Epilogue

Or, in which most things are resolved and many characters get relatively happy endings, even if they really shouldn't. But hasn't that been the point of the story?

Email to private server

Wesker,

Buddy, pal, hey, how you doing? I heard you've been busy lately. Too busy to check in on an old friend like me, huh. But don't worry about it.

Hey, a little birdie told me you're in need of a new direction now that you're done blowing things up. I just might have an idea about that new direction. There's a buddy of mine, friend of a friend of a friend, you know, he knows a guy in Japan who could be veeeery interested in investing in your work.

Might be worth checking out?

You know my finder's fee's reasonable.

-Irving

Diary of Sherry Birkin
June 1st, 1999

WE'RE GOING TO JAPAN!

I'm not supposed to know yet but I overheard Uncle Wesker talking to dad about a new job he found.

Uncle Wesker was saying, "...he definitely has the money to keep us employed for a long time, should he wish."

And dad said, "But what does a yakuza boss want with B.O.W.s? He's not going to deploy them for some petty turf war in Tokyo, is he? The chances of an outbreak..."

What's a B.O.W.? Is it an acronym? Maybe...big old wasps? Bent orange washing machines?

Uncle Wesker said, "He wants to fight them in his basement and charge people to watch." So I guess it's not washing machines.

Dad looked kind of goggle-eyed. He said, "His...basement?" And his voice squeaked a bit.

Uncle Wesker said, "To be more precise, the secret cage fighting arena he constructed underneath his office building."

Why would you fight cages? Anyway, Dad still looked really shocked. I think if Uncle Wesker had flicked his forehead, he would have fallen over.

Until Uncle Wesker said, "He wants a new one every month."

Dad still looks like it's Christmas again.

So I'm pretty sure we're going to Japan. That's where Tokyo is! It's too bad Claire can't come with us. I guess she had to go home with her brother. Jake's not coming either, he had to go back to his mom. It feels a little lonely just thinking about it. But, I'll be OK.

We've got a new person coming with us! Someone we really weren't expecting.

When Uncle Wesker came back from dropping Jake off, he had this woman with him. She looked really glamorous, like she should be on a magazine cover or something. Dad got really twitchy and grumbled about picking up more strays now that they were finally getting 'back on track.'

Then Uncle Wesker said, "This is Alex. My...sister, more or less."

A SISTER! How many secret family members does Uncle Wesker have?! Does Jake know he has an aunt?

Dad got really upset again, and he said, "Sister? You have a sister? How many years have we—"

"You never asked."

Dad pouted on the couch for the rest of the day.

Alex is a lot like her brother, but I haven't known her as long so she's kind of intimidating. She likes books a lot and she's been asking me what classics I've read. She's going to be staying with us for a while, so I hope I can get to know her.

Sometimes, I feel like I should be missing home more than I do. But. I get to spend so much more time with mom and dad, and Uncle Wesker, and we've seen so many cool places and people. I just wish we didn't have to run around all the time. I'm so sick of the car.

Note to Jake

I'm sure that one day you will have a lot of questions for me, when you're old enough to understand. For now, you're too small to retain the answers, so I'm writing you this note. Read it when you're older.

Yes, I've sent you back to your mother. No, I'm not, and never will, coming to stay with you two. If this trip has taught me anything, it is that my lifestyle is not suitable for children or civilians. Multiple people have told me I shouldn't be allowed to parent, anyway.

I will visit you once a year to deliver the requisite gifts and do fatherly things, like teaching you to flirt or shoot guns.

Here's your first dose of wisdom:

Become whatever you want. Unlike certain friends I could mention, I will not have an aneurysm should you choose to shun science. You can even join INTERPOL or become a medical doctor if the fancy strikes you. The rivalry could be amusing.

Never let anyone walk over you. That may be difficult at your age, however, just because you are currently wired to be an information sponge does not mean you must blindly bow to every adult's whim and absorb whatever they tell you without thinking.

Never make trouble for yourself. No matter how badly you may wish to attack someone who is wronging you, hold yourself back. Wait, and watch, until the opportunity arises for you to take your revenge with minimum chance of retaliation. Manipulation is always more cost-effective than brute force.

There. That should you tide you over until you reach puberty. I'll see you next July.

-Albert Wesker

Letter to Sherry Birkin
June 5th, 1999

Sherry I miss yoo. We had fun. But I am happy with mom now.

I had a salad. It was green.

Weird guy brought me to mom. He gave me a note. It is too hard to reed. Mom said to reed it when I'm big.

I want to bee big now so I can see yoo.

Bye!

-Jake

Notes attached to letter

FRAME THIS. Also, Jake is marrying Sherry when they're old enough. I will accept no arguments.

Honey, they're children.

NO ARGUMENTS. Think of the GENES, Annie!

Note found taped to fridge

Will, Albert,

While we're moving things to Japan, why don't we take a trip back to Raccoon and see if we can pick up a few things we left behind? I'm sure the new homeowners wouldn't have found the secret wall.

Clipping from Cryptid Hunters International found stapled to previous note

May-June Edition, 1999

New sightings in the woods outside Midwestern Raccoon City!

(very blurry black and white picture of what might be a face)

In addition to the Arklay Devil Dogs and Mountain Man Eaters already reported in the area, intrepid hunters in this remote region have sent us another story about a truly terrifying creature.

Two hikers were poking around the ruins of a burned-out mansion when they stumbled across a nightmare beyond imagining. They found this ghoul crouched over the body of a Mountain Man Eater, chewing on its corpse.

The 10 Faced Howler, as we have dubbed it, resembles a skeletal woman with elongated arms, a nest of gawping faces piled around her head and shoulders, and purple snakes sprouting from her head mass. The hikers were so shocked by the Howler's ghastly appearance that they watched, petrified, as it slowly straightened and turned towards them.

The Howler hobbled closer, giving the illusion of slowness. The hikers backed away. Then, without warning, the Howler jumped 15 feet and landed on one of the hapless men, knocking his sunglasses off and slamming his head into the ground. His brave companion thought quickly, and distracted the ghoul with a camera flash. This allowed both hikers to escape while the Howler was screaming. Fortunately for our witnesses, the Howler was not difficult to outrun despite her impressive jumping abilities.

Rumors suggest this creature is especially aggressive towards women and blond men with sunglasses. If you fit into either of these categories, you might want to take extra care while traveling through the region.

Keep searching for the truth!

-Ken Longtail

Article from Popular Science Today
September Edition, 1999

Mystery Skeletons in Tokyo Bay

Marine biologists have worked themselves up into a tizzy after the discovery of several unidentified animal remains along the bay of Tokyo.

"I've never seen anything like it," says Doctor Jun Kobayashi, a researcher who has been studying fish populations in the area. "I'm not even sure these were marine animals. The bone structure clearly indicates a hexapodal vertebrate, something never before seen on this planet."

Doctor Fumi Asato, a professor at the Tokai University, on the other hand, remains skeptical. "They're just whale bones," she says. "It's always whale bones."

The bones were discovered by a local fisherman who stumbled across them on the way to his boat. To add to the mystery, the fisherman says that several of the bones appeared to be burned and half-melted, as if dipped in acid and set on fire. No one is sure what could have caused such damage.

Due to a miscommunication, the bones were sent to the wrong biology lab for examination, and have since disappeared. While there are some wild rumors about a government cover-up, Doctor Kobayashi is confident that the remains will turn up eventually.

"They're probably just sitting in a basement somewhere. Mix-ups happen."

-Daisuke Hirano

She shut the folder with a snap. It was done. Every piece of evidence she had found after months of traveling and careful scouring had been placed in rough chronological order, piecing together a trail that snaked back and forth all across Europe. Finally, she knew where they were. And this time, she wouldn't arrive on their doorstep only to find an empty home and a few forgotten scraps of paper.

Rebecca Chambers tucked the folder inside her luggage. On the table beside her sat an application to Princeton's PhD program, every section filled in with careful, precise cursive save one glaring empty spot: her work history. She glared down upon it with determination as she booked her flight to Japan.

One way or another, she was getting that goddamn recommendation letter.

The End

End note: And that's all she wrote! I hope you enjoyed this crazy ride and thank you for following it to the end.