The Most Dangerous Game

[governmentninja]

Ada Wong, that's who Leon was thinking about, which many would find odd at a time like this. Chris is missing, Claire has gone off to raise hell until she's found him, leaving Sherry in his care, and there was a suspicious newcomer to the group. Yet, his thoughts were still filled with her.

Not in a romantic fantasizing sense, though, yeah, some of the lingering feelings he had for her did start to return to the surface. He quickly buried them, though. This was more an analysis of their run-ins, then anything else.

In Raccoon City, when he first met her, he knew something was up with her. Sure, he found her attractive (who wouldn't?), and he was rather naive, but he was far from stupid. Her cover story changed with every new person they met, her frequent running off to handle private business, and that she was a very good shot for a civilian tipped him of from the get go. But he went along with her game anyway. There wasn't much in the way of options for him to do much else.

Raccoon was overrun with undead creatures, and with the G-Type and Tyrant hounding him and Claire, they needed all the allies they could get. He needed her help to get out of the city alive, and, though she'd probably never admit it, he knew she needed him too. For all her lies, he couldn't afford to not stick by her. For all her games, she couldn't afford to throw him away. The situation they were in was just too desperate for that.

So he played her game, but played by his own rules. He needed her help, but he wasn't going to sell his soul to save his own life. It's why he ended up taking a bullet meant for her. He had seen enough people die, and regardless of what Ada did, what games she was playing, what kind of corporate espionage was going on over his head, he wasn't going to let her be gunned down right in front of him.

He saved her life, and in return she saved his. In the process, they came to need each other in a way that was unexpected.

And they both survived the city.

Six years later, they finally met up again. And once again, he found himself in a desperate situation. Sure, Leon knew from jump that Ada was there for her own reasons, and using him to help her cause, but he couldn't afford to refuse the help she provided. He was outnumbered, going up against over a thousand ganados by himself, and with back-up stalled along the way? He'd take the help of whoever would provide it.

So, he once again played her game, but once again played by his own rules with his own goals. Saving Ashley was his priority from the first moment he set foot on the ground, and that wouldn't change. That was why he handed the sample over to Ada at the end, getting Ashley out of there was more important than fighting over the sample. He knew if he handed it over, she'd let him go, and if he didn't... he honestly didn't know, and that made it too big of a risk.

And Ada... being Ada... set the island to blow beneath his feet, yet gave him the means to get himself and Ashley out of there alive.

This odd trip down memory lane was spurred by the appearance of the newcomer, Reno. Much like Ada, everything about Reno told Leon not to trust him. His story has changed at least twice since he met the man, and suddenly he claims to know to where Chris is being held.

Before, In Raccoon City and Spain, the situation was too desperate, the odds were too great for him to refuse any help he could find, and he could say the same for Ada. Here and now, though, Leon's situation wasn't as grave, he had more friends and allies than he could count, but what about Reno's situation? There wasn't a hoard of zombies or ganados on his tail with no signs of help on the way. There wasn't anything Leon could point to as something that, despite whatever game Reno was playing, to keep him from killing any member of his team at any given moment.

Reno wasn't in a desperate situation, from what Leon could see, but with Chris in Wesker's clutches (and with Wesker full well knowing they were going to get Chris), the clock was ticking and his situation grew more desperate by the second. That only made this a more dangerous game Reno was playing with their lives, but did Leon have any other options but to play along?

Comments

[pro-voice.livejournal.com]

The phone rings!

The caller ID is doubtless recognisable. And the line is safe and everything.

[governmentninja]

And Leon, after being shaken out of his thoughts, answers.

"Hey."

[pro-voice.livejournal.com]

The government puts up with Leon's emo hair, but does it have to put up with his brooding?

"Leon. It's Hunnigan." She pauses. "How's work been for you? I've just been stuck in the cubicle."

She sounds pretty tired.

[governmentninja]

If they want him to continue to get shot at on their behalf? Then yes.

"Work's been fine, if a bit boring. Mostly pulling up and forwarding data. For the time being, I'm chained to a desk... where The Powers That Be can keep an eye on me.

"What do they have you doing in the cubicle?" He's been wondering, since he was told not to disturb her at work.

[pro-voice.livejournal.com]

Watch someone requisition dim lighting.

"Ugh. I get one of the soundproofed cubicles. We've had a massive influx of coded information, and I've just been doing the usual: run it through the computers to crack the code, translate the material into English, compare notes with a coworker, pass on the relevant information to people who can use it, and then come up for air, light, and coffee. I don't have anyone in the field I'm supporting right now, but I do have active contacts."

She forbears mentioning that she already knows he's been in the building. It's not surveillance, it's water cooler talk. Certain females in the department have mentioned Leon's back for viewing purposes.

[governmentninja]

He figures she knew anyway, It's not like it was much of a secret.

"Ugh... data mining. That has to suck." He shakes his head a bit. There was no way he could do a job like that.

"So what's up?"

[pro-voice.livejournal.com]

Mentioning it might lead to awkward pauses over the phone (in person, he might wonder why she was blushing.)

"Yes," she agrees whole-heartedly. "I'm just glad another day's done. I am looking at someone in the field in the next month, but we're not clear on that yet, so I'm just keeping busy.

"It's the Nexus. I'm not sure where to go now that certain events have occurred." She moves the phone for a moment so she isn't sighing directly into it. "I'm sorry about your friend. I haven't been able to make any progress."

[governmentninja]

There's a pause from Leon on the other end. "That makes two of us. It's not like we know for sure where Wesker is holding him. And even if we did, all we'd be doing is walking right into a trap.

"I can't see a way around it. Not yet, anyway."

[pro-voice.livejournal.com]

"I'm trying to be sure I don't become of limited use. I've been keeping out of the Nexus. I think it's time I established a cover identity and started getting everyone used to it, however.

"I don't think I wish to explain to everyone we know who I really am. I've taken as many precautions as I can, but I don't have your skill with encounters. I'm afraid I'm the weak point."

[governmentninja]

"You're hardly the weak point. If anything, you're going to even more important in the coming weeks.

"We're not going to beat Wesker, or get Chris back on firepower and guts. Wesker is too smart for that. We need to know where to strike, when, and with whom. There's no one better at that than you."

[pro-voice.livejournal.com]

"Thank you, Leon." She sounds startled, and a little touched. "I was speaking defensively, however. I still know my way around the fewest alternate earths, I haven't even started on any identities, and out of the two of us, I'm far less capable of protecting myself in case of a sudden encounter.

"I've just had to start thinking about that more recently. I've been able to move freely, being anonymous. Now I know two people who either know who I am, or who might be here to dig."

[governmentninja]

"True, I hadn't considered that." He's very used to the idea of Hunnigan being out of the direct line of fire. So much so that it hadn't crossed his mind that she could be pulled further into the action than she wanted.

"Which two people?"

[pro-voice.livejournal.com]

"The woman protecting Salazar is one of my primary possible concerns. I can understand the idea that she's harmless and just being conned, believe you me--he's the type who can easily latch on to protectors. But all he has to do is say, 'that's her name? Excuse me for a moment, senora, I am overcome at hearing this news,' get in touch with a cult buddy, and suddenly my home is a lot less safe. You know our unsure state over how many plaga cells we might have on our shores.

"Second off. . . Rebecca Chamber's new friend. How is he simultaneously pulling hidden data from Umbrella, and at the same time directly confronting high-level Umbrella operatives in the Nexus? That doesn't add up to me, not at all."

[governmentninja]

"Hips? She's... eccentric, but she has Salazar out from underfoot. He's not harmless so much as he's out of the way, but still in a location where I can keep an eye on him." There was a brief pause, before he continued on.

"I should've told you about that sooner. I'm sorry I kept you out of the loop about that for as long as I did."

He didn't go any further into that for the moment.

"As for Reno, yeah, I wouldn't trust him as far as I can throw him. His story seems to be changing every few seconds, plus him running off Krauser... I know Krauser, there's no way he'd back down so easily when some nobody mouths off at him, particularly if all they have is some hand-to-hand melee weapon. If anything, he'd turn them into a bloody smear in twenty seconds flat.

"Krauser backed off for a reason, and fear of Reno wasn't it.

"On top of that, rumor has it that Wesker is interested in something in Midgar, where Reno is from. Something tells me if we do a little digging there, we might find out how Reno is really connected to all of this."

[pro-voice.livejournal.com]

"Oh, I'm convinced he's not harmless. I don't think Hollister is a danger, however. It's just that now she has my name and she knows I'm connected to you.

"Salazar couldn't narrow down which federal agents in the Department of Defense were involved in the Las Plagas investigation before. He had one thread: you. Now he has two.

"It's possible I'm just being paranoid. However, we've seen Wesker take revenge with those last two murders, one the DOD chairman. The evidence says it's not out of the question, particularly for a terrorist.

"You mean Wesker is looking into Midgar, at the same time this Reno shows up and starts publicly investigating Wesker? How very convenient.

"He claims to be an FBI agent. I can examine that with little chance of damage or exposing myself; I just have to drop in and check the roster. He's got to show up on the payroll. He's also quite young and says he got in a year ago. His file, if one exists, can't be too high-security."

[governmentninja]

"That's assuming Salazar has the brains and the resources to pull off that kind of attack. As it stands now, he currently has neither.

"As for Reno... I'm not convinced he's working for Wesker. All the evidence does suggest he's not working entirely with us, though, and that's enough for me not to trust him. I'm not sure if there's a third party at play here or not, but he definitely has his own agenda. I don't know if he wants us to take down Wesker, if he wants Wesker destroy us, or have us and Wesker destroy each other so another group can come it.

"He's a huge risk, since his loyalty can change as the wind blows.

[pro-voice.livejournal.com]

"I'm not sure what resources he has, with the vanishing village to worry about." Hunnigan isn't getting into how closely Leon is watching; any way to try to ask that would just come across as mistrustful or insulting.

"My logic about Reno was simply that someone was looking into using us; coming in as an enemy of our enemy would be a simple way to gain a measure of trust. It makes sense in that he claims to be alone--he said 'I'm one man against an army'--but he's acting much more like the front line of someone's team.

"My speculation? We've established ourselves pretty clearly as a team that's very effective at coming in and taking a place by storm. If Reno gets enough people to buy his story, explains to some of our more volatile members that a friend of his has been kidnapped, and shows us an alarming-looking medical facility--or, more simply, tells us that's where Chris is--we could end up bashing someplace unrelated wide open for him. Then he takes what he wants from them and we never hear from him again.

"That doesn't explain why Krauser backed down. It could be that he knows Reno's backers, and doesn't care to argue with them. I still haven't pulled his files for review. You know him better than I do."

[governmentninja]

"He's cut off from everyone and everything. And what Saddler didn't take, either our government or the spanish government already seized. He has nothing." Except the Hands...

"True, and Reno has the perfect bait to lead us into doing his dirty work for him. Thing is, can we afford not to take the bait? I'd rather not make a move on his intel until we know who he is and what he's after, but we may not have much of an option. It's the closest thing we have to a lead on Chris."

[pro-voice.livejournal.com]

"I can at least cross-reference what he gives us with what we know. It's true that worlds vary. But I've already got quite the data pool. If I can manage to, say, get information from two more worlds and then contrast the pictures I get from those, I should be able to pick out anything that was made up to fill space. Alterations are also of interest.

"Second off, as long as nobody tips him off, he'll be going steadily for a while yet. Could you ask him for something? Something small and pointless that he'd have to arrange or take some time over? He's still at the stage when he believes he can win more people over. And considering your access to firepower and," she phrases it politely, "your tendency to decisive action, we'll also get an idea of his plan. If he turns you down or puts you off, he probably doesn't want us to go bash something."

[governmentninja]

"Good idea. You should talk to Eiko about that. She should be able to set you up with access to data streams from a couple of worlds.

"Point... I'll play along for the time being. Give him a chance, as it were. I'll see what I can learn from him or about him.

"In the meantime, we still need to search for Chris. I'm going to send a team back to Savannah. Wesker could've easily gotten careless and left something useful lying around."

[pro-voice.livejournal.com]

"Good thinking. I--my source is out of the office right now, and I have no way of knowing when he'll be back. He could be able to narrow down facilities to the most likely ones.

"All right. You start the team out and think of something to occupy our new friend; I'll support them, and I'll start digging here for Chris. I'll be sure to check with Eiko about ways to find parallel information. We can't rely on that, especially since we can't ensure it's one hundred percent accurate in the first place. It should be helpful to show us where there are clear unusual deviations, though."