Dr. Caresa Duvall

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"No, no I understand your frustration really, Dr. Duvall. I think I speak for a good lot of us when I say your feelings aren't an isolated event." Never at work but, at home Reeve would really vent his frustrations about the environment he found himself working in. Speaking up was never enough, making fail safes was barely hitting the mark. Any plan of action to circumvent the sadism of his fellow executives was met with a blockade. One that was difficult to navigate around.

"But I'm tired of living in fear most of my life and walking on eggshells around...certain people. I don't know what to do about it, though. The Shinra Corporation is a well oiled machine that is good about snuffing out dissenters and making them disappear. It's all very scary."

Then silence. Maybe what Dr. Birkin had been going on about finally came to pass: the USS silencing him. The gunfire sounded heavy, and she had known Brad long enough to know that those weren't normal guns.

She began to shake, wrapping her arms around herself. A lifetime of regret flashed through her eyes and Caresa huddled into a corner. Tears formed in her eyes. She couldn't just die; there were so many things she had yet to do. And yet here Death was, in the next room, waiting on her.

Caresa couldn't just leave Brad behind either. She had to survive somehow. But she was trapped, and acutely aware of it. William had tried to run, and the heavy hand of Umbrella claimed him. She didn't know what to do other than just sit there, and wait for it all to end.

He's not given to blind panic or to crumbling beneath the weight of pressure. Even if all of the missions' initial outline had turned sideways, there was still an opportunity to make it out in the end. Was it a stubborn way of viewing the death of such a respected researcher? Maybe. But he feels no remorse as he steps across the threshold into the adjoining room. Leaving behind the bloody remains of the man who had helped create the sought-after G Virus strain.

The lenses of his mask provide an almost monstrous appearance about him. In the washed-out steel and white of the lab, he appears like he is one of the creatures they created, escaped from its cage. Nothing about the place holds any interest. It's sterile and bright. Like a hospital, he thinks, but never says alive.

Something catches his notice as he's walking past another room. Movement, he suspects and instinctively raises the rifle he carries in both hands.

"I can hear you: whoever you are. Come out now ." His voice is sharp and demanding as he scours the cluttered space. Counters, chairs and other assortments all provide far too much cover to truly determine if anyone was actually there. Still, he doesn't budge.

"You won't get a second warning."

Caresa didn't know what to do. But she had to say something to her executioner.

"I am just a research assistant. I'll cooperate if need be." she spoke hoarsely, the lump in her throat seemingly becoming larger by the minute.

She kept her hands clearly where he could see them, not knowing what else to do. It was all in God's hands now.

@umbrella-scientist

Very few knew he existed. The Connections had made sure of it. While Albert Wesker had descended into insanity, rampaging across the planet, seemingly unstoppable….

An experiment was being created underneath his nose. The day Wesker had burned alive in a volcano, his life ended in a storm of magma and rocket fuel….

A new life was born underneath the ruins of where it all began. A tiny, pale little boy with a monster’s DNA.

Zeno moved silently, a ghost wherever he went. Known by few, hated for the sin of existing. He was used to it, used to be seen as a ghost of a man he resented….yet also craved deeply to know.

Whatever the case, he towered over her, blocking her path. Caresa stood there, holding her plastic bag filled with snacks and smiled nervously.

"Hello. Can I help you?" she said pleasantly, trying to soothe her anxiety that spiked upon his appearance. Whatever this person wanted, he clearly must want something from her.

He had a beauty about him that Albert didn't posses, if she recalled correctly. His skin was paler too, which added to the effect. An...albino? She was no geneticist, but that particular condition fascinated her.

Still, he was no brute. He wasn’t his bastard of a father.

“ You are…Dr. Caresa Duvall, yes?”

He didn’t want to give himself away. He didn’t want anyone to know what he was.

“ I believe I know a few former associates of yours. Would it be alright if we spoke a little?”

He motioned to her bag.

“ There is a small coffee shop nearby. We can go there. It’s only a block away.”

He preferred their meeting be public for both their sakes. At least he could see someone coming in case someone tried anything.

Zeno had no interest in hurting Caresa and wanted to talk to her about her time in umbrella. And….what she knew of his father.

Caresa listened to the man talk before she got a curious look on her face. "A relative? I'm not sure I knew them but I'd be happy to hear you out."

“ I don’t know much about him, only that he was extremely eccentric and infamous for his attitude. Still….he is a relative and I’d like to find out more about my history.”

Zeno’s head tilted his head towards her direction.

She headed towards the coffee shop and sat down at a table, resting her bags on the ground. Caresa took two menus and handed one to Zeno. "I wasn't aware Dr. Wesker had any children. My condolences." How Albert Wesker had perished became infamous. It saddened Caresa to see him go down such a desperate path. It just wasn't like him. She idly wondered what could have sent him over the edge. Maybe this man would know?

"You know who I am, but I didn't catch your name?" she asked as her eyes scanned over the menu.

The man who Dr. Wesker saw as both a rival and a friend of sorts...and a complete maniac who turned himself into a freakish monster while murdering hundreds of thousands of people. But in the eyes of the Connections, any of the scientists that worked with Umbrella and Wesker were revered.

Zeno took the offered menu with a small nod, his voice taking on the expected echo of a son missing a distant father.

" Thank you. I was born around the time he passed away so unfortunately I was never able to meet him. It's why I was curious to meet people who worked with him or around in some capacity. At least to learn more about where I can from."

As for his name...

Caresa listened as her eyes scanned the menu. "I'm sorry to hear that. From what I remember, Dr. Wesker was a brilliant captain of the S.T.A.R.S force. Everyone respected him. Even when he was a scientist he was revered for his ability to keep a cool head and have an unshakeable demeanor. Dr. Birkin always commented that it was something he both liked about Dr. Wesker and was infuriated by. He used say something akin to he was about as emotional as a brick."

"I don't know what happened to make him go down the path we went on, at least from what little I know about it. It just wasn't like him to lose his composure. I often wonder what sent him over the edge."

The waitress came over and Caresa ordered an iced chai latte.

"I do know that Dr. Wesker liked to go hiking in his spare time and was decently outdoorsy, according to my ex who was also in S.T.A.R.S."

He didn’t even know Albert yet it…was hard to talk about him? A childhood all alone and living under his shadow would break anyone.

Caresa looked off in the distance. "I wish he was here. I'd just like to get answers about what happened in Raccoon City. He always was the fellow who was decently well informed."

Caresa couldn't help but feel a little giddy as she was being led by the BSAA operative down the sterile halls. Ther were in a BSAA research facility. Other than guards standing everywhere, it was about the same as the lab she worked at back in Raccoon City. Everything was so cutting edge! How exciting!

"Dr. Henry, you will be the assistant to Excella Gionne, who is also in protective custody. Your job is to help her take apart viruses and make vaccines. In exchange, the BSAA will place you under its protection, and grant you immunity from your past crimes. Violate our trust, and this all goes away." the operative spoke, motioning with his hand around the hallway.

Caresa gulped, coming back to earth. That was why she was there; to make amends for what she did under Dr. Birkin's gaze. The long arm of the law finally caught up to her, and this was the bargain she was given. The alternative was execution. She rather liked staying alive, so she accepted. She was also afraid of what awaited her when she finally did die. If she was going to hell, at least she would have attempted to atone.

They arrived at a set of metal doors. The operative swiped his badge through the key card reader and the doors parted open. Caresa adjusted her lab coat, smoothing it out. She had to make a good first impression.

Excella Gionne...the name sounded very European and exotic to Caresa. Which also kind of excited her. She had always wanted to go to Europe, namely Paris. But Gionne was Italian-sounding. Rome was just as good as Paris, she thought as she gave herself a small nod.

She adjusts her lab coat and sighs, glancing at her watch again. BSAA issued to monitor her vitals, equipped with GPS so they can keep tabs on her, and she wouldn't be surprised if there were some sort of explosive or something in it. Perhaps that's simply her conditioning after working with Albert Wesker making her think that way, but she doesn't try to remove the watch, just in case.

Finally, the doors slide open with a whisper of a sound, and Excella looks over, keeping her sigh in check. No need to be annoyed at the assistant, it isn't her fault, but she does shoot a glare at the guards who escorted her in.

"Sorry I'm late. I normally try to be on time." she spoke, motioning with her thumb to her BSAA escort. "Thank you, Ms. Gionne! It will be a great pleasure working with you! Your reputation precedes you in terms of your own intelligence!" Caresa looked up at the much taller woman.

"I took the liberty of looking into your past projects that I was allowed to see. You really prove that it is possible to have looks and brains. We need more women like you in the world." she spoke.

Caresa shifted a bit, the tracker on her ankle clearly visible. She wanted to make a good impression so she wore a skirt, which she was slightly regretting. The tracker, equipped with a camera that could record sound was proof of the BSAA's paranoia when it came to ex-Umbrella scientists. The bulky thing could record her conversations and people she spent time around, as well as convey the coordinates of her location to her BSAA handlers.

Zeno's glare was like ice. His voice so calm, yet chilling in his control. Like a cat on the hunt, never knowing when it was going to pounce.

" Not everyone is allowed to be how they want. You have a lot of bravery in speaking to me as if you know me, Dr. Duvall."

Yeah she was saying nice things and all but....hey, it was better than fighting.

" Albert was more the brain than me. Or more accurately his interests differ from my own. Virology isn't the science that pulls me like it did with him. I'm better at running numbers. He wanted power through force......but real power comes from the shadows."

His eyes gleamed from behind his glasses.

She played with her fingers a bit. "You strike me as someone who knows what they are doing with their power."

Zeno's glare was like ice. His voice so calm, yet chilling in his control. Like a cat on the hunt, never knowing when it was going to pounce.

" Not everyone is allowed to be how they want. You have a lot of bravery in speaking to me as if you know me, Dr. Duvall."

It was rare moments like this that reminded people that Zeno was still a Wesker. He may be more tolerant than his father ever was…but the capacity to do maximum damage was clearly present in him.

And Zeno was very much not happy in the way Caresa spoke to him.

“ For your sake I hope it wasn’t. I won’t remind you again why comparing me to….to him…is a grave error.”

She was aware of just how close she had come to death, and was grateful for the man's restraint.

But she really did need to work on being more social. Especially with the crowd she tended to run with. Which was quite a dangerous lot, in many respects.

Instead he gave her a veiled look hidden behind his sunglasses, observing her silently for a few seconds before speaking again. His stiff shoulders drooping slightly as he felt the spike in anger flow out of him and remain just as annoyance.

"....I've been compared to that man since I can remember. Living under the shadow of a dead man since I could walk. I.......please, if we have to talk about Albert....let's not make it me being compared to him. I may have his DNA, but I am my own person."

Potato? Really? Okay that got a small snort out of him, and his dark emotions somehow shifted over to mild humor.

"A yam is a lot better than I usually do."

@umbrella-scientist

Very few knew he existed. The Connections had made sure of it. While Albert Wesker had descended into insanity, rampaging across the planet, seemingly unstoppable….

An experiment was being created underneath his nose. The day Wesker had burned alive in a volcano, his life ended in a storm of magma and rocket fuel….

A new life was born underneath the ruins of where it all began. A tiny, pale little boy with a monster’s DNA.

Zeno moved silently, a ghost wherever he went. Known by few, hated for the sin of existing. He was used to it, used to be seen as a ghost of a man he resented….yet also craved deeply to know.

Whatever the case, he towered over her, blocking her path. Caresa stood there, holding her plastic bag filled with snacks and smiled nervously.

"Hello. Can I help you?" she said pleasantly, trying to soothe her anxiety that spiked upon his appearance. Whatever this person wanted, he clearly must want something from her.

He had a beauty about him that Albert didn't posses, if she recalled correctly. His skin was paler too, which added to the effect. An...albino? She was no geneticist, but that particular condition fascinated her.

Still, he was no brute. He wasn’t his bastard of a father.

“ You are…Dr. Caresa Duvall, yes?”

He didn’t want to give himself away. He didn’t want anyone to know what he was.

“ I believe I know a few former associates of yours. Would it be alright if we spoke a little?”

He motioned to her bag.

“ There is a small coffee shop nearby. We can go there. It’s only a block away.”

He preferred their meeting be public for both their sakes. At least he could see someone coming in case someone tried anything.

Zeno had no interest in hurting Caresa and wanted to talk to her about her time in umbrella. And….what she knew of his father.

Caresa listened to the man talk before she got a curious look on her face. "A relative? I'm not sure I knew them but I'd be happy to hear you out."

“ I don’t know much about him, only that he was extremely eccentric and infamous for his attitude. Still….he is a relative and I’d like to find out more about my history.”

Zeno’s head tilted his head towards her direction.

She headed towards the coffee shop and sat down at a table, resting her bags on the ground. Caresa took two menus and handed one to Zeno. "I wasn't aware Dr. Wesker had any children. My condolences." How Albert Wesker had perished became infamous. It saddened Caresa to see him go down such a desperate path. It just wasn't like him. She idly wondered what could have sent him over the edge. Maybe this man would know?

"You know who I am, but I didn't catch your name?" she asked as her eyes scanned over the menu.

The man who Dr. Wesker saw as both a rival and a friend of sorts...and a complete maniac who turned himself into a freakish monster while murdering hundreds of thousands of people. But in the eyes of the Connections, any of the scientists that worked with Umbrella and Wesker were revered.

Zeno took the offered menu with a small nod, his voice taking on the expected echo of a son missing a distant father.

" Thank you. I was born around the time he passed away so unfortunately I was never able to meet him. It's why I was curious to meet people who worked with him or around in some capacity. At least to learn more about where I can from."

As for his name...

Caresa listened as her eyes scanned the menu. "I'm sorry to hear that. From what I remember, Dr. Wesker was a brilliant captain of the S.T.A.R.S force. Everyone respected him. Even when he was a scientist he was revered for his ability to keep a cool head and have an unshakeable demeanor. Dr. Birkin always commented that it was something he both liked about Dr. Wesker and was infuriated by. He used say something akin to he was about as emotional as a brick."

"I don't know what happened to make him go down the path we went on, at least from what little I know about it. It just wasn't like him to lose his composure. I often wonder what sent him over the edge."

The waitress came over and Caresa ordered an iced chai latte.

"I do know that Dr. Wesker liked to go hiking in his spare time and was decently outdoorsy, according to my ex who was also in S.T.A.R.S."

"Tell me what exactly?" she spoke coolly. "What is it I'm supposed to be doing?"

Now it was falling on her to make sure this got done.

"I'll contain Gideon myself if I have to." He draws himself upright in a picture of someone far more composed than he feels and pulls out a cigarette. "If you can steer this, I'll be sure to let our benefactors know how you contributed to their success."

"I will. I'll do everything in my power to make sure that you get your hands on Elpis, whatever it may be. I am all for this, you don't have to worry. I think he just needs to be redirected. Nemesis tends to be very obsessive and single minded in its pursuits."

She was aware she was in a delicate situation, being stuck between a Nemesis tyrant and a traditional tyrant. Caresa would figure out a way to survive. She had to. And she had thought Birkin was bad enough!