"Hey, you're... Henry, right?"

  As the voice sounded, a pair of long, slender legs in navy blue tactical trousers took up most of Henry's vision.

  Instinctively looking up, his eyes passed over a well-proportioned feminine figure. This figure had a neatly tucked-in sky blue shirt, the sleeves short, revealing toned arms. A S.T.A.R.S. badge was attached to her left shoulder.

  Yet when he arrived at the young lady's face, he instantly recognised who she was.

  Dark brown hair, high cheekbones, a sharp, defined jawline and those piercing blue eyes that seemed to see through a person at a glance... She looked almost exactly like Sasha Zatova, otherwise known as the face of Jill Valentine.

  This realisation stunned Henry for a moment.

  Here was a character that he'd spent countless hours playing as—one of the central figures of the entire franchise. A literal pillar of the entire story. Hell, he even had a poster of her up on his wall!

  'Yet, here she is, right in front of me...'

  So, Henry didn't quite know how to respond.

  Meanwhile, Jill could only awkwardly adjust her shoulder-length hair, brushing it behind both ears in an attempt to remain as professional as possible.

  She waited for a few more seconds before asking: "Hey... You okay there?"

  Using one hand, Jill waved back and forth in front of the young man to get his attention.

  The young man, Henry, felt heat creep up the back of his neck once he noticed this, quickly getting up from his seat. "Yeah. Sorry... I... Uh, I was just a bit surprised, that's all. First day and all that."

  He mentally kicked himself before offering a hand. "Henry Ashcroft."

  Luckily, Jill returned it with an amused chuckle, her grip firm but not overly so. "Right... First days can be rough. Don't worry, though. You're in good hands."

  She sported a teasing smile that made Henry want to dig a hole and hide in it. "I'm Jill Valentine, by the way." Her eyes scrutinised the newcomer up and down. "Now, I'd usually offer the grand tour, but Captain Wesker wants everyone in the S.T.A.R.S. office for a briefing. So we'd better get moving."

  Finished speaking, Jill gestured towards Henry to follow her as she began to walk towards the main hall. It wasn't very far, with no door and only a small connecting passageway in between.

  People passed them by left and right.

  Soon after, they arrived in the main hall proper.

  The floor was a checkered marble—scuffed and scratched due to wear and tear, while along both sides of the room were two neat rows of towering stone pillars built into white walls. Each of these pillars staggered towards two staircases at the back of the room, with an old stone statue placed in between them.

  This stone statue depicted a Goddess wearing a long, toga-like robe. The goddess carried a kite-shaped shield in one hand and a long, sharp spear with a cloth attached in the other.

  'Lady Justice.'

  Henry remembered, his eyes almost instantly drifting towards the familiar bronze plaque at the base of the statue, or more specifically, the three empty circular indentations on it.

  'The puzzle's still here... which also means the hidden passageway is too.'

  He couldn't help but link the two together in his mind.

  Thinking of that place sent a shiver down Henry's spine. He knew that Umbrella would be patrolling the sewers heavily right now, doing everything they could to protect NEST and their dirty secrets. Of course, this also included William Birkin's lab, where the G-Virus was being worked on.

  However, in a few months' time?

  The place would be swarming with new dangers. Only this time, the monstrous kind that loved to eat humans, piece by piece, like a delicious potato chip snack.

  It was a nightmarish place Henry didn't ever want to visit, if possible.

  Shaking the scary image away, Henry continued to follow Jill across the checkered marble floor, their feet tapping audibly over the low conversations happening around them.

  Unlike the on-screen version of the police station, the main hall now appeared much more practical. Police officers were gathered around noticeboards, flyers clung to the walls, and public announcements were plainly visible on pillars in larger words. The entrance even had a somewhat clunky walk-through metal detector.

  Henry reached out, running a hand across the ornate bannister in front of him as they both arrived at the stairs.

  "Strange, right?" Jill commented, probably after noticing his actions. "This place, I mean..."

  He walked up a few more steps. Trying to find the best words to reply with. "Yeah, it doesn't look much like a police station."

  Jill nodded in agreement, her eyes going toward some of the smaller stone statues built into the walls. Those things were just tacky in her opinion—a total waste of money.

  Couldn't they just sell them and get something more practical, like actual quality police equipment for once?

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  She let out a long, frustrated sigh. "Unfortunately... back when this building used to be a museum and the city bought it out, Irons insisted on keeping a lot of the old 'exhibits.'"

  "You mean Brian Irons? As in the Chief?" Henry asked, more for confirmation than anything else.

  But Jill's response was a lot sharper than he expected: "Yeah, him. Said they give the place character."

  She thought It sounded like a load of crap.

  In her experience, Irons was so vain, so self-obsessed that he cared little about actual police work and more about appearances. Then there were the lewd looks, the shifty eyes when he thought she wasn't looking... suspicious behaviour that put her on edge. There was no way in hell she would ever trust that man.

  At the same time, Henry wanted to laugh after hearing about Iron's poor excuse. He knew a fair bit about the lore of Resident Evil and figured that a large part of it was actually because of a need to hide the passages and rooms hidden all over the police station. There were all kinds of secrets that would be rather damning if they ever got out.

  Including that disgusting little hobby of his.

  There's no way in hell Irons would ever risk exposing that. And if Jill ever found out, Henry knew that it would be similar to Ben Bertolucci. Going to the ends of the earth to expose him, without realising how deep the rabbit hole actually went.

  So, Henry simply followed behind Jill in silence, the two of them arriving at the top of the staircase not long after.

  A massive circular emblem of the Raccoon City Police Department loomed on the wall above, while an imposing lion statue with a shield sat ahead, in the middle of both sets of stairs. He could see the west corridor to his left, with its balcony overlooking the main hall below.

  "This way."

  Jill said, walking towards a wooden door adjacent to the lion statue that Henry couldn't remember ever seeing before.

  Once they both passed through this door, they found themselves at the northwestern stairwell, its iron railings capped with their antique wooden handrails going up and down the steps. A bronze mansion-styled chandelier hung between the 2nd and 3rd floor above, gently swinging in the breeze from a nearby open window.

  The floor itself was a patterned diamond tile, carrying the sound of their footsteps further down the corridor as they went forward.

  Some officers gave them brief glances, nodding towards Jill in passing.

  Henry realised, not recognising half the rooms he'd already passed. Most of them just didn't exist back in the game, and the only two that he did actually recall were the locker rooms that connected to the showers. A blue sign next to the doors made it rather obvious.

  Still, after passing this sign, he remembered that in the coming months, this corridor would be blocked off midway. You'd have to go through those showers after collecting a key item to turn the steam off.

  Henry scratched the back of his head awkwardly. The game really made you jump through all kinds of hoops just to go down a simple corridor.

  The two of them soon arrived at the western side of the building, going around a corner. Since there were windows, Henry decided to take a quick peek out. He could see people stopping to have a friendly chat, some of them either jogging or walking their dogs. The area was pretty busy, and if he didn't know any better, he would have never guessed that such a peaceful place could turn into such a nightmare.

  Not far away, Jill stopped outside a wooden door. The white sign on the wall next to it read: S.T.A.R.S., Special Tactics and Rescue Service.

  "Here we are."

  She said, meeting Henry's nervous expression with a grin. Although he tried to hide it, Jill had always been good at seeing through such things. "Relax. It's just the team. You're not being marched into a firing squad. Well... unless Barry's cooking again, anyway."

  She rubbed her stomach unconsciously.

  "Don't ask. Let's just say the last time that guy brought in his famous 'chilli' dish, half the office mysteriously called in sick the next day."

  Everyone learned an important lesson that day.

  Henry laughed as he imagined the scene. Noting it down for future reference, if he actually survived.

  Jill tilted her head, deciding to give some tips. "Chris'll probably size you up the second you walk in, but don't take it personally. That's... just Redfield being Redfield. He's got a good heart, even if it's buried under five layers of suspicion and muscle.

  Oh, and... watch out for Joseph. He's a bit of a joker. Probably'll make some dumb remark within the first two minutes. Just try not to get too offended if he crosses the line. As for Brad..."

  She rolled her eyes, wondering where to start. The list was... pretty long. "Brad. Well... Brad means well. But if anything flaps too hard, he's usually halfway out the window. Especially if it involves either moths or spiders, and let's not even mention daddy long legs..."

  Despite being easily scared, Jill still genuinely believed Brad always did the right thing in the end.

  Coughing for a second, she patted Henry on the shoulder. "Anyway. I know first days can be rough, so try not to worry too much. You'll fit right in; im sure of it."

  Henry nodded back, feeling a bit better. Although Jill had misunderstood his main reason for being nervous in the first place, it still helped ease some of his nerves.

  He took a deep breath, following Jill into the office.

  However, unlike what Henry expected, it wasn't the cramped room from his memories—with hardly enough desk space for two teams—but a much more spacious, rectangular-shaped room. One side of this room held a collection of sturdy oak desks arranged into rows. Cluttered mission files, radios, and holstered firearms were scattered across their surface.

  A large corkboard decorated the far wall, filled with photographs, marked maps, and crime scene reports linked to the Arklay Mountains.

  Then, there was the armoury. This part was similar to the one in Henry's memory, the main difference being its organisation and the existence of two signs.

  One of them said Alpha Team, and the other Bravo Team. Obviously, the two teams had two sets of lockers.

  At the same time, Henry quickly became aware that all the eyes in the room had gathered on him.

  To say that it was awkward was an understatement.

  Oblivious to all this, Jill casually announced: "Got the rookie," tilting her head back toward Henry. "Everyone, this is Henry. Our newest member."

  Henry did his best to ignore all the attention, raising a hand. "Hey."

  "Nice to finally meet you.' said a burly man with a friendly voice, one thumb pointed towards his crimson vest. "I'm Barry. Hell of a time to sign up, but we're glad to have you."

  Another man—leaning against his desk—let out a sharp whistle from his desk. "You sure he's not here to deliver pizza?"

  Henry knew it was just a joke, but Jill simply rolled her eyes. "At least he doesn't store hot sauce in his holster, Joseph."

  "One time. One damn time." The man—Joseph—raised his hands in mock surrender.

  Everyone in the room chuckled as they recalled that day. Joseph sighed, turning towards Henry with a playful smirk. "Welcome to the team. As you've just heard from Jill, I'm Joseph."

  He shook Henry's hand with gusto.

  Next up was a muscular man. He had short, spiky brown hair, green eyes and a somewhat square jaw that gave him a rugged, reliable air.

  "First day, huh?" He commented, looking Henry up and down for a moment.

  Henry suspected this man was Chris Redfield. 'I mean, he looks pretty similar. Except... younger and a little less muscular than later in the timeline.'

  By the time the fifth game came around, he was a literal human tank made flesh.

  Thus, Henry nodded. "Yeah. Good to meet you..."

  "Chris." The man said, offering a hand. "Chris Redfield."

  Henry didn't even think before he took the hand. But a strong, vice-like grip made the corners of his eyes twitch a moment later. He barely resisted the urge to react.

  'Damn, this guy's strong.'

  Chris gave a knowing smile as he continued to observe the young man before him, then nodded approvingly. "Welcome aboard, Henry."

  "...Thanks. Chris."