Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

The weather was atrocious; the rain was heavy enough that he could barely see out of the windshield, the wipers barely helping. Having to drive over potholes didn’t help, making him fear the car would break down with each jolt driving over one caused. Trying to read the map the same time in this weather was pointless, as all of Ethan’s focus went on just staying on the road.

A cough from next to him makes Ethan glance at the passenger seat, worry etched onto his features. She didn’t look good; her skin was getting very pale, and he could see black vein-like discoloring peeking from under her sleeves. He still had a dose left, but how long would that last?

Shit, maybe he should stop the car for a second to reorient himself; driving blindly in this weather wasn’t smart, they couldn’t afford crashing right now. The same time though, Ethan had no idea how this area was like; from what Zoe had told him before she’d managed to flee was that the mutants here were…different. Different from anything Ethan had seen elsewhere.

Whatever she’d meant by that Zoe hadn’t elaborated much on, only stating they were mostly even less human, and more animalistic than things down south where her family had originally come from. Ethan hoped she was okay out there, and maybe they’d run into her again someday. The same time though, if they did Ethan would have to break the news to her about her family's demise, and.... he wasn’t sure how she’d take it. She'd been stuck in that hell as the only still sane person for years, and she'd sounded like she'd rather have them put out of their misery, but Zoe clearly still loved them too.

Reaching what seemed to be an old crossroads, the sings were all either broken or faded away, and the stoplight once guiding oncoming cars sitting uselessly on the side of the road, insides gutted like too many half-eaten corpses he’d seen on the way. But, the signs did indicate there was probably a town nearby. Abandoned or settled, he had no idea, but Ethan could tell enough from the old faded markings that there was a place somewhere close. Maybe there’d be an old gas station he could check for supplies. Turning to head there the rain begins to ease up a little, allowing him to see a bit further.

Driving up a hill, he could indeed see what seemed to be a walled off small town ahead, common sight out here as settlements needed fences to keep monsters away. That was a good sign either way, maybe they could take cover there from the weather for a bit, provided the inside of the place wasn’t already infested with mutants.... or cannibal families.

Another cough from Rose makes him glance back at his daughter again, noting she’d curled up more in her seat.

Shit, she really needed another dose soon.

As the town comes into a proper view, Ethan could instantly tell something about the place was…off. It was fairly small, more of a village than a town, and seemed to be entirely fenced off by a makeshift wall made of spiked fencing, haphazard metallic sheets, and other junk. All that wasn't what made him cautious though, it was the warning messages spray painted all over the protective wall structure, the paint slowly chipped away by the elements. That indicated it was likely settled, or had been at some point and whoever lived there didn't like visitors.

Slowly, pulling the car to a stop at the old gas station left outside the wall, Ethan couldn’t really spot any signs of life from within. Either it was long abandoned, or the residents were hiding due to not liking to interact with outsiders. Whatever the case, he needed to go and check the gas station to see if there was anything useful there; at least the roof above the old gas nozzles provided them cover from the rain.

He turns to look at Rose, brushing some of her hair aside from her face.

"Hey, how are you feeling?”

She doesn’t respond at first, just closes her eyes with a small frown.

"Sleepy. Cold.”

"Right, it is a terrible weather. We should go see if there’s anything useful in there.”

Rose glances towards the old gas station entrance, then back at him.

"….Okay.”

They step out of the car with Ethan hauling the backpack over his shoulder; while the area seemed abandoned he’d never be as reckless as to leave his most important supplies behind. It was a basic rule of survival out here, he'd learned that very quickly when they were first forced to leave their now destroyed safe haven. He also had his gun at his belt just in case.

Taking Rose’s hand, they make their way inside through the broken doors, with Ethan digging out his flashlight to look around.

Most of the shelves were empty, long since raided from anything useful, but there were still some things left behind. Old expired candy, some toiletries and the like. He even finds an old dog plushie sitting at a shelf. It was a brown husky maybe, but more in a pose and shape of a traditional teddy bear. He picks it up and gives it to Rose who accepts the new toy with slight sparkle returning in her eyes. Ethan was relieved to see her smile again; perhaps she wasn’t getting as bad as he’d thought, it was just the gloomy weather.

"Oh! It kinda looks like Captain Redfield I think? Do you think the kid this belonged to lived in this town?”

Rose asks as she studies her new plush closely, gaining a shrug from Ethan. He supposed the dog did resemble Chris, at least he understood why Rose specifically thought so.

"It seems to still have a tag on it, so maybe they sold it here.”

"So nobody wanted this cute doggy? How sad.”

Rose hugs the plushy tighter, making Ethan’s smile widen by a fraction. Browsing through more shelves, he finds a pack of unopened batteries that seemed to be in good condition, exactly the type his flashlight used. That was useful at least. His attention is soon diverted elsewhere however, as he could hear something. Halting his steps, Ethan shifts to stand before Rose protectively, slowly scanning their surroundings with his flashlight while his free hand rested on his gun.

"Is…is someone else in here?”

Rose asks quietly as she clings to his jacket now, looking around with an uneasy expression. Ethan remains still and quiet, searching for the source of the noise. A sudden crash from behind them makes Rose yelp, and Ethan whips around, pointing his gun towards it reflexively. All he saw however was a piece of old, rotted roofing that seemed to have finally given away, letting the rain inside near the entrance.

He listens closely for another moment, but there were no more suspicious sounds; all he heard was the steady rumble of the rain and howling wind. Lowering the gun back to his holster, he turns to look back at Rose, placing a gentle hand on the shaken girl’s head.

"It was just the roof. This place hasn’t been maintained in ages, so parts of it are likely to collapse.”

"R-right.”

They scout out rest of the building from the staff and kitchen area to the bathrooms. Nothing much of use, other than some leftover supplies in an emergency kit, a sturdy looking kitchen knife for self defense, and some canned tomatoes and beans that still had date to them.

Ethan keeps monitoring his daughter as they investigate; the discoloring was concerning, but she did still seem stable. No signs of dizzy spells or throwing up black ooze. Still, he should give her the antidote again soon, and hopefully they’d make it to their destination before she’d need another one, because Ethan wasn’t sure he had enough supplies left to make—-

Another loud crash from somewhere at the front cuts his thoughts short, and they both whip their heads around towards the door that led out of the staff lounge. Something was definitely moving out there now, something….big.

"Stay behind me.”

He tells her quietly, inching closer towards the door with his weapon ready. As he reaches it, he could hear…sniffling? The sound was very unlike anything he’d ever heard before from the previous mutant encounters. Most of it was zombie like shambling and moaning, or madman cackles and screeches. All he heard now was that odd sniffing sound, and something akin to…claws clacking against the old floor tiles.

Was it an animal?

Could animals be infected as well?

As far as he’d seen, this virus only affected humans. At least he had never seen a zombified animal before.

Although, Mia had indicated whatever lurked in this area would be different from the mutants elsewhere...

Peeking out from the door, he couldn’t see much as it was very dim in the gas station, but there was definitely a big shadow sculking around the shelves, moving on all fours.

"What is it?”

Rose whispers nervously, and Ethan had no idea. Whatever it was, he’d never seen such a thing before, but it was definitely not a human or a normal animal. He backs away from the door, silently gesturing her to follow; it was better for them to go out from the back to sneak to their car instead of confronting whatever that thing was.

Slipping out of the backdoor, they make their way around cautiously back to their car; it was too dark in the windows to see inside, so Ethan hoped they’d be able to drive away unnoticed. Just as he opens the door for Rose to get in however, a howl of some sort emanates from the building, and the next second something big crashes through the still intact window, rushing at them.

Ethan turns around and fires his gun at it, going through every single bullet in it before the creature falls, slumping to the ground just few meters away from their car. His heart was racing and Ethan tries to get his breathing back under control. Staring at the mangled pile of fur and eerily human-like features, a flashback appears in his mind; this was...

....this thing reminded him of those monsters that flooded their home...

Ethan snaps out of his memory, and doesn’t waste time checking if this thing was truly dead, closing the door behind Rose and rushing to the driver’s seat. No time to check the map, they needed to get away from there asap.

Backing away from the gas station, Ethan turns the car to head back to the direction they’d come from; as far as he knew they’d still just have to head north, and hopefully there would be a safer place or time to reorient.

"D-dad….!”

Rose’s terrified voice gains his attention and she points out of the window, making Ethan realize…that thing wasn’t alone.

There was an entire pack of those things within the woods, chasing after their car with inhuman speed. Within seconds one of those beasts crashes against the car, forcing Ethan to swivel to the side; there were more of them ahead, forcing him to turn his car around; the backbag sitting at the backseat falls somewhere on the floor, and Rose was now clutching her seatbelt in pure fear as Ethan attempts to shake the strange creatures off, driving along the makeshift wall surrounding the town now.

It did have some sort of paved road surrounding it for a while, but eventually they reach a dead end; the forest was too thick to drive through, he’d break their vehicle for sure as it wasn’t meant for offroading. He should’ve picked that jeep he’d seen back there…

"Dad!”

Having no choice, Ethan backs straight into the nearest monsters, hoping that by driving over them it’d at least injure and slow down whatever these things were. One of them nearly manages to shatter the window at the back, and Ethan pushes the gas pedal to the floor to try and get away from the strange wolf monster horde.

Except, something even bigger shows up next and hits the car, sending them hurling against the makeshift wall. The impact is strong enough to cause some of the structure fall onto the car, partially crushing the roof at the back; it was insanely lucky it hadn’t fallen on the front. They were now stuck however, as the car could no longer move, and the engine had clearly suffered damage as it was spluttering and making rattling noises; Ethan could also smell gasoline which was bad. He could see flames starting to pick up at the front as well, indicating the engine was about to catch fire.

Rose was frantically pushing to open the passenger door; it was somewhat damaged but she manages to do so, flling out of her seat and into the cold ground before the mangled car. Ethan somehow manages to scramble his way through to the passenger door as well after managing to pull out the backpack from behind the passenger seat, ignoring the throbbing pain on his leg.

It was probably broken, but that didn’t matter right now; he’d be fine eventually, he needed to protect Rose.

As soon as he gets out of the car Ethan grabs Rose to get further away from the vehicle, and not a moment too soon; it bursts into flames, sending sparks and burning shrapnel flying everywhere. The shockwave from the sudden energy release knocks them right back onto the ground, with Ethan dropping his bag and causing its contents to spill everywhere. The fire was following the trail of petrol leaking from the car, and unfortunately his map and some notes from Mia's journal had landed onto a puddle of it.

"Shit!”

Ethan attempts to rescue them but it was too late, as the papers mercilessly catch fire and burn right before his eyes. He didn’t have time to waste on this though, as these strange mutants were still circling them, though strangely didn’t try to approach right now. Perhaps the fire burning behind them scared these things enough to stay back; generally speaking, good way of getting rid of mutants for good was fire. Ethan could tell which one had crashed onto their car, as there was a much MUCH bigger one among them with thicker black fur, shaking off glass shards from its back.

"Rose, are you okay?!”

Ethan stumbles his way to the girl who’d collapsed onto the ground now; the rain was getting heavier, but it did little to douse the flames from the burning wreckage as there was plenty of fuel for it to keep burning.

Turning her around, Ethan realizes much to his horror that the veins were now creeping up her face. Her condition was rapidly deteriorating again, and Ethan searches frantically for the med kit, cursing as he realizes it’d fallen off his bag.

The situation turns from dire to even worse, as one of the mutants apparently decides to stop being afraid of the fire and charges at him suddenly. Having dropped his gun somewhere in the chaos, Ethan picks up the nearby bent pipe to defend himself, managing to force it between the thing’s teeth; it definitely wasn’t the maw of an average mutant, with a more canine-like snout and razor sharp teeth.

Its breath smelt of rot and rust, almost making him gag.

Ethan manages to shove the beast off him, spotting his gun nearby. He scrambles for it, only to remember it was out of bullets as he’d wasted all of them on the first beast he’d seen. Not that it mattered as another beast latches onto his side now, sinking its teeth deep into his flesh. Ethan let’s out a pained groan, trying to pry the thing off him by smacking it with the pipe. His vision was turning red, and the pain was so strong Ethan feared he’d pass out.

Even with his…peculiarities, even he probably wouldn’t recover being eaten alive.

His gaze lifts up towards Rose still laying on the ground, panic swelling in his throat as he sees some of the monsters start to approach her now, sniffing the air around her with almost curious head tilt. Shit, this was bad, he had to—had to—-

"Rose!”

There’s a loud sound, a bang, firing of a weapon somewhere nearby.

The beast clinging to his side gets hit with something, it’s head quite literally exploding to visceral goo and bone fragments, leaving behind some of its teeth and jawbone still stuck to his flesh. The sound alerts the rest of the horde as they seem to look up towards the direction the shot had come from. Another beast loses its head with lethal efficiency of what seemed like an experienced sniper, and the monsters begin to growl distressed, before turning on their tails and starting to run away back into the woods they’d come from.

Ethan just stares at the sight from between his blurred, reddish vision before his gaze lands back on the pieces of a dead monster still stuck to his body.

He reaches for the jawbone piece with shaking hand, every movement extremely painful; there had to be some nerve damage somewhere. Managing to pry the piece off with a pained groan, Ethan’s vision nearly flashes white for a second as the pain from his injury was near unbearable. He’d gotten severely injured before, but something about these things was worse. Maybe the teeth had some sort of venom in them?

The still burning car let’s out a small explosion without warning again, before more of the wall structure seems to collapse onto it, completely crushing the vehicle. Ethan watches helplessly as their only mode of transportation gets utterly destroyed, the fkames finally starting to die down at least as the piling on top seems to start starving it of oxygen.

Ethan attempts to sit up, to try and make his way to Rose, but all he manages is turn and fall on his back, staring at the grey, rainy skies above with blurred, patchy vision. He was getting mud and oil into his injury for sure, and it hurt like hell.

Footsteps reach his ear, and a shadow passes by him. Ethan’ body felt like led, but he eventually manages to tilt his head towards the sound, finding a tall figure with a very beefy looking rifle slung over their shoulder, pacing towards Rose. Ethan attempts to move again, but his body still refused to cooperate; his injury was too severe, likely even some damage to internal organs. It’d take a while for it to kick in, meaning moving right now could be very difficult.

The stranger crouches before Rose, tilting her head to take a closer look on the blackened veins Ethan knew had to be spreading across her cheeks. His heart hammered in his chest, and Ethan once again tries to get up and move; he knew how most people could react to that sight. Most would understandably think it was a lost cause, and put them out of their misery over risking someone becoming a threat.

As the stranger begins reaching for his rifle again, Ethan finally finds his voice; it was hoarse and a little high-pitched, but enough to gain the figure’s attention.

"……She has…… medication!”

The stranger pauses, and slowly turns to look back at him, seemingly surprised he was still conscious. The injury was pretty severe; you could see bone and there was a lot of blood. But Ethan could also tell it was starting to kick in. It was slower than usual, but his mutation still functioned. Unfortunately, that did mean that his vision was being impacted, and Ethan was struggling to stay conscious as the healing process tended to knock him out to preserve energy.

"The….the bag. There was a med kit. It’s….scattered… somewhere around here.”

Ethan turns his head to try and find it, but his vision was so blotchy and blurred all he could make out were vague shapes and color now. Still, he blinks rapidly to try and clear his vision, struggling to push himself up to try and find it.

"She just needs the dose. I still…I have…”

Sharp jolt of pain runs down his spine and he’s forced back to the ground, tasting bile and iron in his mouth. His vision was graying out on the edges, meaning he was about to lose consciousness. Shit, not now, he had to find the kit, he had to fix this. He had to…to…

A shadow appears in his peripheral vision and the last thing Ethan sees, is a man with messy silvery hair hidden under his hat looming over him.

Waking up happened in stages; it always did when he went through this bullshit. First his sense of touch would return, alongside whatever aches were left over from the process. Ethan could tell he was no longer laying in the rain and gasoline soaked mud. There was something wrapped tightly around him, something that felt like chains.

Then, his hearing returns. He couldn’t hear the sound of the wind anymore, but the distant patter of rain still reached his ears. He was probably indoors somewhere, and the weather must’ve cleared up.

Finally, as awareness reaches Ethan properly, his vision returns.

Blinking away the last bits of black spots from his eyes, Ethan tries to make sense to his surroundings. He was indeed chained up somewhere, arms tied behind his back and attached to the wall. There was a tiny sliver of light coming in from a window near the ceiling, indicating he was likely in a basement somewhere. An unpleasant Deja vu, and Ethan can’t help but tug on his bindings in slight panic. They were firm and a bit rusted, digging into his skin unpleasantly.

It was honestly surprising he was still alive; most people would’ve put him out of his misery after seeing how severe the injury was. Now it was long gone, only a faint scar left peeking through the hole on his shirt. That could be worse though, because this meant that whoever had trapped him now, knew Ethan was a mutant.

He looks around for anything to help him, but there was nothing useful; just some empty shelves here and there, and some old crates filled with random junk and supplies, nothing that seemed useful in trying to cut or pry off chains. Nothing was within reach either even if there had been something usable. Understandable really, whoever did this had no way of knowing what else his mutation could do, other than heal his injuries. You'd be a fool to put anything within his reach. 

Leaning his head back against the wall Ethan sucks in a deep breath, or as deep as he could with the restraints wrapped around him. He could still feel phantom pain emanating from his side, and he’d likely feel woozy for at least a few more hours.

Ethan had no idea where Rose was, if she was even…fuck.

Why did he have to pass out? Why did he even decide to drive here, they should’ve just continued straight ahead. Now he had no idea where his daughter was and what condition she was in, if she was even…even…

"No, stop that.”

Ethan shakes his head and smacks himself mentally. Rose had to be still alive, she had to. He hadn’t heard the stranger fire his gun again, and Ethan knew - hoped - it would’ve stirred him awake if he did. Hearing his child in danger had smacked him right out of it before, back in the Baker’s house. Ethan also suspected that had something to do with his mutation and Rose’s condition, but had no evidence or the scientific training for it.

Either way, he’d….he’d know, somehow, right?

He felt she was alive, so she had to be.

Ethan attempts to wiggle free, but whoever had bound him knew what they were doing; he couldn’t move an inch, and trying to do so stirred more phantom aches from his side, making Ethan curse out loud. He leans his head back against the wall again to weather the pain for a moment, squeezing his eyes shut.

"I’m getting a little tired of being tied up in people’s basements…”

He doesn’t register the footsteps heading his way until a low voice suddenly speaks up, snapping him out of his frustrated thoughts and making Ethan quickly look up towards the potential threat.

"You often end up doing that? What a bizarre hobby to have, but suppose I’ve seen worse.”

It was the stranger from earlier, his rifle casually slung over the left shoulder as he peers down at Ethan from behind his tinted glasses, lit cigar held in his free hand. There was an amused grin spread across the man's face as he spoke. A casual, relaxed drawl that felt out of place for somebody potentially interacting with a theoretically dangerous mutant. Most people would be far more cautious and point their weapons at him already, indicating that either this man had already concluded his mutation wasn’t that volatile, or he had long since lost couple of screws to the world's end. Something about his demeanor and expression indicated the latter.

"I didn’t exactly choose to come here and tie myself up did I?”

The man let’s out a rough laugh that echoes around them, and yes, his captor was definitely on the more unstable side alarmingly, as something about that cackle reminded Ethan of Jack Baker. Granted this guy had a lower voice and a different accent.

"A smartass are we? I’m not sure you are in the kind of situation where you should be running your mouth, papa bear.”

Those words immediately cause Ethan’s mind to return to Rose; so the stranger had figured out that the child with him was his daughter. Perhaps an obvious connection to make in the past, but you never knew nowadays. So many people had died and mutated that there were a lot of orphans wandering the country; some with good, caring company and others less so. An adult with a child didn’t always mean family out there.

"Where is she?”

He asks cautiously, eyeing the rifle the man was still holding. It was clearly not your average hunting rifle, modified somehow by its owner in all likeness. The fact it’d utterly destroyed those monsters’ heads with one shot made it obvious as no rifle Ethan had gotten his hands on before could’ve pulled that off. Maybe something Chris' group owned, but this didn't seem like it was military weapon, just your average hunting rifle that had been remodeled.

The man doesn’t respond at first, just brings the cancer stick to his mouth, breathing a cloud of sickly sweet smoke right at his face. The smell was so potent it wa making Ethan cough and his eyes water. So potentially unstable and a jackass, just his luck.

Something seems to land against the floor with a sharp thud, and a hand suddenly grabs his jaw, forcing him to look up at his captor who was now crouched before him, leaning against the weapon while examining his face closely. The cigar on that hand was dangerously close, dropping bits of ash on him and making Ethan want to cough again as the smell was too much. He’d never really tolerated even normal cigarette smoke, these fucking things were ten times worse.

The grip on his jaw was also quite tight, hiding behind a lot more strength than Ethan even expected considering this man did seem to be on the older side, maybe even older than Jack and Marguerite had been. It almost felt like this guy could crush his jaw with ease if he felt like it, a feeling Ethan was painfully familiar with since their unfortunate visit at the Baker residence.

"No veins, no eye discoloration huh? You’re lucid with no signs of further mutations. Must be a different strain from your kid. Or stabler.”

"Where….where is she? Is she…”

The man let’s go of his jaw and stands back up bringing the rifle back on his shoulder, continuing to smoke quietly for a moment as he studies Ethan closely. That stare made him feel a bit like a specimen under a microscope, or the man was still not fully convinced he wasn’t a threat. While he was being an ass, Ethan couldn’t blame him. He tended to hide the healing ability from people for a reason.

"Look, if I was going to mutate, I would have already right? Just tell me, where’s Rose.”

Ethan tries very hard not to sound pleading now as that could be a grave mistake to do out here, but he really needed to find her. She’d looked awful, her condition rapidly worsening. He needed to find her and give her a dose of the antidote before it would get worse. He needed to save her.

The man shifts, and for a split second Ethan thinks he’s going to shoot him anyway, but thankfully he just slips the rifle strap over his shoulder again, apparently to free his hand as the stranger proceeds to dig something out of his pocket.

"I’m presuming this was what you were so frantically yapping about.”

Ethan’s eyes widen as he recognizes the small injection vial in his hand. It was empty. Had it broken in the scuffle? Shit, if so he’d need to make more, but Ethan had no idea if he had enough supplies left, or if the materials and directions to make it had even survived the inferno caused by their car exploding…

Panic must’ve been visible on his face as the stranger’s smirk returns, seemingly amused by his distress.

"Didn’t think it’d work to be honest. She looked terrible enough I presumed I’d just have to put you both out of your misery. Then I noticed your wound was already healing, so I decided to give it a try once I found the med kit.”

Oh, thank God….

Ethan’s shoulder’s slump as the panic bleeds out from his body. A bit premature in all likeness given he was still tied in a potential madman’s basement, but at least Rose was okay for now. But, he still didn’t know the status of his supplies, and chances were some of them were destroyed. He’d lost the map in the fire and some papers, important notes from Mia…

"Why’d you even have something like that? This particular strain hasn’t really left this area, yet you and your kid are clearly infected by it.”

Ethan looks back up at the man, a little surprised to hear he seemed to have more insight on this than your average person. Then again if he was local, maybe they’d know more about it. Bakers had been aware that their 'gift’ was a very localized strain of mutations not really seen outside this particular state. Which was why he’d travelled here with Rose to begin with. Mia had told them to, before…...

"I….knew someone who could make them. They taught me how to try and help Rose.”

The man takes another drag from his cigar, though doesn’t blow the offending smoke at him, seemingly sunken in thought now. Ethan hated the silence, it was the most unpredictable state things could be in from his experience. If there was any credit he could give Jack, at least the bastard had announced his presence loudly each time.

This guy, already he’d shown he could sneak up on Ethan without warning, a bit like that bastard Lucas.

Lucas had been the worst for the mere fact he was actually immune to that shit somewhat, and was just going along because he’d been unstable to begin with. At least this guy didn’t have an ear grating voice, not that it was much comfort if he turned out to be equally sadistic.

"……I see. You don’t seem to require a stabilizer, do you?”

There was something very sharp about his tone and eyes now, making Ethan’s blood run cold. No, this was no Lucas Ethan realizes; this was someone much worse, someone who knew things a chaotic brat like Lucas hadn’t. This was someone experienced who wasn’t truly asking that because he wasn’t certain. This was someone confirming what he already knew.

"….I take that silence as a yes. How fascinating.”

The man let’s out a low chuckle, bringing the cigar back to his lips, taking a long drag from it before turning it off against the nearby crate. He drops it there and walks closer to Ethan, making his body tense instantly. He didn’t know what the stranger was up to, he wasn’t really projecting his intent the same way the crazed Bakers had, with all the babbling about gifts and family and tasty cannibalistic meals.

"Don’t try anything funny; I might not think of you a threat right now, but my trigger finger’s still itching and could do with more entertainment.”

That threat was spoken with the casualty of discussing weather as the man loosens his bindings, allowing Ethan to scramble free from the chains and back away, rubbing his wrists as they were red and raw from the rusty metal pressing against his skin. Ethan dares to suck in a deeper breath, wincing as the phantom ache was still present. At least he was free to move and get up now, though does it slowly, sensing his legs were still woozy.

That, and he was still being watched by a stranger with a highly powerful modified weapon slung over his shoulder. Judging from that earlier grip on his jaw though, this guy could probably do some damage with his bare hands as well.

Standing upright finally while still taking support from the wall, Ethan takes a proper inventory on the stranger. He was definitely much older than Ethan, maybe somewhere mid fifties or more; around the age of the Bakers or older like he'd suspected. The black shirt and army pants were covered in stains, maybe motor oil or grease, or blood. The long leather coat sat on his shoulders loosely, and Ethan could catch a glimpse of a tattoo on his right one, a robotic looking horse maybe?

The hat was gone, which made sense as they were indoors, and the bastard’s hair definitely needed a wash or two. He couldn’t quite tell if the darker gray strands were just natural streakiness, of his he didn’t bother washing it for weeks on end.

"Don’t space out on me; if you pass out again I’m not dragging your ass upstairs. You’re lucky I even bothered helping you and your girl.”

The man juts his thumb back towards the apparent entrance to the basement, and Ethan swallows down hard, sucking in another breath to stabilize himself. Okay, first impressions aside, so far this guy didn’t seem intent on murdering him or using his organs for food. Not yet at least.

"….Thank you.”

"Save it. I should make you repair the damn hole you created in my wall with your shitty driving.”

The man snorts and picks up his discarded cigar again and seems to place it into a small metal case he had before heading towards the stairs, seemingly finding Ethan such a little threat he feels comfortable turning his back to him fully. Right now that was probably a good thing he surmises even as Ethan follows the man up the stairs cautiously. People tended to be more approachable once they decided you weren’t a threat to them.

"….So we are inside the walled town? Are there other people here?”

"I’m not a particularly social individual no. They cause too much of a mess like yours truly just did to part of my security system.”

The man comments casually as he kicks the slightly ajar door open at the end of the stairs, entering what seemed to be the main living area of whatever building they were in. It looked like a repurposed workplace office of some sort with mismatched furniture where no chair at the table matched, and a kitchen clearly originally meant more for lunchbreaks than proper cooking as it was small and had one of those portable camping stovetops instead of a build-in one. The old shabby black couch had clothes piled onto it, probably in need of a wash as well like their owner. 

There were also some rather…disturbing decorations on the wall, namely bunch of skulls; some were definitely animal, others uncannily human. Mutant skulls. Ethan glances at the man dubiously, who follows his gaze, seemingly realizing what he was looking at as an amused grin spreads across his face again.

"Enjoying the house decor? Gathered ’em myself.”

"……..Gathered, as in….?”

"Relax, I’m no cannibal. I just hunt ’em for sport, it gets boring out here easily!”

Ethan eyes his host dubiously, not sure if that answer is any better. Also how did the man guess where his mind went….?

"Most folks who end up in this area have either ran into, or heard about the Baker lot. Cannibalism is the hot gossip around these parts; rather ridiculous if you ask me given animals don’t get infected easily, and there’s plenty of prey to hunt that won’t give you mutant cancer, or more classic diseases associated with eating human flesh.”

His host shrugs dismissively, and Ethan supposes Bakers had been quite infamous in this area. He’d met people who’d warned him about going anywhere near the small settlement they’d once ran. Maybe it wasn’t that unusual this guy knew about those rumors as well.

"…I had the unfortunate displeasure yes. Rose and I had to deal with their 'hospitality' for two weeks.”

"And you didn’t end up human soup? Color me impressed. Then again with that healing, you could’ve made for a long term food source!”

The following laugh had that slight, unstable tone to it; this guy clearly thought his morbid jokes were hilarious, a sentiment Ethan didn’t share; he just ignores the madman cackling, continuing his inspection of the place.

The small horizontal windows seemed to be overlooking a scrapyard of sorts outside, with massive piles of broken and twisted metal and machinery. Judging from the lighting outside it was getting late, and the old clock on the wall did indicate it was close to 8:30 PM. Ethan had no exact idea when exactly they’d arrived here, but he must’ve been out cold for hours either way. The rain hadn't subsided, if anything it seemed to have grown worse while he was unconscious.

"The kid’s at the back; I put your shit there as well, whatever was left over from the fire.”

The man gestures towards a door nearby dismissively once he finally stops laughing at his own terrible humor, making his way to the kitchen and digging something out from the cupboards. Seemed to be an old can of coffee. Ethan watches him for a moment before making his way towards the slightly ajar red door, hoping this wasn’t a trap where he’d be in for another round of sick games like what happened with Lucas.

Thankfully, behind the door was just a short hallway with a few more doors; each had a piece of scrap metal with words burned onto them acting as signs. one was marked as the bathroom, one was storage, and at the end was the bedroom. Pushing that door open, Ethan indeed finds Rose asleep on the fairly large bed tucked at the corner of the room, wrapped in several blankets. Curtains to the room’s two small windows were drawn, the only light in the room being whatever was cast in from the outside, and the old desk lamp left on sitting at the wooden stool acting as a nightstand.

She looked pale but otherwise fine, breathing evenly with no signs of her infection visible anymore. Rose was also clutching the teddy dog to her chest, making Ethan glance back towards the door to the room a little taken aback admittedly. The man had even picked her new toy for her?

Somehow that felt…unexpected.

Sitting at the edge of the bed, Ethan brushes some of Rose’s hair aside from her face, immensely relieved to see she was okay. That relief was short lived however, as Ethan’s gaze finds his bag sitting atop an old drawer nearby, slightly scorched. Getting up and making his way to it, Ethan is not surprised that his gun was missing. Why would the man let him keep his weapon? They didn’t know each other.

What concerned him more however, was the realization that a lot of important things were indeed missing. Some of Mia’s more important loose notes weren’t included inside her notebook indicating those were the ones that he saw burning, and pretty much all the materials for Rose’s medication were gone. The only thing left was some empty vials and the small fungal root piece stored inside the special capsule.

"Damn it…”

It was all Ethan could think of saying, slumping to lean against the wall next to the drawer and dropping to sit down onto the cold floor, clutching the bag to his chest.

Now what?

He didn’t have the other ingredients, didn’t know if he could find them from this area easily even if it was the epicenter of their specific infection. And even if he did find them and could roughly remember the process and the formula….he had lost the tools needed to make the antidote. 

Dropping his head against the bag for a moment, Ethan swallows down hard, trying not to let panic settle in. Rose should be fine for a while now, usually it took several days to a week before she needed another one. That was enough time to figure something out, or maybe find what they were looking for. Unfortunately, the map that’d marked the said location had also burned, and Ethan couldn’t remember where it had pointed them at. The coordinates Mia had given him were also lost in the fire much to his frustration. He should’ve written them down to multiple places and not just the notebook and the map…

"If you’re planning on melting on my floor in a gory puddle after all, at least have the decency to not die in front of your kid, goddamn.”

Ethan looks up at their host, who was leaning against the doorframe of the room, his tall frame blocking most of the light emitting from the main living area and the from corridor lights. He had an old, large tin mug in his hand with coffee in it that smelt and looked more like motor oil. As in, shit strong enough to wake the dead as he’d once called it jokingly, before people were actually starting to raise from the dead and made the joke feel inappropriate.

"Just…resting my head. Been a long day. Week. Month, I don’t even know anymore.”

"You and me pal. Lost count last century.”

The man comments casually before nearly downing the entire mug of excessive caffeine at one go; who even drank so much coffee this late? Ethan almost thinks he’s serious about the century comment, except that obviously the man had to be joking; he was old, but not that old for sure.

"Probably won’t have to be counting for much longer if you keep drinking shit that pungent. The smell alone is giving me jitters.”

The man snorts, flashing him a wry grin that had a predatory tint to it. Maybe being a smartass as he’d been rightfully called earlier wasn’t the smartest idea. Ethan was ultimately relying on this man’s generosity and patience right now after all. He could easily just stop being nice and throw them out of his apparent house, or worse. Usually worse.

His host’s tone remained casual however as he spoke indicating he wasn't offended the slightest by Ethan's jabs, so perhaps for now he was safe.

"You look like you could do with a stronger pick-me-up too, papa bear. But then again you also look like you’d probably have a stroke at first sip of anything with even a hint of caffeine in it.”

"Maybe if I tried to drink motor oil like you seem to do, yes.”

Ethan shrugs and looks back towards Rose noting she was shifting a little in her sleep, though wasn’t waking up yet. She’d probably sleep till tomorrow. Hopefully at least, Rose really needed rest.

"……..Since you rudely decided to crash onto my secure wall and break it, you could at least be polite enough and introduce yourself. I’m still tempted to send you off to repair it by the way; I’m not moving a muscle until the damn storm is over.”

"Ethan. I’ll help you fix it after the storm; I’m not gonna be much use in the cold rain, trust me.”

The man takes another swig from his mug, glancing at Rose before his gaze returns back to Ethan. His eyes were still unpleasantly sharp, but there was a relaxed quality to the way he was looking at Ethan. A bit like a predatory animal who’d already had a satisfying enough meal, so it didn’t bother chasing after prey again. Ethan’s danger instincts had been honed to the extreme after being stuck in the hellish Baker residence for weeks, so he could be reasonably certain his host was benevolent, for now.

He just apparently had a terribly dark, twisted sense of humor and bizarre collector hobby, which made sense in the current state of the world. Ethan wasn’t going to fully drop his guard of course, that’d be a terrible idea no matter what. But... he allowed himself to relax a fraction, and not act like he was going to be attacked at any second.

"I’ll hold you to that, Ethan. Lucky you those furry bastards tend to not want to come inside the walls even if there’s an opening; they won’t survive in here for long.”

"Right, with the house master finding it fun to put their skulls up for display.”

"Man’s gotta have their hobbies, Ethan! You get stuck in people’s basements for fun, I hunt monsters for my own amusement. The world’s gone mad anyway, so why judge?”

His host gestures dramatically with the free hand, and Ethan supposed he had a point. Not about the basement thing, but in general. As far as he knew, it wasn’t like mutants that far gone had any human left in them. They were essentially reanimated corpses. At least he presumed these wolflike things were still the same as the other viral zombies out there. he had no idea, Ethan had never seen them before until those things suddenly appeared out of blue and attacked their settlement....

"....I still don’t do that on purpose for the record. I’m just… really unlucky with people I run into apparently.”

"Unlucky, huh?”

The man seems to finish his coffee now, pacing closer to Ethan who felt his hair stand to an end as he did so. Pressing his back firmly against the wall unconsciously, his eyes follow the man’s every step with caution. His shadow was soon looming over Ethan, blocking Rose from view as those sharp eyes stare down at him again with that more assessing look, and Ethan finds himself wishing he still had his gun just in case.

"You’re not wrong. But perhaps, Lady Fortune decided to smile on you for once. You happened to catch me on a good day.”

There was something dangerous to his smile now, and the man tilts his head slightly, the dim light from the hallway reflected on his tinted glasses, fully hiding his eyes from view. Ethan’s danger sense was picking up again, it just couldn’t tell exactly where, or what, the danger was. The rifle was gone; his host was unarmed right now, but something told Ethan he was staring down at a metaphorical barrel somehow.

"….I….suppose. You would know, I don’t. I don’t even know your name.”

The man huffs out a laugh after a moment of silence and that strange threatening aura was gone in an instant, replaced by the earlier. relaxed demeanor. Jesus Christ, Ethan preferred when they remained obviously threatening instead of this stressful back and forth. He felt like he’d have that stroke at this rate….

"Fair! For a reckless bastard who had the audacity to break my wall and create a mess, I almost like that wit.”

The man shifts away and back towards the door now, allowing Ethan to see Rose again which was a relief. He releases the breath he hadn’t even known he’d been holding.

"Name’s Karl. You might wanna move somewhere more comfortable if you’re planning to doze off; the floor’s terrible to sleep on. I know from experience.”

".....Why would you sleep on the floor when you have a bed?”

"Never been dead drunk? Come now Ethan, I doubt crashing into people’s homes and ending up chained in their basement are the only vices you have!”

He doesn’t dignify that playful comment with a response, getting up slowly and making his way back to the bed, while trying not to show the fact his back was already hurting from sitting on the hard floor. The exhaustion from earlier was starting to wear on him, but Ethan still wasn’t sure it’d be safe to sleep. He couldn’t get a proper reading on the man - Karl - as he kept switching between something unnervingly threatening and bizarrely friendly between blinks.

"If I was gonna kill or cannibalize you, I’d done that already. Take a nap before your body forces it, because trust me; it’s gonna do that eventually whether you want it or not.”

Karl tells him calmly and Ethan glances back at him, unease still gnawing at the back of his head.

Bakers had seemed friendly at first glance too, making him drop his guard when they’d offered them a place to stay overnight due to the storm. Rose had been uneasy but Ethan hadn’t picked up on it on time; he’d learned during their trip here that his daughter had an uncanny sense for dangerous individuals in this area, and still chastised himself for not picking up on the warning signs she’d displayed early on. Since Rose was asleep right now however, he couldn’t gauge out any reaction from her towards Karl yet.

But….Ethan also couldn’t ignore that the end result of this basement trip was different. He hadn’t had to fight his way out, this guy hadn’t tried to force him to eat suspicious brown slop, and Rose seemed okay for the time being.

"Suit yourself then; not my problem if you decide to kill yourself by ignoring your body’s need for rest.”

Karl shrugs after a moment of silence and disappears from sight as he heads back to the main living area, whistling a tune as he did so.

That casual dismissal was so…bizarre that all Ethan could do was stare the now empty doorway in silence. He was far more used to being locked up into places, or having someone keep an eye on him, or at least restrain him just in case until he proved himself not a threat. Either this guy truly had this much confidence in himself that he didn’t bother, or he’d already concluded Ethan was no threat to him. He wasn’t sure which would be the preferrable option, because both felt somehow insulting.

Sighing, Ethan turns to look back at Rose, still sleeping peacefully next to him, clutching the little dog teddy. Maybe that was a good sign, she hadn’t slept well in the Bakers’ place even before their masks slipped. She’d been wistful even after Ethan had given her the medication, so it wasn’t that, probably.

Rubbing his eyes, Ethan drops his hands in his lap as he just sits there for a while, listening to the howling wind outside and the heavy rain hitting the roof; the weather seemed to be getting worse again, indicating the storm cell was lingering in this area.

"…..Just take a breath Ethan. It’s gonna be fine.”

He mutters to himself, reaching out a hand to gently brush some loose strands of hair aside from Rose’s face.

Lost in a forest, the little girl searches for the path back out; it was cold, and she was getting hungry and tired. Where was her dad? Mom?

Mom was gone.

But where was dad?

A shadow sweeps by, startling her. A giant bat, she hides from its searching gaze behind a tree. There were smaller bats, also looking for her. She’s terrified, she was not supposed to be here. The little girl runs deeper into the forest, until she trips and falls down a hole.

It was dark in there, and she couldn’t get out. She was too small and weak, and the opening was too far up. Where was her dad?

A light appears above, and the little girl hides against the wall as a bat appears inside the hole. It sees her, but doesn’t alert the others. This bat was different, kind. It offers her the light it had been carrying, pointing at a small tunnel in the wall.

"Crawl through there. They won’t see you.”

Little girl takes the light and goes through the tunnel. It’s dark and scary, but the light kept her warm and safe.

Its cold again as she gets out, back inside the forest, far from the bats. There’s a haunted house, surrounded by flowers. The flower’s scent makes the little girl dizzy. The door to the haunted house opens, a weaver steps out.

"You shouldn’t be here little girl. The cold might kill you.”

The sad weaver warns her, placing a blanket around her shoulders. She asks the weaver if she’d seen her father. The weaver didn’t know where he was. Upset, little girl runs back into the forest, searching for her dad. She knew he was in the forest too, somewhere, and she needed to find him. She’s getting tired, and colder. The weaver blanket was not enough.

She finds a lake, the little girl is thirsty.

As she kneels before the lake to have a sip of water, the Fish king appears.

"You cannot be here child, the witch is looking for you.”

The girl backs away in fear, as the king tries to pick her up. She didn’t want to go to the witch, she wanted her dad. Where was her dad?

"The witch will tell you, come now before the cold claims you.”

As she tries to back away, water surrounds her, making the little girl feel even colder. She didn’t want to go, she wanted to find her father. The Fish King reaches for her, telling the little girl louder she needed to go back to the witch.

Then, something big takes the Fish King, throwing him back in the lake.

A giant, having appeared from the mountain.

The giant tells the little girl to run, while it fights the Fish King, trying to stop it from taking her to the witch.

She runs and runs and runs, the cold seeping into her bones. Where was dad?

A branch catches her feet and she falls to the ground.

She was utterly lost, the little girl couldn’t tell what path lead to where. She didn’t know where her father was, and she was scared, and so, so very cold. She dropped the light too, it was dark now.

The little bat appears from the forest, landing next to her. The little bat looked tired and worn, like cold was making it sick as well. But it offers the little girl a new light, telling her it knew where her dad was. She follows the bat across the forest, hiding behind trees as the witch’ dogs sniff across the forest floor, searching for her. The little bat was getting tired, its flight erratic and slower until it falls to the ground.

The little girl picks the critter up, asking worried if the little bat was sick. The critter reassures her it was fine, but she knew it was not. It was cold, the bat was turning to stone because of the cold. Little girl knew she needed to find a bigger light, or the bat would become stone for good.

A rustling nearby, and the little girl looks up.

There was an Iron steed, standing at the edge of the clearing, fire on its hooves as the forest around it begins igniting in flames. The little bat trembles in fright,; the Steed had come back to burn down the witch’s forest, and everything within its branches.

The little girl begs the steed to wait, she needed to find her dad. She needed to bring the little bat that’d helped her to somewhere warm, before she turned to stone. The steed paces closer, spreading the flames around the little girl, but they don’t hurt; they’re just warm.

It huffs, breathing heavy smoke from its nostrils, regarding the trembling little critter with amusement.

"….Very well. Hop on, I’ll bring you to your father.”

The little girl hesitates, cradling the little bat to her chest as she climbs atop the steed. Fire spreads behind them as it runs, and the little girl felt….warm. She could see the giant ahead, waving. She could see her dad, standing beside the giant. The little girl is overjoyed.

But then, the witch appears, and attempts to curse her father and the giant who’d helped her. The steed hastens his pace in sudden bout of fury, and the fire spreads faster, reaching every branch and leaf around them, turning everything white and gold.

The witch burns in a brilliant flash of light.