Watch Over You

Going Down

Juliet heard it again and this time there was no mistaking it. While they were walking across the walkways to the lower levels, the tyrant emerged from nowhere and immediately started hunting them down. Juliet grabbed Leon's hand as they ran away from the seemingly mutated tyrant. Leon managed to shoot a gas canister which blew up in the tyrant's face. They hurriedly got onto the lift platform and lowered the lever. However, the tyrant had caught up to them and landed on the lift platform while still being on fire. If the tyrant was indestructible before, there was simply no chance for them to take him on. Juliet, having lost her handgun to Ada, only had her shotgun and limited ammo to fight off the tyrant. Leon used his magnum gun and aimed at the exposed heart, hoping that it was its weak spot. The tyrant did stagger, but it wasn't enough to take him down.

The super tyrant was way worse than William Birkin's transformations. It was fast for its size, and one hit looked like it could kill them. The tyrant's long claws almost slashed across Juliet's body if she hadn't been alert. They felt hopeless against the menace. Juliet's legs were giving up on her from extreme tiredness, but she couldn't afford to let her guard down. The lift platform shook and huge chunks of the ceiling fell around them. The tyrant easily smashed the blocks away. There wasn't enough time to warn Leon, so Juliet pushed him away, but her leg got caught underneath the rubble. Leon tried to get to her, but the tyrant was heading right towards them. Angered, Leon kept shooting at its heart and forcing it back.

As if a miracle happened, an anti-tank rocket launcher fell from above and landed right in front of Juliet. She looked up, but she couldn't see anyone. She hurriedly pushed the concrete off and reached for the rocket launcher. Thankfully the concrete slab wasn't heavy or did any damage to her leg.

"Leon! Use this!" she cried out, using as much strength as she could to toss it to him.

Leon backed up slowly and grabbed the rocket launcher. The tyrant avoided the first, but Leon quickly shot the next one. With one hit, the tyrant exploded. Juliet finally stood up and stared at the pool of blood and scattered remains. Never had she been so happy to see gore like that. She went towards Leon and pulled him into a hug. Leon didn't hesitate to pick her up and spin her around.

The lift platform finally arrived at the lowest level of the lab. They hurried out and saw the train, just like Claire said there was. However, the train was beginning to move and if they didn't hurry, they'd miss the only chance of getting out. They ran for it, barely getting on the train. They entered the cabin and was immediately greeted with familiar faces. Juliet immediately hugged her best friend tight, never wanting to let go. Claire chuckled as she pulled away from her best friend to get a good look at her.

"You don't look too hot," she joked. "But that jacket does."

She almost forgot that she was wearing Chris'. She took out the note written by Chris and handed it over to Claire. Claire only frowned after reading it, agreeing that it definitely didn't sound like her older brother. Juliet wanted to give the jacket to her, but Claire refused. She insisted that Juliet herself gave it back to Chris the next time she sees him. Despite not finding Chris at the station, Claire had a hunch where he might be, thanks to the letter Juliet picked up.

"I almost forgot. This is Sherry," Claire said, introducing the shy girl hiding behind her.

Leon dropped down to one knee and greeted her, making her smile bashfully. In a quiet voice, she apologised to both Leon and Juliet for running away. Juliet told her there was no reason for her to apologise. They knew she was in danger and ran away to save herself. They should have been the ones to apologise for not getting to her fast enough.

The train car shook violently as it picked up speed. Something didn't feel quite right with the back of the train car which seemed to be pulling them back. They went to investigate, but Claire and Sherry hanged back just in case. A look of pure horror appeared on their faces when they opened the last train car door. A monstrous blob crawled its way in, its tentacles trashing in the air and its sharp-teethed mouth opened wide. Claire quickly pulled Sherry back. 

Leon used his rocket launcher twice, but that only managed to weaken it. He dumped it aside, cursing that he had no rounds left to finish the monster. Juliet used her shotgun to continue shooting at its eye until she ran out of bullets. Using the shotgun like a baton, she hit the tentacles that were whipping at them. Meanwhile, Claire and Sherry noticed that the last train car was dragging on the tracks, possibly due to the weight of the monster. Claire had an idea to separate the last cabin but the bolt was too tight, even with Sherry helping her. 

"Come on, die already!" Leon grunted, tossing away his emptied fuel from the flamethrower.

He switched back to his handgun, though he didn't know if there was any use of it. He had given Juliet his lightning hawk, the only other gun he had with him. Juliet emptied her barrel on the eye, making the monster let out a loud shriek. The monstrous blob still kept moving forward, though it was slower than before. 

"Juliet! Leon! Hurry!" Claire called out as she almost unscrewed the bolt.

Juliet knew the monster would somehow hold on to the train car even if they've released the last cabin. It needed to end, there and then. Juliet took out her knife and rammed it straight into the monster's eye. It let out another piercing screech as it began to liquefy. Leon pulled her back immediately as they made the jump. The last train car separated and they watched it explode in the tunnels. They turned to look at each other with the widest grin spread across the faces.