, austere blonde one, dressed in all black from head to toe. The perplexing man that's been I've been thinking nonstop about ever since I laid my eyes on him.

The blonde was treading leisurely across the room. The end of his black trench coat trailing behind him in mid air, all while heading over to a massive, black, ornate desk located on the other side of the room. Right when the man reached the desk, he took off his trench coat—sliding his muscular arms out of the sleeve before hanging it up on the coat rack. Revealing his black leather shoulder holster, showing off his customized samurai edge handgun and magazine pouches that carried full clips for his weapon of choice. Using his gloved hand, he slid his fingers steadily underneath the edge of the well-polished desk. Feeling for something.

Once the blonde found it, he pressed on it with his index finger. Prompting the very bottom drawer in the desk to automatically open. Upon reaching inside the drawer, he pulled out two small metal attaché cases, setting them down on the desk top.

Just as the blonde was about to open both of them, he suddenly stopped. I didn't understand what he was doing at first, until I heard a cell phone abruptly start going off. I began to freak out—thinking that it was my PDA that was ringing. Presuming that he would find us very soon if I didn't shut it off.

As I was frantically digging around in my leather jacket for it, out of the corner of my eye I caught sight of the blonde pulling out his ringing cellular device out of his pocket, answering it. I quietly sighed out in relief—knowing that we were still safe and hidden up here for the time being.

"Yes... Mhm... I'll be waiting." He hung up on the phone, sitting down in the leather chair situated next to the varnished desk.

After a few minutes passed by, an operative with the 'H.C.F.' patch stitched onto his uniform entered the office. Small specks of blood scattered all his designated uniform. I honestly thought that they were all dead, until now. It's the first living one I've seen since we got here.

"Commander Wesker, enemy reinforcements have arrived," The soldier informed him, saluting the blonde for a moment. 'So, that's his name! It's Wesker! He must be the one in charge of this place, and this must be his office.'

"How many are there?" Wesker questioned the operative, using a dour tone of voice.

"At least fifteen, maybe more."

Wesker nodded his head in understanding. Taking in the information presented before him.

"Have you suppressed them yet?" He inquired. His tone becoming slightly more menacing.

"We already suppressed and eliminated about a third of their entire squadron, but the rest of them are still active. They've already taken out about a fourth of our entire platoon. All offensive and defensive counter measures are being taken to extinguish them." 'Looks like Tyler and I will have to be more careful from here on out. If we don't want to run into any of them, especially Wesker.'

Even while wearing an exquisite pair of sunglasses, I could tell that the blonde's glare on the soldier just became more grim and intense.

"What about Ms. Redfield? What's her status?" 'Mom... He knows about her? On hold a second... Wesker's the one responsible for her kidnapping!!! He has to be the one, there's no doubt about it!'

"She's good and all ready to go, sir. Now that she's suited up, the device has been successfully implanted onto her chest, and is fully operational. In case any of them do find Ms. Redfield, they won't stand a chance against her. There's a high probability that they'll fail indisputably at detaining and restraining her." 'What the hell is he talking about? What did they do to her?!? It almost sounds like they turned her into some sort of weapon... This doesn't sound good.'

"Good... Now, what about the BSAA operatives? Have they been eliminated yet?" His tone sounding a bit more profound upon asking the man standing in front of him.

The soldier hesitated at first, which caused Wesker to faintly raise an eyebrow at him. Noticeably eager to know what he had to say. Making me grow more curious by the second. It didn't seem good.

"Unfortunately, they haven't been stopped. Yet... Recently, both of them got trapped inside one of the laboratories here when the lockdown sequence was initiated. Last time I checked the surveillance, the lab was filled with a massive horde of infected surrounding and closing in on the both of them. The chances of them of surviving and escaping the lab are very slim, sir."

My heart practically dropped after hearing what the soldier had said. 'Calm down Laura, don't hope just yet. No matter how unlikely it is, the guys still have a small chance of escaping out of the lab alive. They're very experienced and more well-trained than I am to deal with these kind of situations. I gotta stay strong for them.' I thought positively to myself.

"But what if they do survive and make it out of there Mr. Harrison? There's still a small possibility of them actually making it out of there alive. Aren't I correct?" Wesker asked using an irresolute tone of voice, in a rather provoking manner.

The soldier quietly gulped, before answering, "Yes sir. In case that does happen, rest assured we'll be ready to take immediate action."

Wesker doesn't look easily convinced by him. Yet, his look of dissatisfaction is hardly concealed by his elaborate sunglasses. I don't think the soldier in front of him can tell.

"Remember Mr. Harrison, failure is not an option... You're fully well aware of the major consequences if everything doesn't go according to plan, correct?" Wesker questioned him.

The soldier nodded his head diligently, heading towards the door to leave.

"One more thing Mr. Harrison, before you go." The soldier halted in place, flinching as he turned around to face Wesker once again. "How's progress on tracking down Ms. Redfield's daughter, Laura? Have you been able to pinpoint her location within the facility yet?" 'What the fuck? Why would Wesker be looking for me? In fact, how the hell does he even know about my existence?!'

"We haven't located Laura yet sir. But she's still here, somewhere. Why would you—" He abruptly pulled out his FAMAS assault rifle, aiming it right at the blonde.

Before the he could even pull the trigger, Wesker abruptly pulled out his samurai edge out of his holster. At what seemed like at the speed of light; shot the soldier mercilessly in forehead, splattering countless drops of blood all the wall behind the operative. Killing him instantly within a heartbeat. 'Holy shit!!! What the fuck is wrong with him?!?! Wesker just down straight killed that guy without any hesitation!!!'

The soldier's lifeless body collapsed harshly onto the ground; blood flowed directly out of the bullet hole in his head, spilling onto the ground below him and seeping through the carpet and smooth wooden floor.

I nearly gasped at the sight—seeing the whole scene unfold in front of me. While Wesker stood there, looking down upon the corpse on the floor with no remorse or any signs of emotion what so ever on his face. I covered my mouth with both of my hands to remain silent and unnoticed.

"I don't appreciate having some spy such as yourself infiltrate my prodigious organization," Wesker declared aloud, as if speaking to the operative's bloody corpse. "Especially one that's quite damn sloppy and vacuous; meddling in affairs that you have no right to concern yourself with." By the time he finished his sentence, I briefly plugged my nose with my finger tips, pressing my lips together to prevent myself from sneezing. Only to muffle it for the most part.

Wesker directed his gaze from the floor—glancing up at the vent on the wall. Where Tyler and I were hiding inside. 'Don't make a sound Laura, it's not what it looks like... Just stay calm and quiet, and nothing bad will happen.' I thought to myself, as I felt small drops of sweat trickle down my face. His gun was still in hand, fully loaded and ready to shoot. Before his curiosity could take him any further, his phone started ringing again.

Wesker sighed, storing his handgun back into his black leather shoulder holster and pulled out his phone once again to answer it. 'Phew! That was a close one!'

"Yes... Alright, I'll be there in a minute," He said then hung up, putting away his cellular device.

Wesker rushed over to the coat rack—taking his trench coat off of it. He swiftly slid his arms through the sleeves, putting it back on himself. He then went back over to his desk, taking something out of the open bottom drawer and rapidly storing it away inside his trench coat. Presumably into a small pocket hidden within the elaborate coat.

Lastly, Wesker grabbed both of the attaché cases he had set down on his desk earlier. Turning around and making his way towards the door—stepping over the bloody corpse on the floor as if it was nothing, and left his office right away. From the looks of it, Wesker kinda appeared to be in some sort of rush. But why?

The sound of his heavy footsteps grew more quiet. The farther he walked away from the office, the farther away from he was from us. Once I was sure that Wesker was long gone, I opened up the vent carefully and set it aside.

"It's clear, let's go," I spoke up, then hopped down onto the ground from the air duct in the wall. My AK-12 223 in hand, fully locked and loaded. Tyler crawled out of the duct and hopped down behind me—landing swiftly on his feet; his Silver Ghost in hand.

"Come on, we have to keep going. I hope that we won't run into that Wesker guy or any of those other enemy operatives along the way," Tyler stated, as he was treading rapidly towards the exit.

"What if we do, Tyler?" I thought aloud.

Tyler stopped dead in his tracks, holstering his handgun, and turning around to face me.

"What if we actually do get caught? What would happen to us? It just seems that the longer we stay here, the more dangerous it seems to get—"

Without even realizing it at first, Tyler cut me off by engulfing my body with his strong muscular arms. Pulling me close against his armored chest. I tensed up a bit at first, but soon I relaxed. Steadily embracing him as well; burying my face into the crook of his neck.

"Stop Laura, don't think about that." Tyler told me using a concerned tone of voice, caressing my back in a tender manner. "As long as we stick together, and we're more cautious and careful from here on out, we'll be fine. We have to stay strong; no matter what happens down here. I love you Laura. So much that it pains me to see you this way, being so fearful and uneasy. I won't let anything bad happen to you. I promise to protect you, at all costs, no matter what happens. Even if anything tries to lay a single finger on you. I'll be your knight in shining armor."

I lifted my head up and gazed at Tyler, acknowledging him. He cupped my cheek with his gloved hand—stroking it gently and lovingly with his thumb. A tiny smile curled steadily onto my lips, as a sign of my mood lighting up. I love it how Tyler was always concerned for my well-being, even at dark times such as these.

I leaned in close to Tyler, pecking him sweetly on his lips. Before I had the chance to pull away, he cupped my other cheek and brought me back close to him. Pressing his lips once again against mine, in an affectionate manner. After a second, he pulled away—making full eye contact with me.

"Come on, we better get going," He suggested as he let go of me; his hands falling to his sides.

"Okay, hold on a sec," I spoke, walking over to Wesker's desk.

Kneeling down, I began searching through the drawer Wesker left open, to look for anything that could be useful for us. 'Jackpot!' I pulled out a key card that was hidden beneath some of the files in the drawer. 'This should come in handy.' I thought to myself as I grinned.

Just as we were about to leave the office, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a document sitting on the desk top, realizing that it had been there this whole time. Stopping dead in my tracks, I turned around and dashed back towards the desk.

"Laura, what are you doing?" Tyler inquired, right as I picked up the piece of paper.

From the looks of it, it was some kind of research report for whatever they were working on. I decided to skim through it, seeing if it would be able to give us a clue about what they were researching done here.

__________________________

Plaga Type 5 Research Report
September 21st, 2015

Albert, I have great news to share. After months of back-breaking research and hard work, I've finally succeeded in recombining significant genes from both the Uroboros virus and the C-Virus with the original Plaga parasite genome.

Giving it the same key revolutionizing characteristics from the Uroboros virus, while the C-Virus helps bestow the following abilities: enhanced strength, agility, intelligence, and accelerated healing for those who possess the superior genes for to bond with it on a cellular level. For those who lack the proper genes, the parasite would only turn them into a stable and serviceable B.O.W. for your cause.

When orally embedded into a unsuitable host, travels all the way to the chest, in between the lungs, underneath the heart. Where it can tap into the host's spinal cord, and attach itself to the central nervous system. Thus gaining complete control over its host. As for a suitable host, the parasite would only be absorbed by the host during the infusion process. Bestowing the person with remarkable evolutionary changes as I've listed above.

Not only is the implantation process complete, my personal team of engineers were able to create a cellular device that would translate simple voice commands into high-pitched sound waves heard and carried out only by unsuitable hosts infected with the type 5 Plaga.

I'm fixing a copy of my research notes in my office from my hard drive that'll contain more important and crucial information about the new Plaga, such as test trials and contamination preparations. Once that's done, I'll send them to you right away.

                           Sincerely,
                                ~ Winifred Birkin

__________________________

"So, they were working on creating an brand new B.O.W., one that could be easily manipulated and controlled. But also evolutionary? That doesn't sound right at all. Do you think it could be the exact same ones that were roaming all over Seattle up above?" Tyler asked me, turning around to look at him.

"I don't Tyler, but it's possible. But come on, we have to get going. We wasted enough time as it is." I folded up the piece of paper, stuffing into my pocket.

"Right, let's go."