What Lurks Beneath

by squidzen

Summary:

It was his fault for having a hangover, sure, but it wasn't as if he'd been given a heads-up that, 'Hey, Mr. Kennedy, we need you to cancel your day off and assist Redfield and the Special Cases and Disposal Team in infiltrating another B.O.W. appearance.'

Just another day in the office, of course.

Chapter 1: Preamble

Notes:

Last edit: 04/12/26 (Leon character design)

Author’s Note & General Information

First of all, I want to thank anyone stopping by to give this read a chance, it means the absolute world to me; more than I could ever possibly convey. Second, I want to lay down some minor exposition into what to expect out of this series, just to avoid anyone getting X chapters in and seeing something they don't enjoy, then feeling as if they've wasted their time. If you want to go in totally blind, please feel free to move right on ahead!

1. This fic isn't going to be Mia bashing nor Mia praising. My view on her will never come into play, rather only the characters' thoughts and feelings. And, that being said, I will keep as close to canon as possible for those who have canon interactions with her and give my best educated, in-character guess for those that don't.
2. To follow that, this fic will also not have a focus on romance; not for Mia and Ethan, nor anyone else. Including non-canon ships, which won't come into play at all as it's simply not my forte nor interest. Mia and Ethan's marriage will, of course, come into play as much as it does in canon, though it won't triumph over anything else.
3. Headcanons will likely not come up; I'm not big on headcanons anyway, but my intention with this fic is to rewrite RE:BIO as if Leon had been intended for it alongside Ethan. Things may come up, such as a specific drink order, or a specific song, or maybe even a minor/passing hobby, but that will pretty much be the extent of it. There will be specific things mentioned or taken into consideration that are not canon, but they don't change the canon of anyone nor the general lore; all of my "headcanons" are very hyper-specific and, probably, boring, lol.
4. This fic will likely feature lore-heavy references. I will do my best to provide enough exposition for those that may not be as deep into the lore but still interested, or include things that can be glanced over easily. I may also, at the end notes, add my thoughts and explanations when it comes to such topics.
5. At least as of right now, I have four acts planned for this series. The first will be the "What-If" for RE:BIO, then the second will be the period of time between 2017 and 2021, the third will be RE:VILL's What-If, and the fourth will be a period of time following that incident. Things could change, and there could be spin-offs from this as well, but this is the current route I have set myself on.

 

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This work is dedicated to my dad, as an avid reader in the apocalypse and survival horror genre, who beta-read for me, encouraged me, and inspired me and continues to do so.

 

Contextual & B.T.S. Notes

This is simply for leaving–as stated–contextual and behind-the-scenes notes, for anyone interested. It’s not necessary to read through at all as anything needing to be mentioned will be, and anything not will not be. However, if you would like to know the background behind certain decisions, then this section is for you!

Anything marked with (*) is not canon but filling in gaps, anything unmarked is canon but may not be known, common knowledge, or was not explained within context.

 

The Story & General Notes

1. *Leon was transported on a Learjet 31A, and the flight took just under two hours from D.C. to past Baton Rouge.
2. *Playa del Rey to the Baker’s residence is 1,901.9 miles and 27-30 hours. Leaving around 11:30 PM GMT-7, he cut corners (cough, sped) and arrived at 8:00 PM GMT-5. In other words, 18.5 hours, cutting it short by 9.5+ hours. Thank you, Capcom, for having Mia send that email at 11:04 PM but making it so that Ethan drove. Sigh.

Lurking Fear & the Special Cases and Disposal Team

1. The joint team between Blue Umbrella and the B.S.A.A. was labeled the Special Cases and Disposal Team led by Chris Redfield. Blue Umbrella provided artillery and information, B.S.A.A. manned the operation itself.
2. Gambits are, essentially, Humvees, and what the B.S.A.A. uses.
3. *The S.C.D.T.’s base is a joint base (JB) hosted by Blue Umbrella with an interservice support agreement (ISSA).
4. *The joint base is located around 29.54640575070333, -90.78771214228951. It’s 23.1 miles and 36 minutes from the Baker’s residence by vehicle/road.

The B.S.A.A.

1. *Laurel refers to Laurel, Maryland. The B.S.A.A. North American branch doesn’t have a designated base or headquarters, but it has been insinuated to be where it can access and assess threats quickly and easily. Laurel is a city within Prince George’s County, where the Joint Base Andrews is located; it’s also close to other bases and airports as well as D.C. Thus, I chose Laurel as the branch’s base location. In addition, Laurel has many lakes and rivers within and near it. It’s a hotspot for fishing.

Dulvey & the Bakers

1. Dulvey Parish was said to be based on the rural wetland in and around Baton Rouge.
2. *Terrebonne Parish has been thematically changed to Dulvey Parish.
3. *I’ve designated the Baker’s ranch somewhere around 29.36575229726202, -90.81918834394685. Originally, it was placed elsewhere, but I learned someone put the Baker’s residence on the map as a real location. For shits and giggles, I put it nearby.

 

Leon S. Kennedy

*Credit: me :] 

1. *Figuring out Leon’s living situation was a bit tricky as it’s unclear if he is designated housing by the D.O.S. or not. However, considering it’s a semi-successor to USSTRATCOM, I decided to look into what the housing situation was for their agents, where I learned they offered Offutt housing. However, it also offered housing in locations other than Nebraska, also on Air Force bases. Thus, I chose Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling due to its location in D.C. with community housing considering Leon’s years of experience; he’s at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling 8660 Angell Street Washington, DC 20032, at Hooe Terrace in a Jayhawk layout home.

Training Background

!!! Even though Leon’s work history is much shorter than most of the other characters’, his was probably the most difficult to pinpoint in regards to training. I looked into police academy training first, which was straightforward, then USSTRATCOM training. 

However, because of Leon’s acceptance not exactly being traditional, I had to do some work-arounds and forgo some of the prerequisites that would otherwise be present.

Similarly, he also had some mentioned military training; I couldn’t find anything on what kind, for how long, or how intense it was, but I decided to take Jack Krauser’s background in the US Army and Leon’s cooperation and training with him during Operation Javier as the basis. From there, I decided to give Leon Army Special Forces training.

As for D.O.S., being one of the founders and already a seasoned agent, I can’t imagine Leon had to go through much more training if any.

1. *Leon attended the Allegheny County Police Training Academy in Allegheny County, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from January 26 to July 20, 1998, and spent the time between then and his transfer to Raccoon City training and doing community service.
2. *Leon’s training for USSTRATCOM started in late 1998 after accepting the government’s deal, then primarily ended in March of 2001.
3. *For USSTRATCOM, Leon completed the:
1. Criminal Investigator Training Program (CITP) at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Brunswick, Georgia
1. Operations Security (OPSEC)
2. Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs)
3. Judgment Pistol Shooting (JPS)
4. Law Enforcement Skills and Fundamentals Incorporating Training Ammunition (NLTA)
5. Continuous Case Investigations (CCI)
2. Essentials of Instruction (EOI) at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Brunswick, Georgia
3. Basic Investigation of Computers and Electronic Crimes Program (BICEP) at the National Computer Forensics Institute (NCFI) in Hoover, Alabama (later became Digital Evidence for Investigators (DEI), which he then had to qualify again for)
4. Special Agent Training Course (SATC) in the U.S. Secret Service's James J. Rowley Training Center (JJRTC) in South Laurel, Maryland
5. Uniformed Division Training Course (UDTC) in the U.S. Secret Service's James J. Rowley Training Center (JJRTC) in South Laurel, Maryland
6. Firearms Instructor Training Course (FITC) in Cheltenham, Maryland
4. *For military training, Leon was put through the Special Forces Qualification Course (SFQC) at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. During this, he took the MOS 18B Weapons Sergeant Course.
1. Small-Unit Tactics (SUT)
2. Speaking, Participatory Listening, and Limited Reading Category I/II Spanish

 

Ethan Winters

1. *Although it’s stated that Ethan lives in Los Angeles, I’ve placed him more specifically in Playa del Rey within LA.
2. Ethan’s car is a 1970 Dodge Challenger SE two-door hardtop.
1. *Found someone who had his exact car and decided to have some fun, so here are his car specs: replacement 440ci V8, rebuilt with Comp Cams parts (camshaft, timing set, valve springs), and featuring an MSD electronic ignition module, Edelbrock AVS2 650-cfm carburetor, Performer intake manifold, and electric fuel pump. Replacement A727 three-speed automatic transmission, kickdown function inoperative. Left factory with a 318ci V8 with a two-barrel carburetor (E44). Originally equipped with a three-speed A904 automatic transmission (D31). Originally finished in Light Gold Metallic (FY4); repainted in white, including engine compartment and door jambs. 14” Rallye wheels wrapped in staggered BFGoodrich Radial T/A tires (235/60 front, 275/60 rear). Unassisted disc brakes up front, drum brakes in the rear. Full-size rear window; dual hood scoops; quad exhaust outlets; ground wires for the tail light sockets added. Black bucket seats in front, rear bench, with color-coordinated door panels and carpeting. Woodgrain accents on steering wheel, dashboard, center console, and doors. 120-mph speedometer. AutoMeter tachometer added to steering column; trio of Auto Gage auxiliary gauges mounted below the dash; auxiliary gauges show the voltage meter occasionally drops to 11.5-12.0 volts while driving.

Work & Training Background

1. *Ethan started the Loyola Marymount University B.S. degree program in 2002 with a major in Computer Science. He took the Mathematics Placement Examination to bypass prerequisite math classes. In 2005, he was accepted by the Seaver 4+1 M.S. in Systems Engineering program to start his combined B.S./M.S.E. degree following graduation. He started a combined B.S./M.S.E. degree in System Engineering with a technical focus in Software Architecture in 2006 and graduated in 2007.
2. *Ethan took and passed the INCOSE Associate Systems Engineering Professional (ASEP) Certification Examination in 2006, CompTIA Network+ certified in late 2007, Associate Certified Electronics Technician (CETa) and a Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) in 2008, Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) and a Certified Systems Engineering Professional (CSEP) in 2009, Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) in 2012, and lastly Master Certified Electronics Technician (CETma) in 2013.
3. *Ethan did hybrid-remote work for Sun Microsystems as a system database administrator from mid-2007 to late 2009, then Chipton-Ross in Playa del Rey as a system telecommunications administrator from late 2009 to 2013, as well as temporary work at ClearCube in Austin, Texas, as a network and computer sysadmin from 2010 to late 2011, then a side hybrid-remote job at CyberPowerPC as a software engineer from late 2011 to 2015, then lastly Newegg in Diamond Bar, California, as a software engineer from 2013 to the present day.

 

Chris Redfield

1. Chris is shown in a photo in CODE:Veronica fishing on a lake.
2. From 2012 to at least 2013, Chris also battled alcoholism after a bout of amnesia.

Training Background

!!! Gathering information for Chris’ Air Force background was difficult as well, as he supposedly joined in ‘90 as a pilot. However, becoming a pilot requires becoming an officer, which requires a degree. Considering he was only in the Air Force for five years, I tried my best to work with that.

1. *Chris attended the US Air Force Academy directly after high school in 1990 at 17-years-old. He started as a fourth-degree cadet majoring in Aeronautical Engineering and completed Basic Cadet Training (BCT) during the first six weeks.
2. *Chris took and passed the Basic Attributes Test (BAT) and later that year achieved qualifying scores on the Air Force Officer Qualifying Test (AFOQT).
1. Verbal score of 74.
2. Quantitative score of 68.
3. Pilot score of 94.
4. Navigator score of 90.
5. Cumulative pilot and navigator score of 184.
3. *The next year, Chris received an Order of Merit score of 105.1.
1. Commander’s Ranking (Relative Standing Score/RSS) score of 8.7 for 43.5 OM points, due to ranking #4 in a class of 23.
2. GPA score of 14.6 OM points due to his 3.9 GPA.
3. Physical Fitness Test (PFT) score of 100, adding 10 OM points.
4. Field Training Score of 9 OM points, designated as a Superior Performer in the second top 10%.
5. Pilot Candidate Selection Method (PCSM) score of 13 OM points with an addition of 15 OM points from the AFOQT.
4. *Chris graduated USAFA with a bachelors in Aeronautical Engineering in 1994. Directly after, Chris completed Initial Flight Screening (IFS) at Pueblo Memorial Airport in Pueblo, Colorado. After that, he completed the Joint Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training (JSUPT) program at Reese Air Force Base in Lubbock, Texas, where he gained his silver wings and was awarded the aeronautical rating of pilot in early-mid 1995.
5. *Chris went on to be assigned to Formal Training Units (FTUs).
6. He met and befriended Barry Burton in a shared unit. Toward the end of the year, Chris was discharged for insubordination.
7. In 2005, Chris underwent B.S.A.A. SOA training consisted of the Uniformed Division Training Course (UDTC) and Counter Sniper Selection and Basic Training; before March 2009, he underwent SOU training consisting of Green Platoon Training, Aquatics Training, and Flight Training.