The cathedral of Raccoon City was a broken shell, its stained-glass windows shattered and pews overturned like makeshift barricades. Cassian, Jill Valentine, and Terri Morales entered at dusk, the echo of their footsteps amplified by the tense silence. Inside, a handful of survivors greeted them with weary eyes. Peyton Wells, a S.T.A.R.S. officer like Jill, was the apparent leader. Tall, with his uniform torn and a slight limp from an old wound, his face showed the strain of sleepless hours. Beside him stood Sarah, a nurse in her thirties, her hair disheveled and dried blood staining her scrubs, her hands trembling as she adjusted a makeshift bandage. Marcus, a scrawny teenager, gripped a metal pipe as if his life depended on it, his nervous eyes darting between shadows. In a corner, Ruth and David, an elderly couple, clung to each other, whispering prayers under their breath.
"Jill," Peyton said, stepping forward with restrained relief. "I thought you wouldn't make it."
"Almost didn't," she replied, checking her pistol. "We brought someone. Cassian. He knows how to fight."
Peyton scrutinized him, his expression hard. "Who are you? I don't know you."
"Nobody who matters now," Cassian said, his voice calm but firm. "I'm here to help."
"You'd better," Peyton grunted, turning to Jill. "The city's a damn graveyard. If we don't get out soon, we're done."
Terri, her camera hanging from her neck, shifted restlessly. "How long have you been here?" she asked, her voice trembling. "This doesn't feel… safe."
"A few hours," Sarah said, exhausted. "The zombies hadn't gotten in until now, but there's worse out there."
"Lickers," Marcus added, tightening his grip on the pipe. "I saw them. They're fast. Disgusting."
Cassian nodded, assessing the place. The doors were sturdy, but the broken windows were an invitation to disaster. This world was a battlefield, and he felt it in every fiber of his being.
They'd barely begun organizing when a crash tore through the air. The side door, already weakened, collapsed under the assault of three lickers, their skinless bodies and whip-like tongues bursting in with a whirlwind of claws. The survivors screamed, chaos erupting.
Cassian reacted instantly, closing his eyes for a second to activate his blood. He drew his dagger, the metal glinting, and lunged at the first licker. He dodged its tongue with a sidestep, plunging the blade into its exposed skull, the body collapsing with a gurgle. The second leaped from a pillar, but he caught it mid-air, twisting its neck with a dry snap, the corpse crumpling. The third clawed him, tearing his sleeve, but he blocked with his forearm and countered with a slash that split its chest, the creature collapsing in a viscous pool. His movements were pure martial mastery, each strike a blend of lethal precision and contained fury, as if chaos was his home.
Jill took command instantly. "Peyton, cover the entrance! Sarah, get Ruth and David to the back! Terri, stay down!" She shot a zombie that slipped in after the lickers, trusting Cassian to handle the main threat.
Terri, trembling behind an overturned pew, tried to record, but her hands failed her. "Damn it," she whispered, hiding the camera, her face pale but clinging to not breaking down.
Silence returned, heavy, broken by gasps. Cassian wiped his dagger on his jacket, his breathing steady, while the others stared at him, relieved yet unnerved.
"How the hell do you do that?" Peyton said, approaching. "Nobody fights like that. Nobody."
"Instinct," Cassian replied, shrugging, his eyes no longer glowing but still intense.
"Instinct, sure," Jill said, wiping blood from her knife. "That wasn't normal, Cassian. What are you? Some damn Umbrella experiment?"
"I'm not Umbrella," he stated, sitting on a pew. "Just someone who knows how to move."
"That doesn't convince me," Jill pressed, crossing her arms. "I appreciate what you did, but I don't work with people hiding things. If we're sticking together, I want answers."
"And I want to know how you plan to get out of this city," Cassian countered, deflecting. "Staying here is waiting to get eaten."
"He's right," Terri said, her voice steadier though still nervous. "I don't know who you are, Cassian, but you just saved us. That's more than we've had. I… I'm recording this, you know? So the world sees what Umbrella did. I can't let this go unnoticed."
"If we get out alive," Peyton growled, sitting with a grimace of pain. "Ravens Gate bridge is blocked. No easy way out."
"Then we need a miracle," Sarah said, checking her empty med kit. "Or something close."
A ringing cut through the discussion. A dusty public phone in the cathedral rang insistently. Jill ran to answer, putting it on speaker, her pistol ready.
"Who's this?" she demanded, tense.
"Charles Ashford," came a deep, weary voice. "Umbrella scientist. I know who you are: Valentine, Wells, Morales… and the stranger. I have a deal."
"Talk fast," Jill said, frowning.
"My daughter, Angela, is trapped in Raccoon's elementary school," Ashford explained. "Umbrella left her behind. If you rescue her, I'll get you out of the city. I have access to helicopters, safe routes. But time's running out. Umbrella's going to… clean this up soon."
"Clean?" Terri repeated, paling. "What does that mean?"
"Don't ask," Ashford said. "Find Angela. Elementary school, east wing. I'll send coordinates."
"Why trust you?" Peyton asked, suspicious.
"Because you're out of options," Ashford replied, and hung up.
The silence weighed like lead. Jill cursed, looking at Cassian. "This reeks of a trap, but we've got nothing better. What do you think?"
"If there's a chance, we take it," he said, calm. "But with eyes open."
"That doesn't explain how you fight like that," Jill insisted, stepping closer. "Nobody moves like that without a story. Mercenary? Military? What?"
"I'm none of those," Cassian said, meeting her gaze. "I've fought my whole life. That's all you need to know for now."
"I don't like working blind," Jill growled, but turned to the group. "Elementary school. We move at dawn."
Terri approached Cassian, fidgeting with her camera strap. "Thanks for earlier," she said softly. "I don't know how I'm still alive, but… you make it feel possible."
"Just stay focused," he replied with a slight nod. "Your camera could change things."
She nodded, but her expression remained tense. The group scattered, seeking rest, but Cassian couldn't let his guard down. He found an empty sacristy, the door creaking as it opened, and checked his dagger, the metal still sticky. Terri followed, closing the door carefully behind her.
"I couldn't stay out there," she admitted, rubbing her arms. "It's too much. All of it."
"It is," Cassian said, looking at her. Her vulnerability, her fight to not give up, struck him.
The air between them grew charged, the day's adrenaline igniting something raw. Terri stepped closer, her eyes meeting his, and they kissed fiercely, their tongues clashing in desperate hunger. Cassian lifted her, pinning her against the wall, his hands tearing her shirt with a yank. She moaned, tugging at his belt, her fingers clumsy but urgent, until his cock was free, hard and throbbing. "Fuck, yes," Terri whispered, hooking a leg around his waist. He pulled down her pants, his fingers finding her wet pussy, rubbing until she gasped, digging her nails into him. Without waiting, Cassian thrust into her, his cock filling her, and she cried out, pressing against him. He fucked her hard, each thrust shaking the table behind them, dust falling from the ceiling. Terri clung to his shoulders, her tits bouncing as she rode him, her moans echoing in the sacristy. "More," she begged, and he obliged, flipping her to take her from behind, his hands on her hips, pounding her pussy until she shuddered, coming with a choked scream. Cassian followed, grunting, his hot cum spilling inside her, both collapsing against the wall, panting.
"That was intense," Terri said, buttoning up, her voice steady but soft. "I just needed… this."
"I get it," Cassian replied, pulling on his jacket, his face unreadable.
A scream snapped them back. Zombies were climbing through a broken window, slipping inside. Cassian ran, activating his blood, golden eyes flashing, and took down one nearly reaching Jill, sinking his dagger into its temple. Their hands brushed as he helped her up, a spark of tension passing between them.
"Thanks," Jill said, her voice low, looking at him with something new.
Terri arrived, pale. "I'm sorry, Jill," she said, nervous. "I didn't do anything… I froze. I don't know how you handle it."
"By surviving," Jill said, softening her tone. "Just stay close."
The group regrouped, checking weapons. Dawn was breaking, the school awaiting. Cassian led toward the exit, his silent figure casting an enigmatic shadow, his past a mystery no one could unravel.