Chapter 2
Disclaimer: I do not own Resident Evil. Resident Evil is owned by Capcom and I am just borrowing their ideas for a story. All O.C.s are all mine.
The vast Alleghany mountain range shielded the rising sun, creating an image that resembled a watercolor painting, with smeared colors over the dimly lit sky. The view was a beautiful sight to observe. It was John's first task each and every day; to behold the amazing image. After witnessing the wondrous sight, John gathered up his supplies and headed for the rendezvous.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Sheriff Jenkins was, as usual, sitting at his oaken desk, anticipating the search party's departure. He wanted to get to the bottom of the truths of the whereabouts of the missing persons. Andy eventually rose from his seat. He fished through his files, withdrawing a detailed map of the woods. He than left his office, map in hand, to face the small group, waiting for instructions.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
John reached the fort's entrance, welcomed by the waiting volunteers. He noticed that the number of people that made up the search party was miniscule. All that made up the ragtag search party was: Matthew Chamberlaine, a farmer, accompanied by two of his slaves; Isaac Shaw, a blacksmith; and at last the only female in the group, Mary Smith, a widow rumored to spent some nights with Francis on occasion. Sheriff Andy Jenkins was present to direct orders. All and all, the group seemed to be unprepared for the task at hand.
"Hey John, glad you made it!" shouted Andy.
"I wouldn't miss this, even if my bar was on fire." joked John.
Small laughter was soon followed by the other members of the group.
Andy than reached out his hand with the map and gave it to John, proclaiming…"John is going to lead you guys out there. He has the map of where it is believed Francis and his boy disappeared. Any questions?"
"Not really." said Mary.
"Not me, either." answered Isaac.
"Just one question." shot Matthew. "There gonna be a reward if we find something?"
"No." said the Sheriff." Is that all you here for, some money?"
Isaac glanced at the tall, looming figure of John. "No, not really, just been hard lately. Been a dry year and hardly any crops have grown to sell."
"Alright than." said John. " Let's get started than, shall we?"
"The spot will take ya'll about 8 hours to get to, and once there, just camp out for the night, and search the area for anything out of the ordinary. After that, head back here and tell me what ya find." stated Andy.
"Will do. Let's head out." commanded John.
The guards open the gate and the search party, lead by John, ventured into the unknown forest.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The party reached a clearing. John glanced at the map. They have been hiking for about 9 and a half hours. The trip has taken longer than expected, due to the dense plant life. The slaves were forced to cut paths out for the group.
"How the hell did them two get through all of this? Are you sure this is where we are supposed to go, because I'm not doin' any more of this today, that's for damned sure." said Matthew.
"It says here on the map that this is where we were supposed to go. Let's make camp and build ourselves a fire." directed John.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
The fire's crackle was the only sound that could be heard upon the chilly night. Everyone was gathered around the fire, groggy from the earlier journey. After a few minutes, John broke the awkward silence.
"I'll be back in a couple. I need time to myself, and also, nature calls."
John rose up from the frozen ground and separated from the group. He walked about five minutes away from the camp. As he walking, he noticed something. There was something fluttering gently in a small bush. He bent down to grab it. He identified the tattered object at once as the picture of Joan, Francis's passed wife. He was shocked at what he found. John knew that something was wrong. He knew that picture meant a lot to that family. John than slid the picture into his back pocket, keeping it safe from the weather's conditions until he reached the fort so he could show Andy, and headed back toward the camp site to deliver the news.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
As John returned, he immediately noticed that everyone was asleep. They must have been exhausted. He than noticed how suddenly tired he was. John laid down, covered heavily, staring at the cloudy sky, a few stars visible, as he drifted to sub consciousness.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Author's Note:
Again, thanks for following my story. I would like to note that I am aware of the idea of photography wasn't invented in the 1700's lol. The picture is a small portrait. I apologize for the short chapter (this chapter is more of a filler of basic information) and the non-action content. I assure you that the following chapter will be more exciting. So again, thanks for reading, and don't forget to review with feedback and/or ideas.