Chapter Text
DSO Headquarters, Basement Gym
2011
The man in the black compression shirt moved with precise, practiced control.
Weighted straps hung from his waist as he pulled himself upward, one repetition after another, muscles in his arms and shoulders tightening under the harsh fluorescent lights. His breathing was steady, measured. Sweat traced the lines of a body honed by years of combat, discipline, and survival.
Even in a room full of agents and trained personnel, Leon S. Kennedy stood out.
Heads turned as he dropped lightly to the floor and reached for the towel at his feet.
That was when the door opened.
A man in a dark suit stepped into the gym, his formal appearance so out of place that it drew almost as much attention as Leon had.
「Leon. I’ve been looking all over for you.」
His tone carried the exhaustion of someone who had already repeated himself too many times.
「The DSO’s barely off the ground. You could at least spend more time helping manage the place.」
Leon unhooked the weights from his waist, then turned, still catching his breath.
「Henry,」 he said, glancing at the suit, 「pretty sure there’s a dress code in here.」
A faint smile touched his mouth as he reached down for a bottle of water. Around them, more than a few eyes lingered on him longer than necessary.
Henry sighed. 「Would you stop doing that?」
Leon took a drink. 「Doing what?」
「Whatever it is that makes half the room stare at you like that.」
That earned a short laugh from Leon.
Henry stepped closer and lowered his voice. 「You have no idea how many people in this building would gladly have your children.」
Leon only shook his head, amused in the way only someone thoroughly used to that kind of comment could be.
「Go on ahead,」 he said. 「I’ll clean up and head upstairs.」
A short while later, Leon returned from the locker room dressed for work, his damp hair combed back, his backpack slung over one shoulder.
Attached to one corner of the bag was a small yellow bear charm—an oddly innocent detail against the rest of him.
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He stopped in the doorway of his office.
「What the hell happened to my desk?」
Folders. Reports. Stacks of documents piled high enough to nearly bury the surface entirely.
Henry, standing off to the side with his hands on his hips, looked almost vindicated.
「You mean you just noticed? Do you have any idea how long it’s been since you came back and dealt with any of this?」
Leon’s eyes drifted to the plaque by the door.
Special Force Captain: Leon S. Kennedy
「For a second, I thought I walked into records.」
Henry stared at him. 「This is exactly the problem.」
Leon gave him a casual shrug, then slipped past him before Henry could say another word.
「You’re the deputy team leader now, right? Handle the paperwork however you want. I trust your judgment.」
He kept walking.
「Thanks, Henry.」
By the time Henry turned, Leon was already halfway down the hall.
All he could do was let out a weary breath and shake his head.
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Leon had nearly reached the cafeteria when his phone rang.
He pulled it out, checked the screen, and the easy expression on his face faded.
He answered at once.
「Hunnigan. Been a while.」
「Leon,」 Ingrid Hunnigan replied. 「Nice to know you still remember how to answer your phone.」
Her voice was calm, professional, and direct as ever.
He leaned against the wall, already knowing this wasn’t a social call.
「What happened?」
「There’s been a development,」 Hunnigan said. 「Evidence suggests that the Uroboros virus—the same one the BSAA contained in Africa two years ago—has resurfaced in North America.」
Leon’s expression hardened.
「Location?」
「I’ll explain everything at the briefing. Third floor, west conference room. Ten minutes.」
「Understood.」
The line went dead.
Leon lowered the phone slowly and drew in a long breath.
Virus.
The word alone was enough to stir old memories—too many of them.
Marvin.
Kendo.
Manuela.
Luis.
Mike.
Krauser.
The dead had a way of staying with him. Not as ghosts, but as weight. Names. Faces. Failures. Promises.
(Not again.)
The words formed soundlessly in his mind.
Then, as suddenly as the memories had surfaced, another face appeared among them—a woman in red, graceful and dangerous, with a presence he had never quite managed to forget.
The thought vanished as quickly as it came, but not before the faintest trace of a smile crossed his lips.
Then Leon pushed off the wall and headed for the conference room.
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Third Floor, West Conference Room
Hunnigan was already there when he arrived, seated at the conference table with her laptop open.
「Right on time,」 she said. 「The President will be joining us remotely.」
She pressed a few keys. A moment later, the large display screen at the front of the room flickered to life, revealing the image of an elderly man in a suit.
Leon straightened instinctively.
「Mr. President.」
He was about to bow when the President raised a hand.
「At ease, Leon. We’re past formalities.」
Leon nodded and took his seat.
「Hunnigan,」 the President said, 「go ahead.」
A report appeared on the screen.
「This is the BSAA’s file on the West Africa Uroboros incident,」 Hunnigan began. 「According to their findings, the majority of the virus samples were destroyed along with Albert Wesker during the volcanic eruption.」
She switched to the next page.
「The Stairway to the Sun—the source used in Progenitor Virus extraction—was secured by the BSAA after Tricell lost control of the region. Tricell subsequently pledged to terminate all bioweapons-related research.」
Leon studied the report in silence.
「Then what’s the issue?」 he asked. 「A remaining test site?」
Hunnigan gave a small nod.
「That’s exactly the key point this time.
Another file opened on screen.
「Based on intelligence shared by the BSAA, there is a research facility in Utqiagvik, Alaska. The site is registered to an organization known only as the Alliance.」
Leon frowned. 「If this started as a BSAA operation, why not let them finish it?」
The President answered that one himself.
「Because the facility is on American soil.」
His voice was calm, but firm.
「The DSO was created to respond to exactly this kind of threat. If there’s a possibility of bioterror activity inside the United States, we don’t stand back and watch someone else handle it.」
He paused, his gaze steady even through the screen.
「And because the DSO is still new, it needs results. Credibility. Proof that it can do what it was created to do.」
Leon said nothing.
The President continued.
「When I pushed for the DSO’s formation, it wasn’t for politics. It was because I never wanted to see another Raccoon City.」
The words settled heavily in the room.
「This is your opportunity to show why this organization matters.」
Leon stood immediately and snapped off a crisp salute.
「Sir. Whether this is about proving the DSO’s value or not, I will do everything necessary to prevent another bioterror incident.」
For the first time, the President smiled.
「That’s exactly why I chose you, Leon.」
He glanced toward Hunnigan.
「The rest is yours.」
With that, the President’s projection vanished from the room.
Leon let out a slow breath and sat back down.
「So,」 he said, looking to Hunnigan, 「the objective is infiltration. Investigate the facility, confirm whether Uroboros research is ongoing, and recover whatever data I can.」
「Correct.」
Hunnigan folded her hands.
「The BSAA will also be deploying personnel, but the President wants actionable intelligence secured before they initiate a full assault.」
Leon gave a dry smile.
「So we’re racing them.」
「In practical terms,」 Hunnigan said, 「yes.」
Leon leaned back slightly, thinking it over. Infiltration work. Quiet entry. Quiet exit. Not impossible, but not exactly the first thing people usually thought of when they looked at him.
His gaze drifted to the yellow bear charm hanging from his bag.
For a brief moment, his expression turned distant.
Hunnigan closed the laptop.
「You leave in two days. Your flight touches down at Will Rogers Airport on the evening of the third day. Use the time before departure to familiarize yourself with the equipment package.」
She stood and began gathering her things, then paused.
「One more thing.」
Leon looked up.
「I had dinner with Ashley recently.」
He exhaled through his nose. 「That sounds dangerous already.」
Hunnigan allowed herself the slightest smile.
「She still asks about you.」
Leon rubbed the back of his neck and gave a faint, tired laugh.
「Some things never change.」
Hunnigan left the room.
Leon remained where he was for a second longer, then rose and slung the backpack over his shoulder.
「Guess it’s time to make sure I still remember how to shoot straight.」
With that, he headed out.
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Meanwhile
Utqiagvik, Alaska
Deep inside a secured research facility, the main laboratory pulsed with cold light and mechanical noise.
At the center of the room stood a containment chamber resembling a medical pod. Through the reinforced glass, a humanoid figure could be seen lying motionless inside.
Cables. Tubes. Monitoring systems. Diagnostic screens.
Researchers and technical staff moved around the chamber in a state of constant tension, each one focused on their task, none willing to waste a second.
From the observation room above, a woman’s voice drifted down—cool, composed, and faintly amused.
「Are you confident this time?」
Below, a man in a white lab coat looked up from the console. The insignia on his shoulder marked him as the lead scientist overseeing the experiment.
「This time... yes,」 he said, though the hesitation in his voice betrayed him. 「This time it will succeed.」
A low laugh answered him from behind the glass overhead.
「I certainly hope so.」
The woman stepped closer to the observation window, though the lighting kept most of her features obscured.
「If this fails too, the name Birkin may finally lose whatever prestige it still has.」
The reaction below was immediate.
The lead researcher stiffened, then turned sharply, barking new orders at the staff around him with renewed intensity.
(I can’t fail...)
(I won’t let him be disgraced...)
The door to the observation room opened.
A heavily armed soldier stepped inside and came to attention.
「Miss Jessica,」 he said, 「the BSAA has begun mobilizing.」
Silence followed.
Then the woman smiled.
At last, things were beginning to move.