The border town outside Stoneville. The Old George Motel.
Night wind drove desert grit against the boarded-up windows. In the innermost suite on the second floor, heavy curtains had been drawn tight, and a dim table lamp barely lit the faces of the people gathered around the circular table.
Ryan sat at the head. Jill was beside him, her right side freshly re-bandaged, her face pale but her eyes sharp. Leon, Claire, Marvin, Carlos, Tyrell, Kendo, Dr. Bard, Annette, Ben, and Katherine - everyone who knew Ryan and had escaped the nuclear fire of Raccoon City was here.
In the center of the table sat the metal case holding the vaccine and the waterproof pouch Ryan had given Ada to carry out from the deepest level of NEST.
"Raccoon City is gone." Ryan broke the silence, his voice so level it carried no emotion at all. "Umbrella used a nuke to erase every piece of physical evidence. By tomorrow morning, the news will probably call it a 'nuclear plant meltdown tragedy,' or some similar bullshit."
Ben's pen hand trembled. He clenched his jaw. "I have proof of Irons colluding with them, and Dr. Bard's testimony. If we go public..."
"If we go public, by tomorrow we'll be on every wanted list in the country as biochemical terrorists." Ryan cut him off without mercy. "Umbrella's tentacles reach deep into the upper levels of government. A few documents and some audio recordings won't topple a multinational giant."
The room went dead silent. Everyone knew he was right.
"So what do we do? Hide for the rest of our lives?" Leon frowned.
Ryan looked at him, quiet for a few seconds. "Leon, why'd you become a cop?"
Leon blinked. "To catch bad guys. Protect good people."
"You'll never catch them all," Ryan said. "For every one you take down at a company like Umbrella, ten more are standing behind them."
He stood and walked to the window. "But we can make it so the bad guys don't dare touch our people."
He turned around and looked at every person in the room.
"You all lived through Raccoon City. Family, friends, coworkers, dying right in front of you, and you couldn't save them. Why? Because you had nothing."
"No intel, no connections, no money, no guns. All you could do was run and hide."
"I'm done with that."
He walked back to the table and pressed his hand on the waterproof pouch.
"I want to build a network. The kind where anyone who thinks about coming after our people has to think twice first."
"This isn't about taking down Umbrella." Ryan paused. "It's about making sure the people we care about never become another set of Raccoon City statistics."
The room was quiet.
Leon and Marvin spoke first, their voices low: "Count me in." "Me too."
Ben and Katherine exchanged a glance and nodded together.
Carlos grinned. "Now you're talking."
Ryan sat back down and leaned into the chair. He opened the waterproof pouch and shook the data drives out onto the table.
"On these drives: passwords to over a dozen anonymous offshore accounts Umbrella's executives keep in Switzerland, B.O.W. specs their competitors would kill for, and records of the dirty money they've used to buy off politicians in half a dozen countries." He tapped the table with one finger. "This stuff is useless if you publish it. But take it to the black market, or drain those offshore accounts directly, and it turns into a mountain of cash."
Ben and Katherine looked at each other. Katherine swallowed. "You're talking about... blackmail? Robbing them?"
"I'm talking about seed money." Ryan glanced at her. "Katherine, your father was the mayor. You understand how those politicians operate better than any of us. You and Ben go to Washington. Use the dirty-money records as leverage. You don't need to publish anything, you just need them to know you have it. Get a foothold in the political circles. We need official cover and an intelligence network."
Ben took a deep breath and nodded hard. "PR and the political side are on us."
Ryan turned to Leon. "The military's got a cordon up outside. They'll find you soon enough. Your performance in Raccoon City won't stay hidden, and someone high up is going to take an interest."
"You want me to join them?" Leon understood immediately.
"Let them recruit you. We need someone inside the government who can reach the top. The Strategic Command Office, the Secret Service, wherever there's an opening, you climb." Ryan held his gaze. "Umbrella has people in the government. So do we."
Leon was silent for a moment, then gave a firm nod. "I'll handle it."
"I need to go to Europe." Claire spoke up, her eyes steady. "Chris is over there. I have to find him. And Umbrella's European division is their core operation. I can support you from that end."
"Stay safe. Reach out whenever you need to." Ryan didn't try to stop her. This was Claire's path.
Finally, he looked at Kendo.
"Kendo, I need you to take a new identity. I'll set you up with enough money to open the biggest gun shop in the country on paper. In reality, you run our logistics."
Kendo nodded firmly. "Don't worry. I still have some contacts."
"Carlos. Tyrell." Ryan's gaze settled on them. "Get in touch with the brothers you pulled out of the subway station. Umbrella threw you away, but we need you. Take this money and build a force that answers only to us. Shadow Force."
Carlos flashed a grin, the kind that showed the mercenary underneath. "Boss, that's my kind of work." He leaned forward. "So does this outfit get a name?"
Ryan leaned back, looked around the room, thought for a second, and said two words. "Star Fire."
"Star Fire," they murmured, and one by one their faces lit up. Everyone agreed.
"Raccoon City's nightmare is over. But our counterattack is just getting started."
...
When the others filed out, Ryan called Annette and Dr. Bard back.
Annette paused, Sherry still in her arms.
"William's data. You're the only one who can make sense of it." Ryan looked at her. "The G-Virus vaccine research can't stop. If something happens down the road, we need to be ready."
Annette looked down at the daughter in her arms, said nothing, and slowly nodded.
Bard pushed his glasses up. "And me?"
"You help her," Ryan said. "t-Virus vaccine, G-Virus vaccine, all of it. Anything you need, talk to Jill."
Bard nodded without another question, and the two of them left the suite.
The room held only Ryan and Jill now.
Jill watched him. "Ada. You let her walk? She has the G-Virus. What if..."
Ryan stood and cut her off gently.
"There's no 'what if.' She's more useful going back than staying here."
Jill frowned. "Back where?"
"To Wesker." Ryan picked up his coffee. "She needs the G-Virus as her ticket in. Wesker needs her skills. They'll use each other, and neither one's going to get the upper hand."
Jill was quiet for a while. "So is she still on our side?"
Ryan smiled. "She was never 'on our side.' But she knows which side to stand on."
He walked to the window.
"Let her go. When we need her, she'll show up."