Chapter 16: Collision Course

When the monster got into the courtyard, Rick moved from the recess in the wall to avoid being caged in. With a far wider space, he lured the seven-foot-tall brick toward the stairs to make it forget about Claire. He didn’t know if the thing could jump and reach the balcony, and he wasn’t about to test it out. Not when her life was on the line.

Catching its attention was easy. The moment he ran to the left, its path shifted to intercept him. All he had to do was dodge a punch and leave behind a flashbang.

Rick timed everything perfectly. The bait worked, and he slipped right under the guy’s arm, a flashbang dropping at its feet. He then began to run without thinking. After going through the courtyard door, he hurried down the corridor. At the sight of the helicopter, he decided to use a shortcut.

Instead of following the corridor, Rick jumped through the hole in the wall leading outside. He landed on the metal stairs and went over the rail to land on the ground. Right there, where he had met Leon earlier in the night.

Not wasting any time, he went right, reentering the building. It was then he realized his mistake. Claire and he had blocked the whole place. The West Office was accessible, but the exit on the other side was locked. If he wanted to get back to the Reception Hall, he had no choice but to go through the corridor and move the heavy metal shelves to create a path. A great waste of time.

Lady luck smiled on him, however. As Rick made his way to the shelves, he saw through the corner counter that the shutter, which used to be down, was open. Without thinking twice about it, he slid over to get inside the room and went through the new path available.

A new corridor presented itself before him, which immediately cut to the left. It was as long as the building’s length. Rick didn’t care; he kept running and saw a bifurcation. Stairs, and a path to the left right before them.

He silently cursed himself for forgetting that the stairs led to the garage and that the door was locked. It was twice now that he had made an error of that kind. With only one option at his disposal, he took it. Just as he turned left, he collided with a body. The impact was so violent he fell on his ass.

In a flash, Rick drew his gun and aimed, ready to shoot.

“Rick?”

“Leon!” Right in front of him, in the same position on the ground, Leon was aiming his own gun. Lowering his weapon, Rick scrambled up. “We need to hide! Quick!”

Leon immediately got to his feet and turned toward a door. Rick stepped inside the room right after him and closed the door. It was a cozy room, with a table, chairs, and an open locker. With clothes.

Leon caught his attention by speaking. “I was on my way to get you.”

“Oh?” Rick found it surprising as he grabbed a black beater and a white shirt.

“Claire contacted me through the radio,” Leon started to explain. “She sounded very panicked. Said you were in danger with… a ‘rocket guy on your heels’? Her words, not mine.”

Rick chuckled at the phrasing. “That’s a seven-foot-tall monster, as wide as the door, and you need nothing short of a rocket launcher to kill it.”

The explanation made Leon curious. “How do you know that?”

“I fought one of them before.”

“Where did you get the rocket launcher?”

Rick sighed in exhaustion. Talking about the mansion incident once had been difficult earlier in the night; doing it a second time didn’t seem easier. “Oh, that’s a long story.”

Leon had an amused smile on his face. “Well, we’re hiding apparently, so I suppose we’ve got the time.”

Starting with a resolute groan, Rick told Leon about his adventures in the Arklay Mountains in July. With Rebecca, then with S.T.A.R.S. in the Spencer Mansion. Umbrella’s involvement and Irons.

The rookie cop was skeptical of the tale, especially involving Umbrella and none other than the Raccoon City Chief of Police, but Rick tossed the man’s journal at him and added that Claire had found incriminating emails and financial ledgers proving the corruption.

Leon’s face paled greatly as he read the evidence he had been provided in silence. He didn't even reach the end of it before he closed the little book.

“Alright… That’s… How could…” His mind was a total mess. It was way above the duty a rookie on his first day should be shouldered with.

“Umbrella is one of the biggest corporations not only in the USA but in the world. Their capital is unfathomable, and Raccoon City is their town, their turf. It wasn’t difficult for them to take control of it. Heck, I bet they even have members in governments. Our own included. A man like Irons? No morals and greedy? Easy to work with,” Rick explained.

Leon waved the journal and put it in his own R.P.D. pouch. “I need to get those emails. The FBI will be very interested in them.”

“The FBI?” The mention of the big guns of law enforcement confused him.

“I met one of their agents in the garage not long ago. Ada Wong. She’s investigating Umbrella and its ties to bioweapon research. Don’t know much about the latter. Only that it’s zombies and Lickers and apparently the rocket guy. She’d be interested in your testimony.”

Rick answered cautiously. “Doubt it. I’m a street kid, and I have no proof but my word about what I saw.”

An FBI agent in Raccoon City during the outbreak? It sounded more than suspicious to him. It was downright fishy. Prudently, he changed the subject.

“How did you get to the garage? Claire and I used the secret passage under the statue in the Reception Hall, but the entrance closed behind us.”

“Same way you opened it. I removed the medallions and put them back.”

Rick snorted. “Claire will never hear the end of it. I told her you could do that, but she wasn’t convinced. Anyway, if you went to the garage, we must have missed each other.”

Leon nodded. “We actually did. I saw the bodies you left behind. Nearly got killed by the Lickers in the East corridor.”

Rick frowned, thinking of something that didn’t add up. “Wait… How did you get here? The only way back up from the basement floor was Irons’s personal elevator.”

“I turned back on the power and unlocked the electric door,” Leon replied simply.

“You found a crank for the shutter?” When the rookie gave him a nod, Rick asked one more question. “Where? We went through every room in the building.”

“The jail.”

“Ah. No, we didn’t go there. We thought there would be zombies everywhere.”

“You were right. Most of them are behind bars and can’t get out. That makes me think… I met a reporter there. Alive. He has a keycard for the parking gate. Well… His body has. He got killed by… I don't even know. A huge arm broke through the wall behind him and just… Squished his head.”

Rick blinked. “Why—”

Leon interrupted him. “He wanted me to get him out. He talked about being wrongfully imprisoned by Irons on false charges. I didn’t believe him, but now…” With the journal, it was clear the reporter had been innocent and telling the truth. “I need electronic parts to open his cell. I already got one. I open the cell; I get the keycard.”

“Fair trade, I suppose,” Rick hummed. “Claire and I were looking for the same thing. In a side room of Irons’s office, we found a keycard too, but locked behind a fence. We were searching for the parts when rocket guy show— Wait a minute. We only need one keycard. We can all get out together. Could you—”

Leon already had his walkie-talkie in hand and called for Claire. She answered within seconds.

“Leon! Did you find Rick?!” The urgency and panic in her voice were plain to hear.

“Yeah, he’s in front of me. We’re hiding in a room.”

“Thank god! Is he injured?!”

Leon smirked at Rick, who simply rolled his eyes. “No more than the last time you saw him. Listen, Claire. Rick told me we’re searching for the same thing. Electronic parts.”

“I found two, but I used them to get a keycard. They’re fried now.”

“Well, that’s perfect. I was searching for one too to get out of here. I just need to—”

“I’m sorry, but I’m already out. I had to use it.” She sounded apologetic. “Irons… That bastard was watching me through a camera. He gave me thirty minutes to reach an orphanage, or he’ll kill Sherry.”

Rick signaled Leon to toss him the radio, which he did. “Claire, there is a gun shop on the streets; next to it on the left is a fence, and behind it are stairs. That’s a shortcut to the orphanage. In normal time, it’s a ten-minute walk.”

“Got it, thanks! Take care of yourselves!”

Rick tossed the walkie back to Leon, who put it back on his hip.

“What now? Any idea where to find the part we need?” the rookie pondered aloud.

A few moments of reflection were enough for Rick to think of something. “There is one part of the station we didn’t search. The clock tower. Been there already?” Leon shook his head. “Then we’re going. That’s perfect; I needed to go to the S.T.A.R.S. Office anyway.”

Leon got curious. “What for?”

“The armory.” Rick grinned and took out the S.T.A.R.S. badge. “It’s a USB key. Unlock the armory.”

Leon grinned back with pleasure. “What are we waiting for, then? Let’s go!”

“We need to make a detour by the waiting room upstairs. I got the password for the safe. I just hope, rocket… Ugh. Mr. X. I’m calling it Mr. X. ‘Rocket Guy’ is way too long. Anyway, I hope we won’t encounter him again. We’d be screwed. The only thing I have to defend myself is one grenade, a flashbang and my gun, but I could have a water pistol and the result would be the same.”

“I have something stronger.” Leon pulled from behind his back the shotgun Rick and Claire had left for him.

“That should be enough to slow him d—” Rick suddenly raised a finger to mark a pause. He reached for his pouches and rummaged through them to pull out a dozen shotgun shells. He gave them all to Leon, who was more than happy about it.

“Thanks, I was running low. Lickers are such a pain.”

Rick raised his shirt and beater at the side and showed Leon the claw scars. “I know.”

Weapons in hand and ready to go, they exited the room.