68: Vaccine Research
William Birkin staggered out of the facility's main door, his grotesque figure illuminated under the floodlights.
—The right side of his body was monstrous, with a massive arm sprouting a grotesque eye; the red muscle fibers tore through the skin, bulging and knotting together.
On the left, his body resembled a typical zombie, with a dead, pale eye locking onto young Sherry in the crowd.
"RoOOOAAarr!"
He let out a terrifying roar, his already immense body seeming to grow larger, like a ravenous beast finally spotting its prey. He lowered his head and charged forward, his monstrous right hand outstretched, ready to obliterate anything in his path.
Lyon, standing at the forefront, did not flinch as he stepped forward to meet the charging creature. His frame seemed almost diminutive compared to the enormous mutant's massive arm.
Though everyone knew how powerful Lyon was, Annette's words echoed in their minds—this monster was even stronger, perhaps unstoppable.
A collective sense of worry hung over them as they watched the impending clash.
In the midst of their tension, Ada and Marvin raised their guns, preparing to provide cover for Lyon to retreat.
But the confrontation between the two sides lasted only a brief moment.
Foosh!—Boom!
William Birkin, in his monstrous form, was fast.
Yet Lyon was faster.
With a speed too quick for the naked eye to track, Lyon sidestepped and swung a hook punch.
Without a shred of doubt, William Birkin's head exploded, just like an overripe watermelon under the scorching sun.
In the stunned silence of the group, Lyon calmly withdrew his fist and turned around, his clothes still immaculate.
"Scoff~"
He twisted his wrist as the headless body of William Birkin crashed to the ground behind him.
"So? You were saying something about how powerful it was?" Lyon glanced at Annette.
Annette's face twitched, her expression one of disbelief as she struggled to accept what she had just witnessed.
Stammering, she said, "He... he will mutate further. This will only make him stronger. You should—"
Sszzl~
Before she could finish her sentence, Lyon turned back toward William's body and unleashed a burst of heat vision upon it.
In just a few seconds, not even a trace of bone was left on the ground—only a small pile of ash, which scattered with a soft blow from Lyon.
The monster, capable of transforming into four or even five stages in the game, had now made its final exit.
"And now?" Lyon turned his head and asked.
Annette fell into complete silence.
She had been torn for so long, unable to decide whether to kill her mutated husband, William, but had never mustered the courage. Now, she no longer had to choose—this troublesome young man had ended it all.
Annette stood frozen, staring blankly at the ashes beneath Lyon's feet.
Like a lifeless figure, she rose to her feet. Ada frowned, not immediately restraining her again.
Everyone watched as Annette walked over to the pile of ash, gently scooping it up with her hands, bringing it close to her face. Silent tears flowed down her cheeks without her realizing it.
"Mama..." Little Sherry timidly approached but only clung to Lyon's leg, too scared to step forward.
Annette paid no attention to Sherry.
She silently stood up and quietly walked into the base.
No one said a word.
Half an hour later, a gunshot echoed from within the research facility.
"Mama!!" Sherry's eyes turned red, but she only hugged Lyon's leg even tighter.
It was clear that the Birkin couple had seldom been there for their daughter.
Their bond with Sherry was not particularly strong.
And after being chased by the monstrous form of William and nearly being shot by Annette under the pretense of a 'greater good', Sherry felt like she had lost everything in this world.
Be it material or emotional, all forms of support had been stripped away.
But she remembered that the robotic man in the iron suit had told her—this big brother in front of her was the one who would truly save her.
Now, she could only cling to Lyon as if he were her last lifeline.
Lyon pressed his lips together, gently patting Sherry's head, but he said nothing to comfort her.
With such a complicated family tragedy, any comfort from outsiders is in vain.
More importantly, we still have to let the little girl come out of her trauma on her own.
"Let's go in, it's been emptied, and we need to make a new vaccine as soon as possible."
"Marvin, Elliot, you and Jarvis go collect resources in the institute. You need all kinds of resources."
"Ada, you can do what you want to do. It's up to you to steal the G virus or do other things."
"Dr. Bard, come with me and help me develop a vaccine."
"Shirley, if you can, could you come and help everyone? Pass them a cup of coffee or something."
He even involved Shirley in everyone's work.
"By the way, one more thing, Jarvis, terminate and destroy the self-destruct program of this institute."
"Don't get halfway through your research and the base will be blown up."
Everyone agreed and then dispersed.
Even Shirley wiped her eyes, glanced at the room her mom had entered before, bit her lip, and ran to the kitchen to make coffee.
But Ada stopped Leon: "Did you know that my identity was fake? When did it happen?"
"When I first saw you."
"Oh~ Then why did you ask me to follow you all the way?"
"I heard that you are a freelance agent and work for many forces."
"That's right."
"Are you interested in working with me in the future, saving the world or something like that?"
"You want to recruit me? Ha... It sounds very interesting. I will consider it carefully, Leon~"
Before leaving, Ada tried to lift Leon's chin with his fingers. After being dodged, he turned and winked and gave a cool smile.
"Nice to meet you, and thank you~" She turned around, waved and walked inside.
"As expected of Aunt Wang, she loves to pretend to be mysterious even in her thirties(?)"
Leon muttered, withdrew his gaze from her curvy ass, grabbed Dr. Bard, and flew to the research room.
…
On the other side, at the subway station.
Jill Valentine said goodbye to others before leaving on the subway.
"Jill, are you sure you want to go find Brother Stark? The Raccoon City Police Department is not close to here."
Carlos suggested: "I think it would be better for you to leave the city with the others."
"He said he would save the city, and I believe him, Carlos. I have to go, if I can be of any help." Jill checked the ammunition.
Carlos sighed helplessly: "I don't know where your trust comes from."
"Could it be that you still have doubts about him after seeing him take action?" Jill picked up a rifle and asked.
"I have to admit, he does look like a savior... Well, when my mission is over, I will come to aid you." Carlos scratched his head.
Jill put the fingers of her right hand together and waved in the air: "Then see you at the police station."
After saying that, she turned around and ran into the burning street.
...
Two hours later.
"The T-virus antidote and vaccine, airborne version, complete!" Lyon exclaimed, glancing at the two vials of red serum in his hand. He snapped his fingers, clearly pleased with his progress.
Dr. Bard, standing nearby, looked at Lyon in disbelief. "You really did it... in such a short time?" he asked, his voice filled with amazement.
Lyon smirked. "Of course. I told you I had a plan, didn't I?"
Bard shook his head, still trying to process the rapid success. "This is incredible. If this works, we can stop the virus from spreading even further. You may have just saved what's left of this city."
"That's the idea," Lyon replied nonchalantly. "Now, we just need to get this airborne so it can reach everyone who needs it."
Just then, Jarvis's voice echoed through the room. "Sir, the city's infected population is still on the rise. I suggest deploying the antidote as soon as possible."
Lyon nodded, already thinking ahead. "Yup. Let's do it. Start preparations for dispersal, Jarvis."
"Understood, sir."
As the AI began executing his commands, Bard watched Lyon with admiration. "You're not just some random saviour, are you? You're much more than that."
Lyon smiled faintly but didn't respond to the compliment. Instead, he focused on the task at hand. "This city isn't going to save itself."
Meanwhile, deep within the burning streets of Raccoon City, Jill Valentine continued her march toward the police station, determined to find Lyon and do her part in the fight against Umbrella.
Lyon casually handed the test tubes to Dr. Bard. "Take these and test them on some lab rats, especially to see if the vaccine can work through airborne transmission."
In his quest to enhance the effectiveness of the vaccine, Lyon had directly modified the way the T-virus spread. Previously, the T-virus could only be transmitted through liquids and blood. Now, after his modifications, the virus could spread through direct exposure to the air.
Compared to the airborne virus that infected the world in the Resident Evil films, Lyon's new strain of the T-virus was far more potent. His version's efficiency rivaled the future C-virus, giving it the potential to be world-ending.
Fortunately, Lyon had not only opened Pandora's box but also designed an airborne vaccine to lock it shut.
…
Half an hour later.
"Lyon, sir, the vaccine and serum worked perfectly on all the test subjects," Dr. Bard reported. "And the AI Jarvis predicts the effectiveness on humans will vary by less than 0.3% from the results seen in the rats."
"How wide is the vaccine's effective range?" Lyon asked.
"Just as you predicted, within a thirty-meter radius, it remains effective for up to thirty minutes after airborne dispersal," Dr. Bard replied.
"Excellent! Have Marvin and the others activate the production facility and begin mass-producing the new T-virus vaccine and serum!" Lyon instructed while grabbing another vial filled with a deep purple liquid.
"And this—test the new G-virus serum as well."
Bard's hands trembled slightly as he looked at Lyon, awe-struck. "You've even developed an airborne version of the G-virus vaccine?"
"Not exactly," Lyon clarified. "The G-virus hasn't spread on a large scale yet, so I didn't bother with an airborne vaccine. This is a highly effective G-virus serum. Anyone infected for less than twenty hours can be cured."
Bard let out a sigh and quickly took the vaccine. "Understood, I'll start the experiments right away."
As Bard hurried off, Lyon took a sip of the coffee that little Sherry had made for him. "Now, it's time for me to start my own research."
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