Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me.
TWO DAYS LATER
"Hello, I'm Lisa Garland, the time is currently 3:50 A.M. If you're just tuning in, we're standing at the sight of what used to be the center for Jacob and Mezco Inc. As you can see, there remains little of the building that once stood here"
Ada sat at the bar of the airport terminal, waiting for her flight. In the early morning, few people talked and passed her as she stared into a half full glass of bourbon, lost in the sea of thought. There was a television nearby that had been set to show CNN. The story of her and Leon's exploits had been running almost non stop for the past two days. At first the media had dubbed it an act of terrorism until interviews with employees had it linked to the supposed gas leak. No one was at fault and no blame had been placed on any party. It had just been neatly, yet not so covertly covered up. Blind ignorance and skewing of the media were the only factors separating her from a jail cell.
In either case, Ada wouldn't have cared less what happened to her. Even though she had made it out of the Agency's building alive she felt more broken and bruised then ever before. Not merely in a physical sense. Wounds would heal with time. They always did. No, Ada's pain stemmed from something much more emotional. The loss of the one man who meant more to her than anyone else in the world. It was a crushing and suffocating feeling.
Her own, wavy brown reflection stared back at her from the glass of alcohol that rested on the bar, her hands absently wrapped around it. Almost as if to anchor her to the world that she existed into. Not that she cared much for it. She watched as a lone tear fell through space and into the glass, making the liquid ripple and distorting the image.
Upon making her way back to her hotel, Ada had wept. She cried for hours and hours, curled up on the bed. She cried until her body gave up on her and she fell into the deepest, most exhaustion induced sleeps that she had ever experienced. It was all she could do really. She had no desire to eat, or watch television, or even shower. Ada just wanted to cry. Cry at the futility that she was unable to change the circumstances of her ordeal. She was unable to bring her beloved back. And Ada had no way of knowing how she was going to move on. So she cried and slept, until she was able to get it out of her system as much as possible.
Sometimes that's all any of us can do really. When we're met with a situation we can't handle, especially death, we go through stages. Some are quicker than other's. Many last a life time. No one truly gets over a death. No one ever wants to forget. So rather than try and forget the loss of a person, we attempt to shape our lives around the emptiness that is left by their departure. We learn to live on. We keep moving. Because if we stop, we very well may die.
Everything is so fragile. There's so much conflict and pain. You keep waiting of the dust to settle and then you realize that this is it. The dust is your life going on. If happiness comes along, the only thing you can do is grab onto it while you can. You take what you can get, because its here and then before you know it, it's gone
Ada took the glass and drank it in one gulp, letting the biting liquid create a full fire inside her. She set the glass back down on the bar, allowing the ice cubes clink together. The alcohol did well to take away the pain in her ribs, which she had taped since the destruction of the building, but it couldn't take away the pain that manifested itself in her psyche. Ada stared back into the empty glass, letting it reflect how she felt inside. Propping her chin up with her arm, she sighed and drifted off into thought again, only to be interrupted by the bartender.
"Pour you another, love?" the man asked in a thick Irish accent.
Snapping out of her trance Ada looked up at the man. She had been so out of it that she wasn't even paying attention.
"I'm sorry" she said, apologizing for her lack of attention and having nothing really pertinent to say. "I've had a rough couple of days"
She passed her hand through her hair and let it rest on the back of her neck, rubbing it in slight embarrassment.
"I understand lass" the man said. "Get my fair share of people through 'ere. Each of 'em has a tale to tell"
He noticed the forlorn look on her face.
"Have a bad break up?"
"You could say that" Ada said, not even bothering to look at the man.
"Aye, well, a bit 'o more 'o this will fix ye up right it will", he said, swishing the container of bourbon in his hands.
Ada nodded and the bartender twisted the cap off and poured her another drink. She reached for her wallet and the bartender's eyes softened and he raised a hand to halt her.
"It's on me" he said, turning around and going back to his work.
Ada smiled and sipped on the drink before going off into her own little world again. Then out of the blue, several words from the television caught her ear's attention.
"Workers have made it through the rubble of the building and into the underground basement. In a miraculous turn of events, there appears to be a lone survivor" the reporter said.
"What?" Ada thought, looking up from her drink and hoping against hope. She looked and saw the news woman speaking from the sight of the building.
She went on to say, "The unidentified man was found in a dilapidated fall out shelter that the owners of the building had since walled up. Somehow he was able to make his way to it and survive. It is unknown exactly how he survived as he was still literally buried underneath the rubble of the building once it collapsed and seemed to be at the epicenter of the gas explosion"
"That could have been either of them" she thought, her hopes dwindling.
"The man was found with no identification and is being described as in his late twenties with strawberry blonde hair. Medical personal state that he is in stable condition and does not appear to have any physical wounds on him whatsoever"
In true news fashion there was no news footage of the body being led away on a stretcher. Her hopes renewed, Ada didn't know what to do next. Then, like magic, the news reporter was able to influence her next move.
"Breaking news" Lisa announced. "It seems that the ambulance carrying the survivor has been involved in a rollover accident off of the MA-121. Road crews as well as fire and police are on the scene and we go live to Cheryl Mason on the scene"
The view shifted to a freeway where accident crews were dealing with the tattered and broken wreckage of the ambulance. There were police nearby, dealing with the traffic as it attempted to move through the area. Firefighters were standing near the wreck and assisting the police while putting away their equipment. From the look of it, the ambulance had landed on its left side, with the back end facing the camera. One of its doors lay open, facing the ground
"Thanks Lisa" the younger woman said. "At around 3:04 this morning, witnesses say that the ambulance was experiencing what could only be described as 'maintenance problems'. It fishtailed several times before finally sliding to its side and flipping over at least six times, going over the median and landing near the wooded area that you see behind me"
"Any word on the condition of the occupants?" the news woman back in the studio asked.
"Yes, both paramedics are in stable condition save for a few bruises and minor lacerations to the face. However, the body of the survivor is missing and has yet to be found. Back to you Lisa"
Just before the footage cut out, Ada noticed a faint trail of foot prints in the mud leading into the wooded area where the ambulance had crashed.
"Thank you Cheryl" the woman said, shuffling her teleprompt papers into order. "We'll keep you up to date as this story progresses"
Smiling, Ada finished her drink and grabbed her luggage. She checked to make sure that the little souvenir she had obtained from the Agency's computer center was still where it was supposed to be. Looking inside her luggage, she saw that the MO disc, which contained all their work, rested comfortably within a pile of clothes. She had a feeling that the wealth of information would come in handy somewhere down the road. But right now, her main concern was getting back to Leon's apartment. After all, there were still several weeks of vacation left.
Author's note: Cue awesome, Bourne-inspired credit sequence.
Well, there you go. Hope this little epilogue deliver's what you were all expecting.
My little "Everything is so fragile" bit was taken from Giant Sized Astonishing X-men #1. Yeah, I'm a geek.
I want to thank everyone who has stuck with this story since, jeez, hard to believe I started this back in January. What a ride it's been. I'm glad that you all got the chance to read it and give your input on it. This was just a neat little idea that I had rolling around in my head at the time and wanted to keep within the bounds of being canon. And look what it blossomed into. I also want to thank everyone who reads this in the future and leaves a review.
Bluecupcakes, Agent Ada Kennedy, AdaWong x , SuperSandra, Chaed, SeeYouAround, Ada Adore, Lord of the Trees, …Wow, HeroOfDarkness2005, Holly1818, Houshin, Cloner4000, Avan, Mr. L Kennedy, Achika-chan, Kryptonian250, Itako no Nardi, CorinneQ, Jill- Redfield, CRuck, Nigh, Miracle Viguy 38, marna4eve, NightKry, Cody Smith, israelbauman, Alaska Kennedy, RobinHicks, Jacket, Liberius, Shadowman55, Eggy, Personnal, x-x-Leon-Ada-x-x, Strawberry Acid, WindyWildWolf, and Satanic Park of Madness. And anyone else who I regretfully may have forgotten.
I thank you all for leaving a review. Feedback means a lot to me 'cause it shows that the story is enjoyed and allows me to understand your feelings about it. Some may hate it, some may love it. That's the thing with any hobby you do. It gets better with practice. Like some of my earlier stuff, while good, can't compare to this. I think this is one I'll be able to look back on with real pride.
The most I did was make a story and see what happened. I can't promise I'll make another Leon and Ada story any time soon. I honestly don't know how I could top this one or spin that relationship another way. But give me time and I'll have something new made up down the line.
I do have a few ideas for a good HUNK solo story. Not a HUNK RE2 or RE4 story. Something original. So, who knows what will fall out of my head next.
Thanks for reading. And peace to you all.
11/9/2008
Track listing breakdown per chapter. Song title, band name, album.
What I've done, Linkin Park, Minutes to Midnight
Heaven's Night, Silent Hill 2 OST
Going Under, Evanescence, Fallen
Stockholm Syndrome, Blink 182, self titled album
Macy's Day Parade, Greenday, Warning
Can't Get my Head Around You, The Offspring, Splinter
Stay Together for the Kids, Blink-182, Take off your pants and jacket
Something About Us, Daft Punk, Discovery
I'm So Sick, Flyleaf, self titled album
Love Reign Over Me, Pearl Jam (cover version)
The Righteous and the Wicked, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Blood Sugar Sex Magic
Stray Bullet, KMFDM, Symbols
The Joker and the Thief, Wolfmother, self titled album
Cleansing, Marylin Manson, Resident Evil (film) OST
Death Is the Only Way Out, Joseph Bishara, Mortal Kombat Annihilation OST
Extreme Ways, Moby, 18