The helicopter sliced through a gray sky, heavy with ashes falling like dirty snow over the ruins of Raccoon City. The roar of the blades was the only sound breaking the heavy silence among the survivors. Cassian sat by the window, his clean dagger in hand, his eyes fixed on the burning horizon. The nuclear explosion had erased the city from the map, but not the weight of what they had endured. Beside him, Terri Morales hugged Ángela, the trembling but alive girl, her large eyes lost in an invisible point. Jill Valentine checked her pistol, its magazine empty, her face hardened by exhaustion and rage. Alice, at the opposite end, kept her gaze down, her fists clenched, as if still fighting the shadows of Nemesis and Umbrella. Carlos Olivera, Peyton Wells, and LJ occupied the back seats, exhausted, while the pilot, an anonymous mercenary hired by Ashford, kept the course toward an uncertain destination.
Cassian felt his blood humming, an echo of the energy he had spent facing Nemesis and healing the infected. The last days in this world had pushed him to his limit, but his training in the Parallel Lands had taught him to listen to his body. Enoch's blood, his heritage, was depleted after the battle, but he knew it would soon recover. This place—this hell of zombies and betrayals—was not his home. Hawkins awaited him, with its own portal and its own demons. But before he left, he had to decide what to do with those who had fought alongside him in this nightmare.
"Where are we going now?" Terri broke the silence, her voice fragile but firm. She clutched her broken camera, her only anchor to a purpose she hadn't yet abandoned. "Raccoon's gone. Umbrella… they're not going to stop, are they?"
"No," Alice said, not looking up. "They won't stop until there's nothing left."
Jill holstered her pistol, her hands trembling slightly. "Ashford mentioned a lab on the outskirts," she said, glancing at the group. "It could be a starting point. If they have more facilities like Raccoon, we need to find them. Destroy them."
"That sounds like more blood," Peyton muttered, rubbing his arm where the bite mark had vanished. "I don't know how much more I can give."
"Nobody's forcing you," Jill replied, though her tone lacked strength. She was exhausted, not just physically, but in a deeper place where hope crumbled.
Cassian remained silent, observing them. This world was broken, beyond redemption. He had seen Parallel Lands in his training—some similar, others strange, but all with a spark of life that here was fading. His blood told him this place was doomed, that Umbrella, the zombies, or something worse would finish consuming it. But he also felt something for these people—Terri, with her fragile bravery; Jill, with her steely will; Alice, with her untamed fury. He couldn't simply abandon them without offering a way out.
"There's no future here," Cassian said at last, his voice low but clear. Everyone looked at him, even the pilot glanced back for a moment. "This world is falling apart. Umbrella, the zombies, whatever comes next… there's no victory against that."
"And what do you propose?" Alice asked, her eyes sharp as knives. "Give up? Run like rats?"
"Not give up," Cassian corrected, meeting her gaze. "Choose. There are other places, other Earths. Not this hell."
"What are you talking about?" Carlos interjected, frowning. "What other places?"
Cassian didn't answer immediately. He looked out the window, where the landscape was a canvas of desolation: burned fields, shattered roads, shambling shadows moving in the distance. "You'll understand soon," he said, more to himself.
Hours later, the helicopter landed in a clearing at the edge of a forest, an isolated place where the air smelled of pine and damp earth, a cruel contrast to Raccoon City's stench. The pilot announced they needed fuel and would rest there until dawn. The group disembarked, stretching their legs, checking meager supplies. Ángela stayed with Terri, who whispered words of comfort while inspecting her broken camera, as if she could still salvage something from her footage. Peyton and Carlos stood guard, while LJ searched for food in the forest, cursing under his breath. Alice walked a few meters away, staring at the horizon, alone with her thoughts.
Cassian waited, feeling his blood strengthen with each passing hour. The energy returned, slow but steady, like a river regaining its course. He knew he'd soon be able to open a portal, but first, he needed to speak with them—Terri, Jill, Alice. The only ones who had fought by his side, who had seen what he was capable of. The only ones who might understand what he was about to offer.
As night fell, the group lit a campfire. The flames crackled, casting shadows on their weary faces. Cassian stood, adjusting the crucifix hanging from his neck, and gestured to the three women. "I need to talk to you. Alone."
Terri looked up, confused but nodding. Jill frowned, suspicious, but followed. Alice hesitated, her eyes assessing him, but finally joined. The four walked away from the camp, reaching a clearing surrounded by tall trees, where moonlight barely pierced the darkness.
"Speak," Jill said, crossing her arms. "I don't like being pulled from the group without an explanation."
Cassian took a deep breath, feeling the weight of what he was about to say. "I'm not from this world," he began, his voice steady. "I come from another place, another Earth. One with its own problems, but not like this hell. My blood…" He raised his hand, showing the palm where faint scars marked his rituals. "It lets me move between dimensions. Open portals to other Earths. That's why I'm here. That's why I can do what I do."
Silence. Terri blinked, her mouth slightly open. Jill stared at him as if trying to decide if he was insane. Alice, however, showed no surprise, only a cold intensity, as if she'd already suspected something.
"Another Earth?" Terri said, her voice trembling. "You mean… like a parallel world? That exists?"
"Yes," Cassian replied. "I've trained to cross them. This place was an accident, a portal I opened to explore. But now I know I don't belong here. And you…" He looked at each of them. "You have no future in this world. It's dying. Umbrella, the zombies, whatever comes next… it'll consume you all."
"That's a lot to swallow," Jill said, her tone sharp. "Let's say I believe you. What are you offering?"
"A way out," he said. "My blood is almost ready. I can open a portal to my world. It's not perfect, it has its own demons, but there's hope. There's nothing left here."
Terri hugged herself, staring at the ground. "I don't see a future here," she whispered. "Everything I recorded, everything I wanted to show the world… it was lost in that explosion. My career, my life… there's nothing left." She looked up, her eyes shining with unshed tears. "If you say there's another place, I believe you. I want to go with you."
Cassian nodded, respecting her choice. He looked at Jill. "And you?"
Jill pursed her lips, her gaze lost in the shadows. "I've fought my whole life," she said, her voice hoarse. "Against Umbrella, against everything this city threw at me. But I'm tired, Cassian. Not of fighting, but of losing. If there's a chance, even a small one, to start over… I'll take it." She paused, staring at him. "But don't think I trust you blindly. This is for me."
"Understood," he said, with a slight nod of respect.
Finally, he looked at Alice. She hadn't spoken, but her silence was more eloquent than words. "I'm not going," she said at last, her voice low but firm. "Umbrella's still out there. What they did to Matt, to me, to this city… I can't let it go. Someone has to stop them."
"That could kill you," Cassian said, without judgment. "This world doesn't forgive."
"I know," she replied, with a bitter smile. "But it's my fight. I don't run."
Cassian looked at her, feeling a mix of admiration and sadness. "I respect that," he said. "If you change your mind, my blood can find you."
Alice nodded, a flicker of gratitude in her eyes. "Take care of them," she said, gesturing to Terri and Jill. "And don't get lost in those worlds of yours."
The air grew colder, the forest silent except for the distant crackle of the campfire. Cassian closed his eyes, feeling his blood pulse with renewed strength. It was time. "Get ready," he said to Terri and Jill. "I don't know what the crossing will be like for you."
"Just do it," Jill said, straightening, her hand on her empty pistol as a reflex.
Terri stepped closer to him, trembling but resolute. "I'm ready," she whispered.
Cassian drew his dagger and sliced his palm, his blood glinting under the moonlight. He traced a circle on the ground, pouring a few drops into the center while clutching his crucifix. "Per sanguum meum, aperi viam minorem," he recited, his voice resonating with an otherworldly calm.
The air hummed, a low buzz filling the clearing. The ground trembled, and a dark circle rose, two meters tall, its edges sharp but opaque, revealing nothing of the other side. Terri gasped, stepping back, but Jill grabbed her arm, steadying her.
"Now or never," Cassian said, glancing at Alice one last time.
She raised a hand, a silent farewell, and turned, walking into the forest without looking back.
Cassian stepped toward the portal, feeling the chill of the threshold. Terri and Jill followed, their faces a mix of fear and determination. The portal enveloped them, the world fading in an instant, the clearing left empty save for footprints in the dirt.
In Hawkins, the Mirkwood forest awaited. Cassian, Terri, and Jill emerged from the portal, the hum fading behind them. The air was different, cleaner, but charged with a distinct tension. The portal closed with a whisper, and Cassian took a deep breath, looking at the two women who had chosen to follow him.
"Welcome," he said, his voice low. "Now another fight begins."
The forest remained silent, but in the distance, a strange echo resounded, as if Hawkins already knew new warriors had arrived.