Drift Of The Multiverse: [Marvel] [Resident Evil] [DC] [Bleach] [DB]

"Found it?" Ethan asked, his voice steady but deliberate. He watched Kaplan carefully. "Are you sure you've got control?"

"I'm certain," Kaplan replied with a nod, wiping the sweat off his brow. "Besides, isn't the Red Queen already shut down?"

With the AI deactivated, leaving only automated mechanical defenses in play, Kaplan couldn't understand why Ethan kept pressing him for confirmation. In his mind, the situation had become manageable. What was the point of being so paranoid now?

Of course, Kaplan wasn't aware of what Ethan knew. The main host of the Red Queen was likely located further below, near the elevator connection. What truly worried Ethan was what they might find once they descended. The Red Queen had proven resourceful, and its main system could pose an even greater threat.

Thankfully, Kaplan's work paid off. After everyone regrouped near the console, Kaplan entered the final command into the computer. A soft vibration followed, and the platform they were on began to descend toward the Hive's lower levels.

The mercenaries, still dealing with zombies dropping down from the increasingly distant upper levels, barely had time to react to this unexpected development. Their surprise was evident as they turned to Ethan, who stood unfazed.

Meanwhile, Alice, who had been slowly regaining fragments of her memory, no longer seemed as harmless as before. A shift in her demeanor made her appear more assertive, her curiosity turning into scrutiny.

"Who are you, really?" she asked, her voice laced with suspicion.

Her question echoed the thoughts of everyone present. Ethan clearly knew far too much about the Hive, Umbrella, and the Red Queen. Who was he? Was he sent by one of Umbrella's competitors to sabotage their operations? Or was he part of a government organization trying to uncover the corporation's secrets?

But there was one detail that didn't fit any theory. If Ethan and Arthur were agents, why were they dressed like medieval knights?

For the mercenaries, this was the most baffling part. If Ethan and Arthur had shown up in standard tactical gear, it would've been easy to assume they were part of some covert operation. Even Arthur's youthful appearance could be explained as an exceptionally well-trained recruit. But their armor? And that sword? It defied all logic.

"Me?" Ethan responded casually, pulling out a cloth to clean his sword. He briefly wondered if the weapon needed proper disinfection—what if the T-virus lingered on it? If he took the sword back as it was, could it spread contamination elsewhere?

His thoughts had drifted for a moment, so when Alice's question finally registered, he offered a vague reply, echoing what he'd told Jill earlier: "I guess you could call me the savior of this world."

The answer left everyone speechless. It sounded ridiculous, yet Ethan delivered it with such a straight face that no one knew how to respond.

Alice, however, didn't laugh. Instead, she pressed on. "Do you think this virus could destroy the entire world?"

The question pulled Ethan back to the present. He recalled the antidote located in the lowest part of the Hive—a crucial tool that could neutralize the T-virus and its mutations if properly released. Once airborne, it would spread globally, wiping out the virus and its derivatives over time. With that in mind, Ethan felt a flicker of reassurance. The situation wasn't entirely hopeless.

"Destroy the world?" he repeated, finally engaging with Alice's inquiry. "No, it's worse than that."

Ethan's voice was calm, almost too calm, as he explained what he knew. The slow descent of the elevator made his words linger, adding a sense of inevitability to his description.

He detailed the grim aftermath of the T-virus outbreak: the rapid infection of most of the human population, the transformation of the infected into zombies, and the environmental collapse that followed. Plants would wither, ecosystems would crumble, and eventually, the entire planet would resemble a barren desert. A true apocalypse.

The group's faces grew pale. The mercenaries had seen enough of the Hive's horrors to believe Ethan's words. None of them found his predictions far-fetched or exaggerated. The devastation they'd witnessed already was enough to shake their confidence.

"The end of the world?" someone muttered, their voice tinged with disbelief. "That can't be, right?"

"Maybe," another ventured, "maybe if we completely shut down the Hive, we can stop it?"

Jill remained silent, uncharacteristically so. Her original reason for tagging along with Ethan was curiosity, a desire to see what he was up to. But she hadn't anticipated becoming embroiled in something this monumental. Now, she felt overwhelmed, unsure of how to process everything she'd seen and heard. For the first time in her career, Jill Valentine didn't have an immediate response.

Among the group, only Alice seemed to maintain her composure. Her expression was thoughtful, her mind clearly racing as she considered Ethan's words. She wasn't dismissing his warnings as paranoia or overreaction. Instead, she was focused on one question: how could they prevent such a terrifying future?

Ethan addressed the group directly. "All of this is part of Umbrella's plan. If you think shutting down the Hive will stop what's coming, you're just fooling yourselves."

He continued, his tone sharp and unyielding. "The Hive belongs to Umbrella. Do you honestly believe they can't reaccess their own research base? More importantly, the Hive isn't fully isolated from the outside world. There are ventilation systems, pipes, and countless other potential leaks. Can you guarantee the virus won't escape through one of those?"

In fact, Ethan remembered a specific scene from Resident Evil, where a broken ventilation duct allowed mice to move freely in and out of the Hive. Those mice, in turn, became carriers of the virus to the outside world. Even if Umbrella didn't actively release the virus, its spread seemed inevitable, a grim fate practically baked into this world's future.

This inevitability was why Ethan had come here in the first place. Without the "antidote," the virus and its mutations were almost unstoppable. Sure, with time and resources, Ethan could potentially develop a solution himself using the knowledge and methods from the arcane world. But time wasn't on his side. Even if he could stay in this world for years—an unlikely scenario—how many lives would be lost by then? How many people would still remain by the time a solution was found?

From a broader perspective, stopping the virus was an obligation. From a personal perspective, Ethan also needed the antidote to understand its mechanics and ensure he didn't inadvertently cause a disaster himself. He had plans to use the T-virus to strengthen his mental capabilities, but only if he could mitigate the risks. Survival was non-negotiable.

Mages often tread dangerous paths in pursuit of knowledge, and most had numerous life-saving contingencies prepared. But Ethan's path as a mage was different from the norm, requiring even more meticulous precautions.

Ethan briefly explained Umbrella's overarching plan—a global purge of humanity—to the group. As he spoke, their faces betrayed their growing disbelief and anger.

Initially, they'd been shocked to learn that a corporate giant like Umbrella had secretly developed and experimented with such a dangerous virus. But, in a twisted way, they could rationalize it. The T-virus was undeniably powerful, and the potential profits could justify the risks to someone blinded by greed. Reopening the Hive to harness the virus as a business opportunity, while reckless, wasn't beyond comprehension. It was selfish, but it made sense in a cutthroat capitalist framework.

But wiping out humanity? A deliberate, calculated "cleansing"? That was something else entirely.

"Who does Umbrella think they are? God?" someone exclaimed, their voice filled with outrage.

As human beings who were now part of the population slated for "cleansing," everyone present felt a visceral fury. The idea that a group of executives could decide their fates without consent or consideration was intolerable.

Ethan then revealed another chilling detail: the top executives of Umbrella were hiding in cryogenic sleep chambers at the bottom of the Hive. They were waiting for the apocalypse to unfold, planning to emerge afterward as humanity's self-appointed saviors and rebuild the world under their control.

That revelation broke whatever restraint the group had left. Nearly everyone began muttering or outright growling threats against the frozen Umbrella leaders.

"I'm going to pull them out of those tin cans and beat them senseless until they wake up," someone declared, clenching their fists.

Ethan, meanwhile, was preoccupied with another problem. He wasn't shy about "spoiling" the events of this world for the others—he'd freely shared key information, but now he was grappling with how to find the antidote. If his memory served him correctly, the antidote was in the possession of the final boss of this world, closely guarded by the lead scientist.

"Did that guy even go into deep sleep?" Ethan muttered to himself. He'd only watched the final movie once, and it hadn't left a strong impression on him due to its numerous flaws. The details were hazy, and he struggled to recall the specifics.

Thankfully, his improved mental strength helped preserve fragments of his memories from before he came to this world. Without that, he might've forgotten everything except a vague outline of the events.

As Ethan pondered, the elevator finally reached the bottom. The group cautiously stepped out, weapons raised and ready. But to their surprise, there were no security measures, no guards, no immediate threats. Instead, rows of metallic cryo-chambers stretched before them, their sterile appearance at odds with the sinister intent behind them.

"These are the 'high-ranking elites' who think they have the right to decide the fate of the entire human race?" someone sneered, their disgust evident.

Ethan glanced around at the chambers and nodded. "Seems like it. What happens to them is up to you." Without lingering, he moved further into the chamber. He remembered that this area was where the final confrontation in the movie took place.

At the center of the Hive lay the main control console, where the true core of the Red Queen resided. This console would also allow access to the final boss of this world, the lead scientist.

"What was that guy's name again?" Ethan muttered, his memory failing him as he approached the console. He stood before the massive screen and tapped on the controls.

"If you don't want me to turn this entire place into rubble, I suggest you come out," Ethan called out, his voice calm but firm.

When there was no response, Ethan continued, speaking almost conversationally. "I'm sure you're aware of what's happening above. If you don't want to end up like your subroutine, I'd suggest you cooperate."

This time, the Red Queen didn't remain silent. A projection of a young girl appeared in front of Ethan, her image flickering to life.

The mercenaries instinctively raised their weapons, only to realize it was just a hologram.

"Why is this thing still active?" Kaplan asked aloud, glancing skeptically at the Red Queen's motherboard in his hands. He even double-checked it, wondering if he'd mistakenly removed the wrong component, had he pulled out a memory stick instead of the motherboard?

Ethan, however, focused on the projection. The girl's appearance was slightly different from the Red Queen they'd seen earlier. "So," Ethan said, "you control all the facilities in this base. That means you also woke up 'Alicia,' didn't you?"

"Yes," the Red Queen confirmed, her voice calm but devoid of emotion. "In fact, I activated Alicia when you descended."

***

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