64: Three Survivors

The group stood at the entrance of the police station.

Ahead of them was the reception desk, surrounded by a floor of brown marble tiles and a series of ancient-looking stone pillars.

Since Lyon's freezing breath hadn't affected the interior, everything inside remained as it was.

The main hall had a distinctly retro aesthetic, with gilded wall sconces embedded into the stone pillars, casting a warm, sunlight-like glow.

Behind the reception desk stood a statue of the Statue of Liberty.

Lyon recalled that this police station used to be a museum, later repurposed by the chief into its current form to conceal the entrance to the Umbrella underground lab.

That entrance lay beneath the Statue of Liberty sculpture and required three stone tablets to unlock the mechanism.

The group made their way around the reception desk.

Between the statue and the front desk, they approached a makeshift emergency room, set up with medical partitions.

Inside the makeshift emergency room, a man with a pale complexion lay on a stretcher.

He was stocky, with a body built of both muscle and fat, and his short hair was neatly trimmed. His body temperature, however, was shockingly low.

"He's infected!" Bard immediately recognized the problem.

He examined the man's body, saying, "The wound is on his arm. Judging by the state of infection, it's been less than three hours—he can still be saved!"

"But I don't understand why you'd keep an infected person in the police station. That's extremely dangerous."

Over the past few days, Bard had witnessed too many instances where people, unwilling to abandon their companions, ended up causing greater harm.

The three officers, who had briefly lit up at the news of their teammate's possible survival, now had somber expressions.

"He's a member of the S.T.A.R.S. team, Brad Vickers. He's important to us," Marvin explained. "We found him collapsed in an alley, so we brought him back."

"Besides, there's only a handful of us left here. Even if he were to turn, it wouldn't make much of a difference."

"So… what exactly did you mean when you said he can be saved?"

The three officers looked at Bard and Lyon with a glimmer of hope.

"We brought the T-virus vaccine and serum, which can cure the infection," Lyon said, calling Jarvis over to open the briefcase.

Inside were three vials of glowing blue viral fluid, a magenta-colored vaccine sample, and four doses of antiviral serum.

"Vaccine? There's a vaccine for this plague?" Marvin's body trembled. If they had gotten the vaccine earlier, so many of their comrades wouldn't have died.

"Since Umbrella developed the virus, of course they'd also develop a corresponding vaccine," Bard explained, taking one of the serums from the case and injecting it into Brad's arm.

As the serum entered his system, Brad's pale complexion began to improve slightly.

Seeing this, the three officers felt a wave of relief, their trust in Lyon's words deepening.

"Given that you're here to save the city, I assume you have a specific goal in coming to the station?" asked Elliot, the middle-aged officer. "Is there anything we can do to help?"

Lyon turned and walked over to the Statue of Liberty sculpture. "Yes, actually. There's an Umbrella research facility beneath this police station."

"I intend to go inside and produce a more effective vaccine."

"And to do that, I need access to the entrance located here in the station."

Elliot was visibly excited after hearing Lyon's words: "Are you serious? I knew there was a secret passage here! Officer Phillips was right all along! Unfortunately… she'll never hear this news."

It seemed that Phillips had been a superior of his, but she had already passed away.

Lyon patted the middle-aged officer on the shoulder. "You've all done your best."

"Now, step aside, and I'll open the passage."

The group stepped back in confusion.

Lyon knelt slightly in front of the Statue of Liberty sculpture, then suddenly struck with lightning speed, smashing through the thick stone slabs beneath it.

The steel-reinforced stone slabs were like soft jelly in his hands.

There wasn't even a hint of resistance.

His expression remained calm, his breathing steady, and his muscles didn't tense at all.

With a simple motion, he effortlessly lifted and removed the entire Statue of Liberty sculpture and its foundation.

Lyon effortlessly lifted the sculpture as if it were as light as tofu.

The others could only watch, their eyes twitching at the sheer display of brute force. It was so violent, so overwhelming!

But no one had time to dwell on it, because once the Statue of Liberty was toppled, it revealed a stone staircase beneath.

The staircase led down into a hidden chamber, elegantly furnished. Even from just a glimpse, the room exuded an air of luxury.

"Damn it! This secret chamber has been right under our noses all these years, and we never noticed!" Elliot exclaimed, holding his head in disbelief.

Marvin's face turned grim. "It's the chief! He's in league with those Umbrella bastards!"

The heavyset officer was too enraged to speak, silently fuming.

They all turned to Lyon. "Mr. Lyon, what should we do next?"

Lyon thought for a moment. "First, we search for any remaining survivors, clear out the remaining zombies in the station, and then we'll head into the underground research facility together."

"I've frozen all the zombies outside, so it's up to you to search for survivors. Can you handle it?"

Marvin immediately nodded. "Don't worry. The three of us will head out right away."

The three officers quickly gathered their gear, formed a team, and left the police station.

Lyon glanced at the suit of armor. "Jarvis, take care of the remaining zombies inside the station."

"Yes, Master Lyon," Jarvis replied, launching into the police station's various offices to clear out the undead.

Twenty minutes later, the Super Mark I returned to the main hall, smeared with some zombie blood. A noticeable scratch marred its chest, likely from an encounter with a creature known as a Licker.

"Mission accomplished, sir," Jarvis reported.

Meanwhile, Marvin's team also returned, bringing back three survivors.

One was a father-daughter duo, and the other was an Asian woman.

The father and daughter seemed an unusual pair. The father had a round physique but exuded a tough, hardened air. He kept his daughter close to his chest, shielding her from view.

The Asian woman, on the other hand, wore a red evening dress, her long legs wrapped in black stockings and topped off with high heels.

The Asian woman had striking looks, but her demeanor was cold, exuding an undeniable allure from the corners of her eyes and the tilt of her brows.

"Mr. Lyon, these are the only survivors we could find nearby," Marvin said, somewhat disheartened. "We couldn't find anyone else."

"It's alright. Once the new vaccine is ready, more people will be saved," Lyon reassured him, patting his shoulder.

The middle-aged officer, Elliot, introduced the survivors: "This is Robert Kendo, the owner of the gun shop behind the station, and his daughter."

"And this lady was found in an abandoned building—"

"I'm with the FBI," the Asian woman interrupted, pulling out an ID. "Ada Wong, here to investigate Umbrella Corporation."

She gave Lyon a scrutinizing look. "They've been calling you the savior. Care to provide some evidence?"

"Scoff* Sorry, I don't need to prove anything," Lyon responded with a smirk.

He knew Ada had been watching from one of the buildings when he froze the streets around the station. Her questioning was clearly an attempt to gather more information about him.

"Doesn't matter who you are—savior, god, whatever!!" Robert Kendo suddenly shouted, his voice rising in frustration.

"They said you have the antiviral serum, right? Give me the serum! I'll do anything you say, just give it to me!" Robert Kendo shouted desperately.

Everyone stared at him in shock.

Director Bard took a closer look and exclaimed, "The girl in his arms is infected!"

Lyon added, "Yeah, it's in the early stages—she's just been infected. There's still time to save her."

Without needing instruction, Jarvis automatically controlled the suit, extracting a serum and administering it to the girl before anyone could react.

The little girl, who had only been barely conscious, collapsed into her father's arms after the injection.

"Emma! Emma, how are you?! Damn it, how could you just… wait, your eyes... they're returning to normal!?"

Kendo, holding his daughter, was initially frantic, but then noticed the quick improvement in her eyes.

Thankfully, the vaccine worked swiftly. The girl's once-pale eyes rapidly regained their normal color. However, her consciousness remained faint, and she would need some time to rest and recover.

"All's well that ends well. Heh~ I always loved these happy endings in movies," Lyon remarked.

Leon took a few more glances, and after confirming that the little girl was getting better, he turned around and headed towards the underground passage.

"Now we have a new mission. Officer Marvin, one of you will stay to protect the survivors and guard the police station."

"The other two are going down with us to make the new vaccine at the institute."

After he finished speaking, he swiftly disappeared into the passage.

"Come on, we have to race against time." Director Bard and Jarvis followed Leon and entered the underground passage one by one.

___________

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