Evil in REsidence

[Ada Wong]

As the last echoes of Omni’s words died away, so, too, did the venue of their meeting begin to fade.
 
The curtain was pulled away, dark space folding in on itself with a sigh, curling and furling upward in a sweep of dense velvet. A sheen of light bobbed on the periphery of her vision, twinkling and just out of reach, and she quickly became aware that she was slipping, slipping, slipping… slipping sideways, lungs compressed into a painful knot behind her ribs and the pinpricks of light growing nearer every second.

For a moment, she was suspended amid nothing but empty sky. No wind, no clouds, not even her own heartbeat drumming in her ears. This serenity wasn't made to last.
 
Screeching winds returned to whip past her ears and remind her to prepare to hit the ground. Despite her best efforts, the landing wasn’t so easy to anticipate. She landed with a jolt, dropping onto one knee as soon as her feet touched something solid, arms sweeping out in an effort to realign her stance into a crouch. Her movements were still executed with all the usual grace she possessed, spine dipping inward as the fabric of her dress slithered like crimson wings beside her legs, every inch comprised of fluid grace and silk.
 
Or, it would have been like that, if she hadn’t been too busy smashing through the surface of a shallow pond.
 
She gagged around a mouthful of water and pond scum, splashing into a sitting position with damp black hair plastered across her forehead and dripping into her eyes. One hand flew up to feel across her collar bone for a reassuring pulse, body shaking and shivering as it was wracked by coughs. Her heartbeat pulsed hotly in her ears as she wrestled for control over her own body. Being transported to a new universe and then promptly dropped from the sky would do that to a girl, she supposed, but it didn’t explain why it felt like the world was collapsing all around her.
 
"Quack! Quack quack quack!" The sound of flapping wings tore through her coughing fit, ripples of disturbed air fanning over her face. Ada's fingers slid over the knife holster strapped to her hip and the various hidden compartments in her clothing, searching for a weapon, first aid spray, anything; she was running on autopilot, utilizing every scrap of stored knowledge seared onto her hard drive.

The familiar motions soothed her and, gradually, after determining that she was not under attack, a bit of blessed clarity slowly crept back into her brain, apprising her of how still and quiet the water was. Only a watery burbling somewhere close to her ear continued under the riot of quacking. The gritty sound of her back molars clicking at the base of her skull mostly overran that awareness, but she was at last able to swallow down the urge to vomit.

Ada’s head lolled back, a muffled groan on her lips. The quacking simmered down somewhat, but definitely did not cease.
 
The faint trickling of water only registered after a few droplets sprinkled over her skin, giving away the location of the fountain behind her. Rocking forward so that she could settle onto the balls of her feet, the red-clad spy cursed whatever idiot had decided to place a pond in that exact spot.

Still, it was rather pretty. A mess of lily pads was scattered over the water's surface and gave off a shiny green glimmer, the ripples set off by her movements stirring their filament-like roots and causing them to bob gently. Exquisite orange flowers bloomed in places, too, flush with clear dew and light, but this wasn't what occupied Ada's attention the most. No, definitely not. A brood of fuzzy yellow ducklings was scattered beside the pond's rounded stone edge, feet dabbling in the fountain and soft peep-peep-peeps echoing out. Larger ducks with brown plumage and brightly-colored crests flapped their wings at her in a display meant to ward her off, chests puffed out in challenge.

The woman blinked slowly at the irate fowl, then at the soaked folds of her dress floating around her knees.
 
Shaking her head, Ada raked one hand through her hair as she stood, nails scraping dully at her scalp and droplets shivering off from her form. Flicking a slimy scrap of water lettuce from her fingers, she glanced around, intending to learn just where she was. Pure, untouched white spread out beyond the pond-fountain's reach, caught somewhere between the artificial shine of linoleum flooring and the grainy, slow drag of marble that reminded her of a museum’s floor. Everything felt steadier, but her mind hurriedly revolted at the idea that she could be… safe … for even a moment.
 
This was alien ground, after all. Alien ground filled with unfamiliar, unseen enemies no doubt lying in wait (aside from the ducks); it was just like every other infernal, disease-ridden hellhole she was hired to investigate. She could not rest. Monsters were nearby, even if they were mostly theoretical.
 
A flash of heat followed by a creeping chill swept over her, the fine hairs on the back of her neck rising in anticipation. Ada's fingers twitched. She wasn't alone.

"Well, well, well...if it isn't miss Ada Wong. Or...what was it your friend Krauser called you? 'The Bitch in the Red Dress?'"

It was a touch... difficult to discern over the confused quacking, but she would know that condescending tone of voice anywhere. Albert Wesker. Damn. Speak of the Devil and he shall appear. Out of the corner of her eye she could make out a dark figure moving in a slow, almost casual arc towards her, like a cat lazily stalking its prey. A sense of being both hunter and hunted swept over her from head to foot, but any fear she might have felt did not manifest physically. She was too well-trained for that.

Ada turned, arms smoothly tucked behind her and a faint smile curving her lips. "Oh? Am I that famous among dead men, Albert?"