Another Long Day
Two months ago a series of violent, brutal, and particularly unusual murders had ripped Raccoon City from anonymity and thrust it into the media spotlight. It all started with a group of four hikers going missing in the foothills of the Arklay Mountain range. There were no indications of foul play, after all handfuls of people disappear into the American Wilderness every year.
A search was led by State Police, two of the searchers; a State Police Detective, and a seasoned Mountain Search and Rescue member had mysteriously went missing as well during the weeklong search. Eventually they cut their losses and pulled out, having found nothing. It wasn't until pieces of the missing persons started washing up on the Huron River (A tributary of the Au Sable river which runs almost the entire length of the Arklay Mountains) that the S.T.A.R.S. were called in.
S.T.A.R.S. (Special Tactics and Rescue Squad) was an elite branch-off of the federal Bureau of Investigation. They handled terrorist actions and threats, and specialized in rescue and reconnaissance; two areas which were not handled by the FBI's elite Hostage Rescue Team. They had set up a field office in the Raccoon City Police Department, and after a four man hunting party went missing; planned a tactical sweep of the northernmost area, where they would move south towards the city.
The thirteen man task force was split into two teams: Alpha and Bravo. Bravo would lead the initial reconnaissance of the area, and followed up by Alpha Team's arrival, they would both comb the foothills looking for the killers, and or survivors.
Less than an hour into the mission, Bravo Team's helicopter malfunctioned and radio contact was lost. Alpha Team was later sent in to recover Bravo Team. When the Alphas arrived they found the remains of Bravo's helicopter, along with their dead pilot; Kevin Dooley. Dooley was strapped into the helicopters pilot seat, having supposedly died on impact. It was minutes later that a transmission from Alpha's helicopter pilot; Brad Vickers, announced that Alpha Team had been attacked by more than a dozen wild dogs, and had been forced to retreat into the ruins of the abandoned Spencer Estate that was owned by the Umbrella Corporation.
From that point on, the story goes unknown. The mansion went up in flames, and the only survivors of Alpha Team were members Jill Valentine, Chris Redfield, Barry Burton, and Brad Vickers. Joseph Frost, and Captain Albert Wesker were killed in action, Their remains were never recovered. Rebecca Chambers was the sole survivor of Bravo Team. Captain Enrico Marini, Edward Dewey, Kenneth Sullivan, Forrest Speyer, Kevin Dooley and Richard Aiken were all presumed dead, yet again no remains were ever found.
After that, the Raccoon City S.T.A.R.S. Team was disbanded. They fired off accusations at the Umbrella Corporation, and about Captain Albert Wesker's treason. They were suspended on the spot. They were never heard from again, and had supposedly left town. All of them currently have warrants out for their arrest after not showing up for a federal court hearing.
Just like that, the cases were handed back to the Raccoon City Police Department. My division supervisor Marvin Branagh handed my partner Dan Scully, and myself; John Robinson, the southern district murder files: Ten manila folders packed with crime scene photos, witness reports, and information on the victims. Ten cases that were currently listed as "active".
I was just waking up in my apartment on the east side of Raccoon City, when I received a phone call from my partner Dan. Three more unidentified bodies had washed up on the bank of the Huron, three more folders, and three more stacks of paperwork.
My department issued black 96' Yukon barreled down M-23 toward the crime scene. I had turned on the strobes, and watched the red needle on the speedometer rise past 65 mph, There was really no rush, but the 15 minute drive was turning into a 30 minute one after I had stopped for a coffee and a breakfast sandwich at a local McDonalds to try and erase the damage done to my kidneys after a long night of drinking at O'Kelly's; a popular bar hangout for off-duty cops.
The number of black and whites parked at the crime scene, A medical examiners van, and the other Black Yukon which belonged to my Division Supervisor told me that something big was going down. I turned off the sirens and lights, and then drifted to an empty spot behind my partners Jeep. This was going to be another long day.