The Confession
May 16th,
1998
8:00 AM
POV: Jon
None of us spoke within this
hour; for it was that in which we laid Mary to rest beneath a
thriving willow. Without one of our own, conversation seemed
strangely meaningless, and our confusion concerning what was to come
manifested through both grief and silence. All around us, the dense
forest seemed to echo our thoughts.
Sunlight, seemingly
oblivious to the horrors that had occurred beneath its gaze only
several hours before, filtered through the branches and bracken, to
where it struck down upon Michael's face, now streaked with
stinging trails left in the wake of tears. He had stopped crying
almost an hour ago, but now his manner was expressionless, and that
worried me even more.
The memories given to me by the
Arklay Estate flooded back to me in waves. First came Phil, the
little rebel that managed to annoy everyone and yet charm them at the
same time. We had spent hours just speaking to each other about daily
matters, and of course, our research. I even remember once, in late
February, when he had taken me to play poker with some other men from
the Research and Security personnel…I'd lost miserably, of
course. But the conversations were hysterical.
The
Research…how I, how we, had partaken in the discovery of
death, and yet overcame its former boundaries, overwhelmed and
fascinated with what we had and could possibly accomplish. This was
our goal, and we had lived to see its consequences.
Why were we the only ones not infected with the Tyrant Virus? The
others had changed into complete monsters, still in the outlines of
their former humanity. And yet we remained the same, free from the
bondage of such a terrible fate…
It must have been because
of Catherine, and her natural immunity to the virus. Perhaps, just
perhaps, our contact with her has saved our lives. Michael had never
known the truth of her until half an hour ago, when I explained to
him who Catherine truly was.
However, we were only immune
for as long as she remained amongst us. I had been immune since the
moment I'd met her, and Michael was exposed to the effects through
direct contact with Mary…
Catherine took a step closer
to me, not exactly sure what to think of all of this. Her eyes
portrayed understanding for Michael's emotion, and the impact of
his loss, but she could not think of it in a context of it actually
happening to her. However, this wasn't completely inhuman. After
all, so many people in this world think that they are oblivious to
tragedy. I admit that even I was guilty of it at one point…before I
arrived at the Arklay Estate.
Before I had nearly murdered my
closest friend. Before I had proudly arrived at my destination,
swaggering on the promise of life. Before I had assisted my
colleagues in unthinkable experiments and research, and yet felt
little regret until now.
It had been such a long year…
Yet I
had no choice now but to continue on through the mountains and into
Raccoon City. There, we would find Phil, and leave this place behind
forever, if fate would permit.
This is my crime, and this is my
confession.