Author: This is a short story by Suiren Kimura, who received the Grand BIOHAZARD Novel Prize which was officially published in Japan in 2002, the author also received a prize of 1,000,000 yen.
In 1968, he was born in a place in Northern Kanto. After his student years that could be called anything but serious, he moved to Tokyo. He lived quite irresponsibly in the late 80s. Starting from one day, he made up his mind, and became a manga author. But nowadays, he is alienated by the industry through his poor conduct.
He looks like the playful type, but he's very serious. [Dengeki Bunko Works]
In 1968, he was born in a place in Northern Kanto. After his student years that could be called anything but serious, he moved to Tokyo. He lived quite irresponsibly in the late 80s. Starting from one day, he made up his mind, and became a manga author. But nowadays, he is alienated by the industry through his poor conduct.
He looks like the playful type, but he's very serious. [Dengeki Bunko Works]
Illustrations: Hiroaki Hashimoto
As an illustrator for SNK, he has worked on main visuals such as “THE KING OF FIGHTERS2000, 2001”. After leaving the company, became a freelance illustrator.
As an illustrator for SNK, he has worked on main visuals such as “THE KING OF FIGHTERS2000, 2001”. After leaving the company, became a freelance illustrator.
Plot: A succession of recent murders in the UK shocked the public as Jack the Ripper returned. Jack Trump, who was recognized as the main suspect in this case, is being escorted to the United States. Even more mysteriously, the transport that has been provided is the large passenger ship Liberty owned by the Umbrella Pharmaceutical Company. Onboard the ship, a new virus developed by Umbrella was sleeping waiting for the best host.
A mysterious woman monitors Jack and suddenly the US Navy board the ship. When all the cards have been played, a manhunt begins on the ship with no escape...
[Dengeki Biohazard Related Books]
A mysterious woman monitors Jack and suddenly the US Navy board the ship. When all the cards have been played, a manhunt begins on the ship with no escape...
[Dengeki Biohazard Related Books]
# 1 Jose Lopez
It was dawn, one day early in April in the city of Liverpool. The main street leading to the port had a small branch off the main road. Usually this street was quiet but today it was busy. And where singular cars usually drove slowly, today a taxi rushed at high speed. Behind it, raising up a commotion and flickering with the blue of flashing lights, three police cars drove through one after another. A largely-built taxi driver clutched at the steering wheel with all his might he was shook so hard that it was difficult to imagine how a person of such a physique could panic so badly. In the rear-view mirror, police sirens were still reflected. And if he could imagine what lay ahead, he would be even more nervous. At this time, the view in the rear view mirror was blocked by the head of a man with black hair. The owner of the hair was neatly arranged, perhaps even with a skill for styling, hair, the pride of every Puerto Rican, Lopez, calmly sitting in the back seat, bouncing from time to time, whilst shaving, deftly maintaining his facial hair with an electric razor. The driver could not stand it and turned to his passenger, because it was he who had caused this fierce tension.
“Sir, this is too dangerous! It’s hopeless!”
Lopez, not at all worried, asked the driver; “How long until we arrive? Are you definitely driving your fastest? Quicker!”
“We are being chased by the police because I am driving too fast! We will be caught before we get to the port!”
“Do not worry. I have already said that if we get caught I’ll figure it out.”
As soon as Lopez finally finished shaving, there was a dull sound from somewhere on the floor near the rear seat. The sound was like a blow of a heavy object. The driver looked in the rear view mirror and saw how Lopez bent to pick up the fallen item. When he straightened up, his hands gripped a Beretta M92F pistol ominously sparkling with its glistening black details. Lopez lifted the side of his jacket and set the pistol into a holster underneath.
“Aren’t local cops armed?”
“In this case, we will not be stopped by the danger of being gunned down.”
“Hey, sir, be careful with that, please.” Then the driver grumbled with trembling lips; “Damn, that I still let a Mexican into my car...”
“What did you say?” asked Lopez.
There was silence.
“That’s what I thought, I’m American. And by the way, how long do we have to go? If we are late, I will have no choice but to shoot you.”
“We will be there soon. Almost there. And so, I ask you now, we need to stop. Not only will the police chase after us, if you stain the seats, they will shoot! When are you going to stop?”
Lopez (menacingly) leaned toward the driver.
“There! Look, the gates are right there!”
As soon as the taxi car pulled left on the avenue, gates appeared in front, separating the usual road from the pier and the tone of voice of the driver immediately changed to a joyful one. Lopez, in turn, leaned out of the window, and making sure, he smiled. The guards at the gate fussed. A taxi very quickly approached the gate, as if it were about to crash, and patrol cars were chasing it.
The guards, whose task was to guard the gate, initially, immediately put up a blockade.
A smile immediately disappeared from the driver’s face. At the same time, the enthusiasm that had previously visited Lopez changed in an instant, which was reflected upon his face.
The distance to the gate was reduced, the driver clung to the steering wheel with all his strength.
“What to do? We are going to crash!”
“No need to crash! Press the brake!”
“The brake?”
“Even English taxis must be equipped with brakes! Come on, push it now!”
“Press the brake? If I brake, the car will stop!”
“Naturally!”
“If the car stops, the police will catch us!”
“It will be better than getting serious injuries when we crash?!”
“Sir, if the police surround us, they will arrest us!”
“Then what do you think we should do?” Before the eyes of Lopez appeared wide pillars painted in white and red stripes. He shouted: “We are not going to make it, not in this taxi! Now hit the fucking brake! And stop this fucking car!”
The driver, startled by a screech that rang out in his ears, gathered all his strength and pressed the brake.
The front wheels were blocked, the rear wheels slipped, the car was driven to the side and carried directly to the gate.
Both the driver and Lopez closed their eyes in horror. At that moment, Lopez had already begun to pray. His voice could well reach heaven, but after silence, which seemed to him to be an eternity, darkness fell and was crushed by the force of their momentum.
The dust from the wheels rose in a pillar and, wrapped in white smoke like a smokescreen, the car stopped.
Simultaneously with the metallic sound from just turning the steering wheel, the hub cap fell off the rear wheel and rolled away. The cap rolled toward the booth of the entrance to the gate, hit its wall and fell.
The driver slowly opened his eyes and looked at the posts on either side, exhaled and spoke. “There’s not even a meter, centimeters remaining.”
Lopez exhaled next and grumbled: “I’m American, speak in feet and inches.”
Both men in the car had not yet had time to feel relief from what had happened. After that, he leaned over to the policeman and whispered: “Well, is he here... we are here for the prisoner, Jack Trump.”
“Ahh, Jack the Ripper?”
The police finally straightened and parted. Some of them went to inquire about the driver’s condition, some went to help the gate guards, who were in shock.
Of them, one, giving the impression of a senior rank, approached Lopez.
As soon as he stood directly opposite Lopez, he immediately took the ID and began to examine it very carefully, so close that it seemed like he was trying to smell it. The actions of the policeman portrayed his annoyance.
“Real?”
“Yes, real. I’m a US Marshal.”
And Lopez smiled at the officer as if he wanted to show off his even white teeth. Glancing briefly, the policeman returned to the study of the ID and proceeded to compare the photograph pasted on the ID with its owner. In the photograph, a smiling face in an expensive suit. After making sure that the face in the photograph was smiling as well and dressed in the same suit, the officer grinned. Lopez, not noticing a grin, continued to smile.
“I see. An American Marshal Officer, meaning... “
“Marshal Service Officer. Appointed by Head of Service. I work in all states of my country controlled by the Service.”
“England is not a state of your country.”
The policeman jabbed his finger so that he almost pierced Lopez’s face on the ID.
“Be what it may you are an employee of the Service and no matter if you are appointed by the head of the service, here you are a civilian who caught a civilian taxi here, forced the driver to drive in violation of the speed limit on civil roads, for which, like all civilians, they face arrest.”
“Really, I really face arrest?” Lopez’s smile grew tense.
“Actually, we have no authority to arrest you. However, we must at least find out the reason why you were in such a hurry.”
Lopez cleared his throat and began to explain. “Actually, in this port I am performing a very important task... But I overslept. Due to the fact that I’m not used to the time difference... and I suspect that due to the local climate too... In any case, I could not be late.”
“And so you made this commotion?” the policeman pointed to people scurrying around.
Lopez smiled tightly again.
Seeing this attitude, the policeman lowered his head and exhaled loudly. Lopez approached the officer and wanted to look into his eyes, but the policeman straightened abruptly at that very moment. The policeman’s face was dangerously close with Lopez’s nose. Lopez cautiously backed away.
“And why do Americans make bedlam in our streets,” the officer grumbled. It was not just a mumble under his breath, the words were spoken loudly enough for Lopez to hear them. Exhaling again, the policeman asked Lopez: “So you have come this far from America to take the Ripper home?”
“The Ripper?”
“The Ripper, you and he are Americans.”
“Who is he? I mean, take him home, I wouldn’t say that. It’s not a convoy. Our job is to escort the prisoner. Yes, this time our job is indeed to accompany an American citizen. But his name is not the Ripper, or whatever you said. Is he... this... Jack or whatever. Damn, because I overslept, I didn’t even have time to look at the documents... I only know his real name known...”
“And I’m talking about Jack Trump? Here in England no one calls this freak by his last name.”
“They call him Jack the Ripper,” said another younger policeman. “Excuse me, I want to ask what to do with the taxi driver.”
Lopez glanced at the taxi. The driver looked at Lopez, leaning out of the window, his face was very tense.
The senior police officer also looked at the taxi driver and said: “And do you know this one?”
Lopez made a smile at the taxi driver and waved his hand. Seeing this, the expression on the driver’s face changed and he, putting his hand to his chest, depicted a sigh of relief.
He probably thought that Lopez was able to negotiate with the police. And the fact that Lopez pointed a finger at the officer calmed the driver a little, despite the fact that his (Lopez) gestures were a little exaggerated.
“He is English. Are you going to arrest him? Or maybe you only get angry with the Americans?” said Lopez to the officer.
Lopez turned to the policeman and bowed his head.
“A complaint? When did I say such a thing?” The officer grabbed his head and lowered it again.
This time, Lopez did not look into his eyes.
Without raising his head, the policeman folded his ID and returned it. “That’s enough... In fact, take the Ripper and go back to America.”
The intonation in the words spoken was different from how they had been spoken before, and Lopez felt a certain annoyance. However, he (Lopez) was more concerned about being late, and wishing to end this incident as safely as possible, Lopez might have overdone it with the officer with a smile that he did not expect from himself:
“England is a country of noble people, always has been. They’ll accept you if you act respectfully. Jack... the Ripper? You caught him, right? The local police are doing a really good job. Thanks to you, we can easily escort him. As a representative of the US Marshals Service, I want to thank you for your cooperation.”
Having said this, Lopez extended a hand to pick up the ID, grabbed it by the edge and was about to pull it towards himself. But, the officer’s fingers were still gripping him tightly, and he wasn’t going to let him go.
Lopez looked at the policeman, who raised his head, looked back and said:
“A sick freak from America, but he did what he wanted on our streets. Of course we caught him.” After a couple of seconds, the policeman grunted and the corner of his mouth twisted. “You did nothing. To catch the Ripper.”
The officer finally released the ID. He turned his back and left. For some reason, because of one unpleasant interaction, he (Lopez) was seized with anger, which came from nowhere. After some time, Lopez returned to the taxi, popped into the rear seat window and pulled out his briefcase, previously left on the seat.
The driver turned around and asked Lopez: “Mister, so you are an American policeman? From the FBI or something?”
“US Marshals Service.”
“I had no idea. Well then. Have all charges been dropped? Have you agreed on this with the police?”
“Ahh, yes, of course.” Lopez leaned out of the window, turned to the driver and smiled. “I explained that there are no problems. That’s because England is a country of noble people.”
“What a relief. As for the payment...”
“Because I’m American, if you ask me to pay, I won’t have any Euros or pounds. But don’t worry, the police said they would pay for the trip.”
“Is that so. Well then, I’m happy.”
“Yes, they said they would come back later and pay.”
Lopez turned his back to the driver and strode to the gate, right in front of them he stopped. He took a comb from his pocket and began to comb his hair, which he was so proud of. Today it combed easily. And the troubles that happened earlier will no longer bother him. Thinking so, Lopez continued to gently comb his hair. Then one of those guards who was scurrying around nearby cried out:
“What do you want?”
Lopez pointed to the gate in front of him.
“I’m waiting for the gates to open. Open up!” said Lopez, to the guard, his mouth open, bewildered. Suddenly Lopez came to his senses, finished combing himself and put his hand into his jacket pocket. “Ah, yes. My ticket. Give me a sec.”
“Not required. In case you don’t see – everyone is busy here. Step aside.”
“Just open it already. This is your job. I won’t leave until you open.”
The guard clicked his tongue, and went toward the booth near the gate.
Lopez had to wait, so he turned to the driver and asked: “By the way, do you know about the Ripper?”
“About Jack the Ripper? Which, the original? Or current?”
“Current.”
“Everyone is talking about him, ‘the Jack the Ripper affair.’ An American named Jack Trump, several young girls became his victims, he brutally cut them up with a knife. Jack the Ripper who has risen again in our time, almost every day in the newspapers appears bold headlines with similar statements. In the past, the identity of the Ripper was never disclosed, but this time he was tracked down and arrested. He was caught at the crime scene of a massacre with a knife in his hand, next to the girl’s body who lay dead.”
Lopez grunted. “I see, a psychopath from America.”
“And when they were about to convict him. The American government gave instructions to forcibly return him to his homeland... this was again reported in all the newspapers.”
Finally, everything became clear. And Lopez understood why the policeman talked to him like that.
It is clear that the American killed the girls in this country and was arrested for this, he should have been convicted according to the laws of England, this is a common practice. For some reason, our government put pressure, although our agents should not have intervened, and if such a criminal had been taken from us, we would have acted in exactly the same way.
Lopez sympathized a little with the police of England. Immersed in his thoughts, he heard the driver’s question:
“These were crimes with particular cruelty. Was there not hype in America too?”
“I don’t read newspapers or watch the news. Like many Americans, I am very busy every day between watching sports.” Lopez showed a white-toothed smile, an object of his pride. The difference between the thoughtful profile and the smiling face was so huge that the taxi driver spread his arms in surprise. Finally, Lopez heard the sound of a mechanism. And he was about to turn to the gate, as his gaze slid behind the driver above the roof of the taxi, and he noticed the silhouette of a policeman heading toward the car. And now a gentlemanly conversation between the driver and the same Englishman would take place. And, of course, the driver would talk about payment, Lopez clearly realized what kind of dispute would flare up.
Lopez swiftly turned away, the gate did not rise high enough yet, but trying to escape from the problems that he was facing, he bent over, slipped under the gate and walked away quickly.
“Sir, this is too dangerous! It’s hopeless!”
Lopez, not at all worried, asked the driver; “How long until we arrive? Are you definitely driving your fastest? Quicker!”
“We are being chased by the police because I am driving too fast! We will be caught before we get to the port!”
“Do not worry. I have already said that if we get caught I’ll figure it out.”
As soon as Lopez finally finished shaving, there was a dull sound from somewhere on the floor near the rear seat. The sound was like a blow of a heavy object. The driver looked in the rear view mirror and saw how Lopez bent to pick up the fallen item. When he straightened up, his hands gripped a Beretta M92F pistol ominously sparkling with its glistening black details. Lopez lifted the side of his jacket and set the pistol into a holster underneath.
“Aren’t local cops armed?”
“In this case, we will not be stopped by the danger of being gunned down.”
“Hey, sir, be careful with that, please.” Then the driver grumbled with trembling lips; “Damn, that I still let a Mexican into my car...”
“What did you say?” asked Lopez.
There was silence.
“That’s what I thought, I’m American. And by the way, how long do we have to go? If we are late, I will have no choice but to shoot you.”
“We will be there soon. Almost there. And so, I ask you now, we need to stop. Not only will the police chase after us, if you stain the seats, they will shoot! When are you going to stop?”
Lopez (menacingly) leaned toward the driver.
“There! Look, the gates are right there!”
As soon as the taxi car pulled left on the avenue, gates appeared in front, separating the usual road from the pier and the tone of voice of the driver immediately changed to a joyful one. Lopez, in turn, leaned out of the window, and making sure, he smiled. The guards at the gate fussed. A taxi very quickly approached the gate, as if it were about to crash, and patrol cars were chasing it.
The guards, whose task was to guard the gate, initially, immediately put up a blockade.
A smile immediately disappeared from the driver’s face. At the same time, the enthusiasm that had previously visited Lopez changed in an instant, which was reflected upon his face.
The distance to the gate was reduced, the driver clung to the steering wheel with all his strength.
“What to do? We are going to crash!”
“No need to crash! Press the brake!”
“The brake?”
“Even English taxis must be equipped with brakes! Come on, push it now!”
“Press the brake? If I brake, the car will stop!”
“Naturally!”
“If the car stops, the police will catch us!”
“It will be better than getting serious injuries when we crash?!”
“Sir, if the police surround us, they will arrest us!”
“Then what do you think we should do?” Before the eyes of Lopez appeared wide pillars painted in white and red stripes. He shouted: “We are not going to make it, not in this taxi! Now hit the fucking brake! And stop this fucking car!”
The driver, startled by a screech that rang out in his ears, gathered all his strength and pressed the brake.
The front wheels were blocked, the rear wheels slipped, the car was driven to the side and carried directly to the gate.
Both the driver and Lopez closed their eyes in horror. At that moment, Lopez had already begun to pray. His voice could well reach heaven, but after silence, which seemed to him to be an eternity, darkness fell and was crushed by the force of their momentum.
The dust from the wheels rose in a pillar and, wrapped in white smoke like a smokescreen, the car stopped.
Simultaneously with the metallic sound from just turning the steering wheel, the hub cap fell off the rear wheel and rolled away. The cap rolled toward the booth of the entrance to the gate, hit its wall and fell.
The driver slowly opened his eyes and looked at the posts on either side, exhaled and spoke. “There’s not even a meter, centimeters remaining.”
Lopez exhaled next and grumbled: “I’m American, speak in feet and inches.”
Both men in the car had not yet had time to feel relief from what had happened. After that, he leaned over to the policeman and whispered: “Well, is he here... we are here for the prisoner, Jack Trump.”
“Ahh, Jack the Ripper?”
The police finally straightened and parted. Some of them went to inquire about the driver’s condition, some went to help the gate guards, who were in shock.
Of them, one, giving the impression of a senior rank, approached Lopez.
As soon as he stood directly opposite Lopez, he immediately took the ID and began to examine it very carefully, so close that it seemed like he was trying to smell it. The actions of the policeman portrayed his annoyance.
“Real?”
“Yes, real. I’m a US Marshal.”
And Lopez smiled at the officer as if he wanted to show off his even white teeth. Glancing briefly, the policeman returned to the study of the ID and proceeded to compare the photograph pasted on the ID with its owner. In the photograph, a smiling face in an expensive suit. After making sure that the face in the photograph was smiling as well and dressed in the same suit, the officer grinned. Lopez, not noticing a grin, continued to smile.
“I see. An American Marshal Officer, meaning... “
“Marshal Service Officer. Appointed by Head of Service. I work in all states of my country controlled by the Service.”
“England is not a state of your country.”
The policeman jabbed his finger so that he almost pierced Lopez’s face on the ID.
“Be what it may you are an employee of the Service and no matter if you are appointed by the head of the service, here you are a civilian who caught a civilian taxi here, forced the driver to drive in violation of the speed limit on civil roads, for which, like all civilians, they face arrest.”
“Really, I really face arrest?” Lopez’s smile grew tense.
“Actually, we have no authority to arrest you. However, we must at least find out the reason why you were in such a hurry.”
Lopez cleared his throat and began to explain. “Actually, in this port I am performing a very important task... But I overslept. Due to the fact that I’m not used to the time difference... and I suspect that due to the local climate too... In any case, I could not be late.”
“And so you made this commotion?” the policeman pointed to people scurrying around.
Lopez smiled tightly again.
Seeing this attitude, the policeman lowered his head and exhaled loudly. Lopez approached the officer and wanted to look into his eyes, but the policeman straightened abruptly at that very moment. The policeman’s face was dangerously close with Lopez’s nose. Lopez cautiously backed away.
“And why do Americans make bedlam in our streets,” the officer grumbled. It was not just a mumble under his breath, the words were spoken loudly enough for Lopez to hear them. Exhaling again, the policeman asked Lopez: “So you have come this far from America to take the Ripper home?”
“The Ripper?”
“The Ripper, you and he are Americans.”
“Who is he? I mean, take him home, I wouldn’t say that. It’s not a convoy. Our job is to escort the prisoner. Yes, this time our job is indeed to accompany an American citizen. But his name is not the Ripper, or whatever you said. Is he... this... Jack or whatever. Damn, because I overslept, I didn’t even have time to look at the documents... I only know his real name known...”
“And I’m talking about Jack Trump? Here in England no one calls this freak by his last name.”
“They call him Jack the Ripper,” said another younger policeman. “Excuse me, I want to ask what to do with the taxi driver.”
Lopez glanced at the taxi. The driver looked at Lopez, leaning out of the window, his face was very tense.
The senior police officer also looked at the taxi driver and said: “And do you know this one?”
Lopez made a smile at the taxi driver and waved his hand. Seeing this, the expression on the driver’s face changed and he, putting his hand to his chest, depicted a sigh of relief.
He probably thought that Lopez was able to negotiate with the police. And the fact that Lopez pointed a finger at the officer calmed the driver a little, despite the fact that his (Lopez) gestures were a little exaggerated.
“He is English. Are you going to arrest him? Or maybe you only get angry with the Americans?” said Lopez to the officer.
Lopez turned to the policeman and bowed his head.
“A complaint? When did I say such a thing?” The officer grabbed his head and lowered it again.
This time, Lopez did not look into his eyes.
Without raising his head, the policeman folded his ID and returned it. “That’s enough... In fact, take the Ripper and go back to America.”
The intonation in the words spoken was different from how they had been spoken before, and Lopez felt a certain annoyance. However, he (Lopez) was more concerned about being late, and wishing to end this incident as safely as possible, Lopez might have overdone it with the officer with a smile that he did not expect from himself:
“England is a country of noble people, always has been. They’ll accept you if you act respectfully. Jack... the Ripper? You caught him, right? The local police are doing a really good job. Thanks to you, we can easily escort him. As a representative of the US Marshals Service, I want to thank you for your cooperation.”
Having said this, Lopez extended a hand to pick up the ID, grabbed it by the edge and was about to pull it towards himself. But, the officer’s fingers were still gripping him tightly, and he wasn’t going to let him go.
Lopez looked at the policeman, who raised his head, looked back and said:
“A sick freak from America, but he did what he wanted on our streets. Of course we caught him.” After a couple of seconds, the policeman grunted and the corner of his mouth twisted. “You did nothing. To catch the Ripper.”
The officer finally released the ID. He turned his back and left. For some reason, because of one unpleasant interaction, he (Lopez) was seized with anger, which came from nowhere. After some time, Lopez returned to the taxi, popped into the rear seat window and pulled out his briefcase, previously left on the seat.
The driver turned around and asked Lopez: “Mister, so you are an American policeman? From the FBI or something?”
“US Marshals Service.”
“I had no idea. Well then. Have all charges been dropped? Have you agreed on this with the police?”
“Ahh, yes, of course.” Lopez leaned out of the window, turned to the driver and smiled. “I explained that there are no problems. That’s because England is a country of noble people.”
“What a relief. As for the payment...”
“Because I’m American, if you ask me to pay, I won’t have any Euros or pounds. But don’t worry, the police said they would pay for the trip.”
“Is that so. Well then, I’m happy.”
“Yes, they said they would come back later and pay.”
Lopez turned his back to the driver and strode to the gate, right in front of them he stopped. He took a comb from his pocket and began to comb his hair, which he was so proud of. Today it combed easily. And the troubles that happened earlier will no longer bother him. Thinking so, Lopez continued to gently comb his hair. Then one of those guards who was scurrying around nearby cried out:
“What do you want?”
Lopez pointed to the gate in front of him.
“I’m waiting for the gates to open. Open up!” said Lopez, to the guard, his mouth open, bewildered. Suddenly Lopez came to his senses, finished combing himself and put his hand into his jacket pocket. “Ah, yes. My ticket. Give me a sec.”
“Not required. In case you don’t see – everyone is busy here. Step aside.”
“Just open it already. This is your job. I won’t leave until you open.”
The guard clicked his tongue, and went toward the booth near the gate.
Lopez had to wait, so he turned to the driver and asked: “By the way, do you know about the Ripper?”
“About Jack the Ripper? Which, the original? Or current?”
“Current.”
“Everyone is talking about him, ‘the Jack the Ripper affair.’ An American named Jack Trump, several young girls became his victims, he brutally cut them up with a knife. Jack the Ripper who has risen again in our time, almost every day in the newspapers appears bold headlines with similar statements. In the past, the identity of the Ripper was never disclosed, but this time he was tracked down and arrested. He was caught at the crime scene of a massacre with a knife in his hand, next to the girl’s body who lay dead.”
Lopez grunted. “I see, a psychopath from America.”
“And when they were about to convict him. The American government gave instructions to forcibly return him to his homeland... this was again reported in all the newspapers.”
Finally, everything became clear. And Lopez understood why the policeman talked to him like that.
It is clear that the American killed the girls in this country and was arrested for this, he should have been convicted according to the laws of England, this is a common practice. For some reason, our government put pressure, although our agents should not have intervened, and if such a criminal had been taken from us, we would have acted in exactly the same way.
Lopez sympathized a little with the police of England. Immersed in his thoughts, he heard the driver’s question:
“These were crimes with particular cruelty. Was there not hype in America too?”
“I don’t read newspapers or watch the news. Like many Americans, I am very busy every day between watching sports.” Lopez showed a white-toothed smile, an object of his pride. The difference between the thoughtful profile and the smiling face was so huge that the taxi driver spread his arms in surprise. Finally, Lopez heard the sound of a mechanism. And he was about to turn to the gate, as his gaze slid behind the driver above the roof of the taxi, and he noticed the silhouette of a policeman heading toward the car. And now a gentlemanly conversation between the driver and the same Englishman would take place. And, of course, the driver would talk about payment, Lopez clearly realized what kind of dispute would flare up.
Lopez swiftly turned away, the gate did not rise high enough yet, but trying to escape from the problems that he was facing, he bent over, slipped under the gate and walked away quickly.
# 2 Jack Trump
Light, then darkness again. Light and darkness alternated several times in short intervals. Bright rays of light burn the retina, then gradually fade into darkness. Annoying the nerves like torture, causing the brain the most unpleasant and worst memories that have occurred to this day.
Of the pleasant ones, I was still in New York at that time, a bed with snow-white sheets, a light enveloped me, just as bright, as the girl who lay next to me. Her name was Sylvia. Her name, the faint warmth of her skin tightly imprinted in my memory.
The worst, not particularly remembered... the same bed, the girl lies, but does not move at all. There is something metallic in my hands... what was it... oh, yes, a knife. Yes, I was holding a knife in my hands. The yellowing laundered sheets are painted in a bright red liquid, as if someone had spilled wine. It was blood.
A door opened behind him, men rushed in.
“Scotland Yard. Don’t move!”
The voices of the London police rang out loud in Jack’s ears. But in reality there were no voices. The last time he heard a lively voice had not been for quite some time.
Many times plunging into his memories, Jack sat in a wagon, continuing to watch as the sun’s rays penetrated through the bars on the window.
They approached the sea. Some time ago we drove along the bridge. And again, the bridge seemed to have moved. After driving onto the road, the noise of the wheels stopped. The fact that the bridge was left behind was also indicated by the landscape outside the window and the bright sunlight, the rays of which hit Jack’s eyes.
Even closing his eyelids, light penetrated through them, and in no way was it possible to hide from it. Jack wanted to close his eyes using his hands, but the straightjacket did not even give him the opportunity to move. Ah, there it is, Jack finally realized the situation in which he was. He was planted firmly in this car.
“We’ll say goodbye soon, Jack.”
Jack heard the voice of a young man. This time a real, lively voice.
Jack looked up, an escort was sitting on the bench opposite the wall. Was he here from the very beginning? He looked in his direction and smiled brazenly. An unusual club in his hands approached Jack’s face.
“What’s with the face? Are you sad that you are leaving here?” The warden patted Jack on the cheeks several times with the sound of a tap of hard plastic.
Jack had a plastic mask on his face.
The guard caught Jack’s dead-eye gaze fixated on himself. “Decided to look in my eyes?”
After these words, the guard slightly touched the straightjacket with a club. The next moment, an electric charge of several tens of thousands of volts ran through Jack’s body. Jack let out a cry that could only be heard if you felt extreme pain, unable to endure, he fell on his side along the bench.
“Think you’re allowed to rest?”
The guard mercilessly stuck a club between Jack’s chest and Jack’s head and shoved roughly, forcing him to sit. Jack leaned back against the wall, the straightjacket slipped with a characteristic sound. Returning to an upright position, Jack felt the warden’s gaze on him. This time he decided to avoid a direct look. Having noticed this, the guard grinned wryly.
“Well, so uninteresting. Are you a real Yankee or what? If you look at me like that again, my bone crusher and I will teach you respect.”
The baton dug into his (Jack’s) neck, and then again, pressing on the throat. Then, when the club rested on his chin, the overseer, using great force, raised Jack’s head. Then he forced him to look into the eyes. Right in front of Jack’s eyes were the guard’s front teeth. Jack had the feeling that from the time of his arrest, his guards were determined by the ability to show their front teeth. Out of curiosity or entertainment, they opened their mouths and bared them (teeth) as if they wanted to show him (Jack) something unusual. And this guard was just one of such people. Then he said:
“Do you want to run away? It won’t work. You will not have the opportunity as shown in your films. No sharp plot twists and nothing will end in two hours. No matter how much you think about it, but you will spend life in prison until the very end. Because reality is not a movie. Do you understand?”
As soon as Jack met the warden, the voices of two people were heard.
“Hey, you, stop it already.”
Voices rang out from the cockpit. In addition to the driver in the front seat was another guard and he watched what was happening through the window of the cab.
“Yes, he is a weakling – he killed only women. Aren’t you disgusted by mock wimps?”
The young guard looked at Jack, after a couple of minutes and angrily removed the club. Because of the recoil, Jack hit his head hard against the wall. The guard sat down on the bench.
“Is he dead or something?”
“Alive,” said the guard who was driving. “But he realized that he would not be free. Therefore, he pretends to be dead.”
The young guard grunted.
At that moment, the brakes creaked and the speed of the vehicle decreased. Then stopped completely, the guards from the front seat opened the window and started talking to people outside.
The young guard turned to Jack and said: “Soon we’ll really say goodbye, Jack. As soon as we surrender you, on the way back I will go to the pub and get a good, dark beer.”
The guard lightly jabbed Jack with a club. Again a strong charge of current passed through his body. Jack’s body leaned forward and began to shake.
The guard laughed. “A goodbye gift, hold it tight.”
The vehicle set in motion again, drove a little, then stopped and immediately after that there was the sound of opening the driver’s door. Then they heard the steps of the guard who was driving, at first one big step, then more steps followed with an army-type march pattern.
Footsteps sounded behind Jack, then stopped near the rear of the vehicle, both back doors opened and the vehicle was filled with light, which had not been brighter the entire time.
“Jack Trump, get out,” said a big distorted figure, bathed in bright light. It was one of the guards, the driver of the truck.
The smell of the sea hit his nostrils. Both Jack’s vision and smell were confused.
“Get up,” said the young guard.
He grabbed Jack by the shoulders on a straitjacket and pulled roughly up. Jack staggered up and walked slowly toward the light-filled exit. Eyes still could not get used to it. He saw only the darkness enveloping himself and the bright light ahead.
It was less than two meters before the light, but steel shackles dug into his ankles and slowed down his steps, hands tied, the straitjacket did not allow him to maintain balance and move straight. The exit from the vehicle dragged on endlessly.
During this long distance, just for a moment, the light aroused the optical illusion of Jack. In this light, there were signs of freedom that he could not even imagine before. But still it was only an illusion, ahead of Jack, a reality awaited him, supported by a probable death.
Upon returning to America, Jack was prepared for the curious looks of others and a special place in the courtroom. Then, with luck, around the clock monitoring of psychiatrists in a tight isolation ward. But without luck, Jack was in for suffering. Most likely he would face a solitary confinement in a federal prison, and of course execution through lethal injection. All this Jack perfectly understood and there was nothing left for him to think except for the blessing sent by the rays of light. This light was the same as in childhood, when he ran to Madison Square Garden, bathed in the rays of the setting sun, clutching in his hands a hard-won ticket for the upcoming game of the New York basketball team the Knicks. At that time he was close to soaring, and his heart was ready to sing. Perhaps this light came directly from paradise, waiting for him ahead. But that was not possible. Jack mercilessly killed several girls, and Hell definitely should have been ahead of him. The exit from the vehicle was gradually approaching. Gradually, the eyes became accustomed and in a bright light, reality was to appear. Jack was about to leave such thoughts, but at that moment an angel came down from the sky whirling.
It was one seabird. It landed on the edge of the exit from the truck, as if blocking the road for Jack, and their eyes met. Jack hesitated for a moment, and took a step back. They continued to look at each other, without words. However, what did the bird want to say, continuing to look at Jack, what it hinted at, flashing its wings spread out ready for flight.
At that moment, the already familiar baton hit the bird. There was a cracking in the air and the bird immediately fell. The young guard switched the baton from the stun mode, turned to Jack and said:
“Here you are, I have cleared your way.”
On the cold floor of the truck, the bird jerked several times, spluttering blood and stopped moving. But its eyes were still focused on Jack. Having lost their luster, the bird’s eyes became like Jack’s. They were lifeless and hopeless, reminiscent of the eyes of a victim lying on a bed – the last girl he killed.
Not showing that he felt something at that moment, Jack raised his head and looked around. Before him was a seaport. A large ship was anchored in the dock. Looking in front of him, he saw an escort who was driving an auto-loader. Several port guards surrounded them; they looked at Jack with curiosity and disgust. Among them was one full-bodied middle-aged man, unlike the others, not in uniform, but in a strict suit, he walked slowly to Jack. He pulled out an ID from his inner pocket. He opened it so that Jack could also see its contents. It was a star icon.
Of the pleasant ones, I was still in New York at that time, a bed with snow-white sheets, a light enveloped me, just as bright, as the girl who lay next to me. Her name was Sylvia. Her name, the faint warmth of her skin tightly imprinted in my memory.
The worst, not particularly remembered... the same bed, the girl lies, but does not move at all. There is something metallic in my hands... what was it... oh, yes, a knife. Yes, I was holding a knife in my hands. The yellowing laundered sheets are painted in a bright red liquid, as if someone had spilled wine. It was blood.
A door opened behind him, men rushed in.
“Scotland Yard. Don’t move!”
The voices of the London police rang out loud in Jack’s ears. But in reality there were no voices. The last time he heard a lively voice had not been for quite some time.
Many times plunging into his memories, Jack sat in a wagon, continuing to watch as the sun’s rays penetrated through the bars on the window.
They approached the sea. Some time ago we drove along the bridge. And again, the bridge seemed to have moved. After driving onto the road, the noise of the wheels stopped. The fact that the bridge was left behind was also indicated by the landscape outside the window and the bright sunlight, the rays of which hit Jack’s eyes.
Even closing his eyelids, light penetrated through them, and in no way was it possible to hide from it. Jack wanted to close his eyes using his hands, but the straightjacket did not even give him the opportunity to move. Ah, there it is, Jack finally realized the situation in which he was. He was planted firmly in this car.
“We’ll say goodbye soon, Jack.”
Jack heard the voice of a young man. This time a real, lively voice.
Jack looked up, an escort was sitting on the bench opposite the wall. Was he here from the very beginning? He looked in his direction and smiled brazenly. An unusual club in his hands approached Jack’s face.
“What’s with the face? Are you sad that you are leaving here?” The warden patted Jack on the cheeks several times with the sound of a tap of hard plastic.
Jack had a plastic mask on his face.
The guard caught Jack’s dead-eye gaze fixated on himself. “Decided to look in my eyes?”
After these words, the guard slightly touched the straightjacket with a club. The next moment, an electric charge of several tens of thousands of volts ran through Jack’s body. Jack let out a cry that could only be heard if you felt extreme pain, unable to endure, he fell on his side along the bench.
“Think you’re allowed to rest?”
The guard mercilessly stuck a club between Jack’s chest and Jack’s head and shoved roughly, forcing him to sit. Jack leaned back against the wall, the straightjacket slipped with a characteristic sound. Returning to an upright position, Jack felt the warden’s gaze on him. This time he decided to avoid a direct look. Having noticed this, the guard grinned wryly.
“Well, so uninteresting. Are you a real Yankee or what? If you look at me like that again, my bone crusher and I will teach you respect.”
The baton dug into his (Jack’s) neck, and then again, pressing on the throat. Then, when the club rested on his chin, the overseer, using great force, raised Jack’s head. Then he forced him to look into the eyes. Right in front of Jack’s eyes were the guard’s front teeth. Jack had the feeling that from the time of his arrest, his guards were determined by the ability to show their front teeth. Out of curiosity or entertainment, they opened their mouths and bared them (teeth) as if they wanted to show him (Jack) something unusual. And this guard was just one of such people. Then he said:
“Do you want to run away? It won’t work. You will not have the opportunity as shown in your films. No sharp plot twists and nothing will end in two hours. No matter how much you think about it, but you will spend life in prison until the very end. Because reality is not a movie. Do you understand?”
As soon as Jack met the warden, the voices of two people were heard.
“Hey, you, stop it already.”
Voices rang out from the cockpit. In addition to the driver in the front seat was another guard and he watched what was happening through the window of the cab.
“Yes, he is a weakling – he killed only women. Aren’t you disgusted by mock wimps?”
The young guard looked at Jack, after a couple of minutes and angrily removed the club. Because of the recoil, Jack hit his head hard against the wall. The guard sat down on the bench.
“Is he dead or something?”
“Alive,” said the guard who was driving. “But he realized that he would not be free. Therefore, he pretends to be dead.”
The young guard grunted.
At that moment, the brakes creaked and the speed of the vehicle decreased. Then stopped completely, the guards from the front seat opened the window and started talking to people outside.
The young guard turned to Jack and said: “Soon we’ll really say goodbye, Jack. As soon as we surrender you, on the way back I will go to the pub and get a good, dark beer.”
The guard lightly jabbed Jack with a club. Again a strong charge of current passed through his body. Jack’s body leaned forward and began to shake.
The guard laughed. “A goodbye gift, hold it tight.”
The vehicle set in motion again, drove a little, then stopped and immediately after that there was the sound of opening the driver’s door. Then they heard the steps of the guard who was driving, at first one big step, then more steps followed with an army-type march pattern.
Footsteps sounded behind Jack, then stopped near the rear of the vehicle, both back doors opened and the vehicle was filled with light, which had not been brighter the entire time.
“Jack Trump, get out,” said a big distorted figure, bathed in bright light. It was one of the guards, the driver of the truck.
The smell of the sea hit his nostrils. Both Jack’s vision and smell were confused.
“Get up,” said the young guard.
He grabbed Jack by the shoulders on a straitjacket and pulled roughly up. Jack staggered up and walked slowly toward the light-filled exit. Eyes still could not get used to it. He saw only the darkness enveloping himself and the bright light ahead.
It was less than two meters before the light, but steel shackles dug into his ankles and slowed down his steps, hands tied, the straitjacket did not allow him to maintain balance and move straight. The exit from the vehicle dragged on endlessly.
During this long distance, just for a moment, the light aroused the optical illusion of Jack. In this light, there were signs of freedom that he could not even imagine before. But still it was only an illusion, ahead of Jack, a reality awaited him, supported by a probable death.
Upon returning to America, Jack was prepared for the curious looks of others and a special place in the courtroom. Then, with luck, around the clock monitoring of psychiatrists in a tight isolation ward. But without luck, Jack was in for suffering. Most likely he would face a solitary confinement in a federal prison, and of course execution through lethal injection. All this Jack perfectly understood and there was nothing left for him to think except for the blessing sent by the rays of light. This light was the same as in childhood, when he ran to Madison Square Garden, bathed in the rays of the setting sun, clutching in his hands a hard-won ticket for the upcoming game of the New York basketball team the Knicks. At that time he was close to soaring, and his heart was ready to sing. Perhaps this light came directly from paradise, waiting for him ahead. But that was not possible. Jack mercilessly killed several girls, and Hell definitely should have been ahead of him. The exit from the vehicle was gradually approaching. Gradually, the eyes became accustomed and in a bright light, reality was to appear. Jack was about to leave such thoughts, but at that moment an angel came down from the sky whirling.
It was one seabird. It landed on the edge of the exit from the truck, as if blocking the road for Jack, and their eyes met. Jack hesitated for a moment, and took a step back. They continued to look at each other, without words. However, what did the bird want to say, continuing to look at Jack, what it hinted at, flashing its wings spread out ready for flight.
At that moment, the already familiar baton hit the bird. There was a cracking in the air and the bird immediately fell. The young guard switched the baton from the stun mode, turned to Jack and said:
“Here you are, I have cleared your way.”
On the cold floor of the truck, the bird jerked several times, spluttering blood and stopped moving. But its eyes were still focused on Jack. Having lost their luster, the bird’s eyes became like Jack’s. They were lifeless and hopeless, reminiscent of the eyes of a victim lying on a bed – the last girl he killed.
Not showing that he felt something at that moment, Jack raised his head and looked around. Before him was a seaport. A large ship was anchored in the dock. Looking in front of him, he saw an escort who was driving an auto-loader. Several port guards surrounded them; they looked at Jack with curiosity and disgust. Among them was one full-bodied middle-aged man, unlike the others, not in uniform, but in a strict suit, he walked slowly to Jack. He pulled out an ID from his inner pocket. He opened it so that Jack could also see its contents. It was a star icon.
“US Marshals Service, Ivan Kulik.”
Kulik was Russian in origin, but his sunglasses and mustache gave the impression that he was an American. Jack knew from the very first glance that this man had come for him.
Kulik pointed his finger at Jack and asked the guard who had been driving: “Jack Trump?”
“Exactly,” the guard answered.
He pointed to Jack’s mask.
“You are sure that it is, I can’t identify a masked face.”
“It’s definitely him. He was not transplanted along the way.”
“We need to make sure. Take off the mask.”
Kulik pulled out important papers about Jack from the folder. The guard driver gave a sign to a guard still in the transport vehicle. The young guard approached Jack and unfastened the leather straps on the mask from the back of the head. Finally, the mask was removed and Jack’s face appeared completely. Immediately, everyone around him drew attention to his expression. It was peaceful, without a hint of emotions, anyone who saw without a doubt would say that this face could not belong to a living person.
The guards whispered among themselves:
“Is he the Ripper? Unlike what was in the newspapers, he looks like a complete weakling.”
Kulik compared the photo in the case with Jack’s face. “It’s him. Return the mask.”
The mask was put on his face again. Having finished fastening it, the young guard shoved Jack, pushing him in the back.
Kulik walked slowly to Jack.
While he slowly came forward, Kulik was separated from Jack by a baton with a stun gun. It was held in the hands of the guard driver, he was waiting for something. Kulik frowned and looked inquiringly at the guard, but he answered:
“Wait a sec. Where’s the rest of your people?” asked the guard. “I heard that two officers of the US Marshals Service were to come for him.”
Kulik clicked his tongue, slowly looked around and shouted: “Hey, come on, where are you? Work is waiting!”
Hurried steps came from behind the harbor guards at a short distance. Finally, through the rear of the guards squeezed the face of a young man dressed in the same suit as Kulik. The man ran, clutching his badge in his hands.
“Marshal of the United States. Jose Lopez.” Lopez ran to Kulik and took a breath.
“Where did you go?” asked Kulik.
“The ship. I examined the ship, it is huge. What is it called anyway?” Lopez pointed to the place where he had just been.
“Liberty. Together with the Ripper, you will go to New York on it.” Then the young security guard from the truck started talking. “It looks like old canned food, but inside everything is new, equipped with the latest technology, everything you want to eat. The name Liberty means “freedom”, though not for Jack.”
“How do you handle sailing on a ship? Have you traveled by sea before?” asked Kulik to Lopez.
“Not once. Because I don’t know how to swim.”
Around, they giggled quietly. Kulik grabbed his head and said to Lopez: “Well, here you have the opportunity. In any case, you have responsibilities that you must fulfill.”
The escort driver gave Lopez a folder. “Sign here.”
Lopez pulled a pen from his pocket and signed the documents.
The guard pulled a ring with countless keys from his belt and handed it to Kulik. “Okay, now he’s completely yours.”
“Is this him?”
Lopez raised his head, before him stood Jack, who had already been tied down. Half of his face was covered with a mask, he himself in a faded brown straitjacket, a thick leather belt on his waist, chains stretched from his arms and legs, in this form anyone would look ominous. Lopez looked at Jack with his mouth open for a while.
Suddenly the looks of Lopez and Jack met. What can this person possibly do? English cops behave like insects. For some reason Jack wanted to look into Lopez’s eyes and look at his reaction.
Lopez immediately began to smile broadly, sparkling eyes and white teeth. Like a child who wanted to play. For the first time since his arrest, Jack saw someone smiling at him and he was a little surprised.
“Cool! Just like in the movies.” Lopez blurted out excitedly. The young guard was in the vehicle, fell out of laughter.
“Take him.” Kulik, hitting his forehead with his hand, grabbed the belt on the waistband of his straitjacket and handed Jack to Lopez.
Lopez, in turn, silently obeyed and took Jack. But he also continued to look with interest at his prisoner.
Jack turned away and began to look in front of him, then, accompanied by two marshals, he headed toward the ship.
Nearby, on the roof of the container, several seabirds sat and watched what was happening. Jack immediately remembered the scene of the guard killing one. Maybe the dead bird was their close friend? Maybe they grieved over the death of their close friend? Jack thought, continuing to look at the birds. Then one of the birds spread its wings and took off, the remaining birds followed, flew over the large ship in front of them and headed towards the sea.
“To freedom...”
Jack glanced briefly at the two marshals in front of him. They did not pay attention to Jack’s mumble at all, but simply continued to move forward. Kulik walked with an official look, while Lopez had already stopped looking at Jack; the huge Liberty had completely captured his attention.
Kulik was Russian in origin, but his sunglasses and mustache gave the impression that he was an American. Jack knew from the very first glance that this man had come for him.
Kulik pointed his finger at Jack and asked the guard who had been driving: “Jack Trump?”
“Exactly,” the guard answered.
He pointed to Jack’s mask.
“You are sure that it is, I can’t identify a masked face.”
“It’s definitely him. He was not transplanted along the way.”
“We need to make sure. Take off the mask.”
Kulik pulled out important papers about Jack from the folder. The guard driver gave a sign to a guard still in the transport vehicle. The young guard approached Jack and unfastened the leather straps on the mask from the back of the head. Finally, the mask was removed and Jack’s face appeared completely. Immediately, everyone around him drew attention to his expression. It was peaceful, without a hint of emotions, anyone who saw without a doubt would say that this face could not belong to a living person.
The guards whispered among themselves:
“Is he the Ripper? Unlike what was in the newspapers, he looks like a complete weakling.”
Kulik compared the photo in the case with Jack’s face. “It’s him. Return the mask.”
The mask was put on his face again. Having finished fastening it, the young guard shoved Jack, pushing him in the back.
Kulik walked slowly to Jack.
While he slowly came forward, Kulik was separated from Jack by a baton with a stun gun. It was held in the hands of the guard driver, he was waiting for something. Kulik frowned and looked inquiringly at the guard, but he answered:
“Wait a sec. Where’s the rest of your people?” asked the guard. “I heard that two officers of the US Marshals Service were to come for him.”
Kulik clicked his tongue, slowly looked around and shouted: “Hey, come on, where are you? Work is waiting!”
Hurried steps came from behind the harbor guards at a short distance. Finally, through the rear of the guards squeezed the face of a young man dressed in the same suit as Kulik. The man ran, clutching his badge in his hands.
“Marshal of the United States. Jose Lopez.” Lopez ran to Kulik and took a breath.
“Where did you go?” asked Kulik.
“The ship. I examined the ship, it is huge. What is it called anyway?” Lopez pointed to the place where he had just been.
“Liberty. Together with the Ripper, you will go to New York on it.” Then the young security guard from the truck started talking. “It looks like old canned food, but inside everything is new, equipped with the latest technology, everything you want to eat. The name Liberty means “freedom”, though not for Jack.”
“How do you handle sailing on a ship? Have you traveled by sea before?” asked Kulik to Lopez.
“Not once. Because I don’t know how to swim.”
Around, they giggled quietly. Kulik grabbed his head and said to Lopez: “Well, here you have the opportunity. In any case, you have responsibilities that you must fulfill.”
The escort driver gave Lopez a folder. “Sign here.”
Lopez pulled a pen from his pocket and signed the documents.
The guard pulled a ring with countless keys from his belt and handed it to Kulik. “Okay, now he’s completely yours.”
“Is this him?”
Lopez raised his head, before him stood Jack, who had already been tied down. Half of his face was covered with a mask, he himself in a faded brown straitjacket, a thick leather belt on his waist, chains stretched from his arms and legs, in this form anyone would look ominous. Lopez looked at Jack with his mouth open for a while.
Suddenly the looks of Lopez and Jack met. What can this person possibly do? English cops behave like insects. For some reason Jack wanted to look into Lopez’s eyes and look at his reaction.
Lopez immediately began to smile broadly, sparkling eyes and white teeth. Like a child who wanted to play. For the first time since his arrest, Jack saw someone smiling at him and he was a little surprised.
“Cool! Just like in the movies.” Lopez blurted out excitedly. The young guard was in the vehicle, fell out of laughter.
“Take him.” Kulik, hitting his forehead with his hand, grabbed the belt on the waistband of his straitjacket and handed Jack to Lopez.
Lopez, in turn, silently obeyed and took Jack. But he also continued to look with interest at his prisoner.
Jack turned away and began to look in front of him, then, accompanied by two marshals, he headed toward the ship.
Nearby, on the roof of the container, several seabirds sat and watched what was happening. Jack immediately remembered the scene of the guard killing one. Maybe the dead bird was their close friend? Maybe they grieved over the death of their close friend? Jack thought, continuing to look at the birds. Then one of the birds spread its wings and took off, the remaining birds followed, flew over the large ship in front of them and headed towards the sea.
“To freedom...”
Jack glanced briefly at the two marshals in front of him. They did not pay attention to Jack’s mumble at all, but simply continued to move forward. Kulik walked with an official look, while Lopez had already stopped looking at Jack; the huge Liberty had completely captured his attention.
# 3 Liberty
The history of the ship called Liberty began more than a hundred years ago, in 1912. This large cruise ship, during its construction of which fabulous sums were spent, it was built to travel from the port of Liverpool to New York. However, it was never launched on the planned route and did not even cross the Atlantic Ocean. Not an exact copy of it, but designed at the same time, an ocean-going luxury liner “Titanic” with an identical route was launched earlier and overshadowed the Liberty. And the influence of the famous disaster, the talk of which does not stop to this day, determined the fate of Liberty. She had to go out in the water in order to compete with the Titanic, but instead she was not put on the original route, but transferred to different ports of Europe, but not as a passenger liner, but rather a hotel, museum, and sometimes just like a ship on display, as such she approached her centenary. Having changed several owners, having lost her once beautiful appearance, when the draft of the vessel began to seem not as strong as before, all that awaited the vessel that had exceeded its service life was burial at the site. But at the last moment, everything changed. A native of the poor, an entrepreneur from Hong Kong, who had risen throughout his life from a poor young man to the first and only founder of one of the most famous advanced industrial enterprises in the world, Chen Industries, Mark Chen Ming, attracted by her (Liberty’s) pristine beauty, bought it in its entirety.
Ming first bought her new shoes – set on her a fresh makeover. Trying to preserve her noble appearance, he, having spent large sums, equipped her with the latest equipment and technologies that only his company could boast of.
But unfortunately, Chen’s love for Liberty was suddenly torn apart by a tragedy. Due to a heart attack, Chen died suddenly and, having lost its owner, the company began to stagnate, as a result, all of the property was sold to other companies, and everything that linked Liberty to Chen disappeared in an instant. Then, the company that bought the ship decided to use Liberty as a cargo ship to transport its products and materials. The irony was that the new owner thought that Chen installed the latest equipment because he was going to use Liberty for transportation, and not restore it as a cruise ship.
Thus, Liberty, after a hundred years starting from a test descent, was finally being set on the originally intended course. In addition, it was a trip to New York, which at one time could not be completed by the liner of the same class “Titanic”.
Beautifully reflected in the waves of the Atlantic Ocean in the light of the rays of sunset, Liberty left the port, heading for New York.
On the deck, clutching the handrails, stood a male figure making a sound like a growl.
Since this was a test trip, the crew of the ship was not large. In such an almost deserted place, Lopez hung over the railing and, what was to be expected, he was tormented by repeated vomiting.
“Are you okay?” came a man’s voice. Lopez turned around and saw a thin man standing next to him.
“Sea sickness? Sorry.”
“Traveling by ship, for the first time...”, in the middle of the phrase, Lopez turned away overboard and vomited again. The contents of his stomach being emptied including any liquids.
About to take a handkerchief, Lopez reached into his pocket.
However, there was no handkerchief in it. Lopez turned his exhausted face to the thin man. The sight of Lopez stained with vomiting made the man smile awkwardly in response. A folded handkerchief in his breast pocket caught Lopez’s eyes, but most likely the man didn’t have the courage to offer it to a man whom he just met. But instead, Lopez’s gaze slid over a transparent badge hanging to the side of his pocket. A large logo was printed on the badge and the name of the company of the current owner of Liberty was written.
Above was a photograph of the thin man, his full name, place of work and even blood type were written.
To begin with, Lopez tried to read the information and clarify where he worked.
“City Times?”
“Ah, I’m a journalist from an English newspaper.”
“You are a journalist?”
“Yes, I am writing an article about Liberty’s test sail,” then he immediately asked a question to Lopez, “By the way, where are you from?”
“In terms of where you mean...?”
“I meant that I don’t see the same badge on you...” the reporter pointed to his badge on his chest.
“I don’t remember one being given out to me.” “Lopez showed that he had nothing on his chest.” At that moment, Lopez had a terrible sight. Vomiting stains on the collar of his suit. Lopez put his hands into the man’s chest, located the pocket handkerchief that had attracted his attention from the very beginning, and grabbed it.
“Hey! What are you doing?”
The reporter did not have time to stop Lopez, he turned his back and began to zealously clean the collar.
“Sorry! I need this. If the stain remains, it will be bad.”
“But I, cannot be without it!”
“Anything, but this costume cannot be dirty!”
The journalist extended his hand to Lopez, who was half a turn, to regain his handkerchief. But suddenly he stopped and froze.
Lopez paid attention to where the reporter was looking and while smiling said: “Ah, it’s all right. I am a US Marshal.” As he looked at the gun, sticking out in a holster from under his jacket.
Surely unaccustomed to the sight of weapons, the morbid-looking Englishman was still not moving. Then he looked at the used handkerchief.
“Ah, not to worry. I will wash it and return it. It will be as good as new,” said Lopez and crumpled the handkerchief, stuffed it into his pocket, and headed for the passenger cabins.
On the way he saw a woman, she stood against the wall, arms crossed on her chest and carefully watched what was happening. The shape of the nose and her perfectly carved face spoke of belonging to the inhabitants of Northern Europe... her skin color on the contrary was brown like a purebred African, this contrast had an indelible impression on Lopez. Dressed in a black top and khaki pants, taller than Lopez, her hair was cut short and trimmed. Was she here from the very beginning of the conversation with the journalist? She continued to look closely at Lopez, not taking her sharp gaze off him.
When Lopez walked past this woman, a dark tattoo on her scarred shoulder attracted his attention. Perhaps she belonged to some foreign military organization. But he had never seen the tattoo crammed on her shoulder.
Lopez pretended not to pay attention to the stranger and after about ten meters he stopped and opened the door to the side. Behind it was a cabin that was allocated to Lopez and the others.
The cabin itself was rather cramped, it had only two simple beds opposite a table with chairs. There was a chair near the round window in the back of the cabin, and Jack was sitting on the chair facing the exit in the same position in which he had been handed over. Kulik sat on a bed near the door and was reading a magazine, when he saw Lopez come in, he handed him a small plastic vial.
“They brought you a pill for motion sickness.”
Lopez took the medicine, walked past Jack to the bathroom next to the window, poured out two tablets and washed them down with tap water. He raised his head, a haggard face reflected in the mirror. It seemed to him that even his black hair no longer shone like before.
Turning to Kulik, Lopez could not resist and said: “This is already unbearable. Why did he need to be escorted on a civilian ship?”
“What is it, don’t you want to enjoy traveling by sea?”
“Actually, yes. But I didn’t think it would be so tough.” Lopez looked at the bottle of medicine. “I took a similar medicine during my studies at the academy. Still, really convoying this time is rather strange. Indeed, if the offender is caught in the territory of England, it is quite natural to judge him in the territory of England. But for some reason, he is forcibly returned to America? Have you noticed? The attitude of the British. Their dislike. After all, if they want to judge him, then let them do it.”
“Have you not read the case?”
Lopez was silent. Kulik looked up from the magazine.
“Jack Trump committed crimes in America. Before leaving the country.”
Lopez turned and looked at Jack.
“What did he do?”
“How should I know? We are the bottom link, we are not supposed to ask questions, nor do we know the details of the crimes. It seems that this is a matter for the higher authorities and our government. Applying pressure at the highest level, the British simply forced to issue it. The British, whose reputation was hurt, were unlikely to be delighted with this. But do not pay attention. We follow the order, our task is only to escort Jack without incident.”
Kulik again plunged into reading the magazine.
Seeing this, Lopez clicked his tongue. “In this case, he could be transported by plane, and not by sea. Usually a special board is allocated for this, right?”
“You definitely read the case file.” Not looking up from the magazine, Kulik pointed to Jack, “This guy has claustrophobia. If he finds himself indoors, he may have a heart attack or something. Therefore, the ship is more or less safe.”
“Wouldn’t it be easier to pump him with sleeping pills?”
“Even such a cruel criminal as he has human rights, if any government official tries to violate them, a storm of protest will immediately rise.”
“Even so, a civilian ship is not very suitable for this.”
Lopez turned to the mirror, took a comb from his pocket and, continuing to hold in his hands a bottle of medicine for motion sickness, began to comb his hair.
“A journalist from a newspaper was talking to me outside. A woman appeared in the corridor, looking like a military soldier of an unknown army, she just stood silently. Probably a mercenary, or something like that.”
“Hey, have you told anyone anything? For information, he is a celebrity. It will be especially bad if a journalist finds out about him.”
“Everything is good. I’m a professional.”
Kulik looked up from the magazine and looked in amazement. Then he sighed and went back to reading.
“In any case, apart from this liner, there were no other ways to quickly get to New York. First of all, a civilian ship is more comfortable than a military one. In addition, it is updated with the latest technology, which cost a lot of money. And it is you with your seasickness that is the problem.”
Lopez finished combing, clicked his tongue and put the comb in his pocket. At that moment, he accidentally turned his gaze to the label on the medicine, which he continued to hold in his hands all this time. At first he did not pay attention, but now that he was better, he returned to studying the label and noticed that the printed logo was the same as on the journalist’s badge.
Lopez read aloud the company name from the side: “Umbrella Corporation...”
“Yes, they are the owners of this ship,” said Kulik. “Initially it seemed to belong to some Chinese company, but then they sold it to them. It’s good that they sold it to a pharmaceutical company. If there are health problems along the way, they have what kind of medicine you want in large quantities.”
“Considering what has already happened, it’s not enough for me,” Lopez prayed.
“If this airliner belonged to manufacturers of sports equipment, now would you treat seasickness by biting a basketball.”
Ming first bought her new shoes – set on her a fresh makeover. Trying to preserve her noble appearance, he, having spent large sums, equipped her with the latest equipment and technologies that only his company could boast of.
But unfortunately, Chen’s love for Liberty was suddenly torn apart by a tragedy. Due to a heart attack, Chen died suddenly and, having lost its owner, the company began to stagnate, as a result, all of the property was sold to other companies, and everything that linked Liberty to Chen disappeared in an instant. Then, the company that bought the ship decided to use Liberty as a cargo ship to transport its products and materials. The irony was that the new owner thought that Chen installed the latest equipment because he was going to use Liberty for transportation, and not restore it as a cruise ship.
Thus, Liberty, after a hundred years starting from a test descent, was finally being set on the originally intended course. In addition, it was a trip to New York, which at one time could not be completed by the liner of the same class “Titanic”.
Beautifully reflected in the waves of the Atlantic Ocean in the light of the rays of sunset, Liberty left the port, heading for New York.
On the deck, clutching the handrails, stood a male figure making a sound like a growl.
Since this was a test trip, the crew of the ship was not large. In such an almost deserted place, Lopez hung over the railing and, what was to be expected, he was tormented by repeated vomiting.
“Are you okay?” came a man’s voice. Lopez turned around and saw a thin man standing next to him.
“Sea sickness? Sorry.”
“Traveling by ship, for the first time...”, in the middle of the phrase, Lopez turned away overboard and vomited again. The contents of his stomach being emptied including any liquids.
About to take a handkerchief, Lopez reached into his pocket.
However, there was no handkerchief in it. Lopez turned his exhausted face to the thin man. The sight of Lopez stained with vomiting made the man smile awkwardly in response. A folded handkerchief in his breast pocket caught Lopez’s eyes, but most likely the man didn’t have the courage to offer it to a man whom he just met. But instead, Lopez’s gaze slid over a transparent badge hanging to the side of his pocket. A large logo was printed on the badge and the name of the company of the current owner of Liberty was written.
Above was a photograph of the thin man, his full name, place of work and even blood type were written.
To begin with, Lopez tried to read the information and clarify where he worked.
“City Times?”
“Ah, I’m a journalist from an English newspaper.”
“You are a journalist?”
“Yes, I am writing an article about Liberty’s test sail,” then he immediately asked a question to Lopez, “By the way, where are you from?”
“In terms of where you mean...?”
“I meant that I don’t see the same badge on you...” the reporter pointed to his badge on his chest.
“I don’t remember one being given out to me.” “Lopez showed that he had nothing on his chest.” At that moment, Lopez had a terrible sight. Vomiting stains on the collar of his suit. Lopez put his hands into the man’s chest, located the pocket handkerchief that had attracted his attention from the very beginning, and grabbed it.
“Hey! What are you doing?”
The reporter did not have time to stop Lopez, he turned his back and began to zealously clean the collar.
“Sorry! I need this. If the stain remains, it will be bad.”
“But I, cannot be without it!”
“Anything, but this costume cannot be dirty!”
The journalist extended his hand to Lopez, who was half a turn, to regain his handkerchief. But suddenly he stopped and froze.
Lopez paid attention to where the reporter was looking and while smiling said: “Ah, it’s all right. I am a US Marshal.” As he looked at the gun, sticking out in a holster from under his jacket.
Surely unaccustomed to the sight of weapons, the morbid-looking Englishman was still not moving. Then he looked at the used handkerchief.
“Ah, not to worry. I will wash it and return it. It will be as good as new,” said Lopez and crumpled the handkerchief, stuffed it into his pocket, and headed for the passenger cabins.
On the way he saw a woman, she stood against the wall, arms crossed on her chest and carefully watched what was happening. The shape of the nose and her perfectly carved face spoke of belonging to the inhabitants of Northern Europe... her skin color on the contrary was brown like a purebred African, this contrast had an indelible impression on Lopez. Dressed in a black top and khaki pants, taller than Lopez, her hair was cut short and trimmed. Was she here from the very beginning of the conversation with the journalist? She continued to look closely at Lopez, not taking her sharp gaze off him.
When Lopez walked past this woman, a dark tattoo on her scarred shoulder attracted his attention. Perhaps she belonged to some foreign military organization. But he had never seen the tattoo crammed on her shoulder.
Lopez pretended not to pay attention to the stranger and after about ten meters he stopped and opened the door to the side. Behind it was a cabin that was allocated to Lopez and the others.
The cabin itself was rather cramped, it had only two simple beds opposite a table with chairs. There was a chair near the round window in the back of the cabin, and Jack was sitting on the chair facing the exit in the same position in which he had been handed over. Kulik sat on a bed near the door and was reading a magazine, when he saw Lopez come in, he handed him a small plastic vial.
“They brought you a pill for motion sickness.”
Lopez took the medicine, walked past Jack to the bathroom next to the window, poured out two tablets and washed them down with tap water. He raised his head, a haggard face reflected in the mirror. It seemed to him that even his black hair no longer shone like before.
Turning to Kulik, Lopez could not resist and said: “This is already unbearable. Why did he need to be escorted on a civilian ship?”
“What is it, don’t you want to enjoy traveling by sea?”
“Actually, yes. But I didn’t think it would be so tough.” Lopez looked at the bottle of medicine. “I took a similar medicine during my studies at the academy. Still, really convoying this time is rather strange. Indeed, if the offender is caught in the territory of England, it is quite natural to judge him in the territory of England. But for some reason, he is forcibly returned to America? Have you noticed? The attitude of the British. Their dislike. After all, if they want to judge him, then let them do it.”
“Have you not read the case?”
Lopez was silent. Kulik looked up from the magazine.
“Jack Trump committed crimes in America. Before leaving the country.”
Lopez turned and looked at Jack.
“What did he do?”
“How should I know? We are the bottom link, we are not supposed to ask questions, nor do we know the details of the crimes. It seems that this is a matter for the higher authorities and our government. Applying pressure at the highest level, the British simply forced to issue it. The British, whose reputation was hurt, were unlikely to be delighted with this. But do not pay attention. We follow the order, our task is only to escort Jack without incident.”
Kulik again plunged into reading the magazine.
Seeing this, Lopez clicked his tongue. “In this case, he could be transported by plane, and not by sea. Usually a special board is allocated for this, right?”
“You definitely read the case file.” Not looking up from the magazine, Kulik pointed to Jack, “This guy has claustrophobia. If he finds himself indoors, he may have a heart attack or something. Therefore, the ship is more or less safe.”
“Wouldn’t it be easier to pump him with sleeping pills?”
“Even such a cruel criminal as he has human rights, if any government official tries to violate them, a storm of protest will immediately rise.”
“Even so, a civilian ship is not very suitable for this.”
Lopez turned to the mirror, took a comb from his pocket and, continuing to hold in his hands a bottle of medicine for motion sickness, began to comb his hair.
“A journalist from a newspaper was talking to me outside. A woman appeared in the corridor, looking like a military soldier of an unknown army, she just stood silently. Probably a mercenary, or something like that.”
“Hey, have you told anyone anything? For information, he is a celebrity. It will be especially bad if a journalist finds out about him.”
“Everything is good. I’m a professional.”
Kulik looked up from the magazine and looked in amazement. Then he sighed and went back to reading.
“In any case, apart from this liner, there were no other ways to quickly get to New York. First of all, a civilian ship is more comfortable than a military one. In addition, it is updated with the latest technology, which cost a lot of money. And it is you with your seasickness that is the problem.”
Lopez finished combing, clicked his tongue and put the comb in his pocket. At that moment, he accidentally turned his gaze to the label on the medicine, which he continued to hold in his hands all this time. At first he did not pay attention, but now that he was better, he returned to studying the label and noticed that the printed logo was the same as on the journalist’s badge.
Lopez read aloud the company name from the side: “Umbrella Corporation...”
“Yes, they are the owners of this ship,” said Kulik. “Initially it seemed to belong to some Chinese company, but then they sold it to them. It’s good that they sold it to a pharmaceutical company. If there are health problems along the way, they have what kind of medicine you want in large quantities.”
“Considering what has already happened, it’s not enough for me,” Lopez prayed.
“If this airliner belonged to manufacturers of sports equipment, now would you treat seasickness by biting a basketball.”
# 4 Umbrella Corporation
A laboratory rat was placed in a small acrylic box. Along her spine were several connected electrodes that converged to a device similar to an antenna. The lid was closed from above, then was firmly fixed to the box with a steel wire attached to the side clip.
“The trial “Will”, said a voice from the darkness.
In the image that was broadcast on a huge screen, the rat scurried right and left. At the edge of the screen, a time code was displayed, and also the inscription appeared: 48 HOURS SINCE INFECTION.
“Before the injection of the virus, she was trained to open the lid.”
The rat stopped, calmed down, and looked at the gap between the lid and the box. Then she began to rub her face against the lid and try to squeeze in from the inside.
“This time we first fixed the cover with a wire. In other words, she remembers that you need to open the cover to go free, so the wire is the first “obstacle”.
The rat poked its face into the lid many times, but the lid did not even move. Finally, she stretched out her face and began to sniff the gap between the lid and the box. When she reached the wire, she stopped and stretched out her face again.
Then a female voice came from the speakers of the dark room, but it was a synthetic voice.
“Nano activator, monitor, an increase in adrenaline in the blood was recorded. Installed command code, sending a command. A change in DNA structure has been confirmed.”
A rumble rose in the dark room.
Meanwhile, on the rat’s screen, the front paws took on a form far from their original. The hair on the legs turned black and if you looked closely enough, you could notice how the small toes on the legs grew together and the size of her head increased.
The front paws acquired a shape sharpened like a blade and became similar to the limbs of a mantis.
“How can a smart animal that owns “will” and “goals” overcome this “obstacle”? Here we find the answer to this question.”
The rat began to move its paws at a very high speed. Since the legs now became flat and narrow, they crawled effortlessly into the gap between the lid and the box and cut the wire wound several times.
Then, as if nothing had happened, the rat pushed its head back on the lid, and it flew off the box.
The broadcast from the projector turned off and the light returned to the room. The room was a large meeting room with a large table that had a hole in the middle, at which several dozen people sat. All of different ages, among them were also women. In the middle of the table, in an empty space, lay a carpet with a logo and company name. The logo was an open umbrella, the letters next to it indicated that the company was called Umbrella. A pair of legs in leather shoes spread out on the carpet. Their owner, a young man in an expensive suit, Robert Chen. Only that was explained to the audience through the contents of what was happening on the screen. He was Chinese by nationality and the only Asian, as well as the youngest among those present in the room. Now there was a noise and in order to supplement an explanation, he headed to the center of the hall, drawing attention to himself.
At that moment, a voice came from one of the participants in the meeting:
“Dr. Chen.”
Chen stopped.
“It is not necessary to go to the center, return to your place.”
Chen froze in place. He raised an eyebrow, breathed air into his lungs, turned to the person who spoke and answered: “I’ll ask you to stop calling me “doctor.” Such treatment is permissible if we are in the laboratory, but now we are at a meeting of the board of directors. Despite the fact that I am still a new person, I am as much a member of the council as you. Just call me Robert.”
“Then, Chen,” the deputy director corrected, it was he who owned the voice, “Return to your place. We would like to ask you some questions.”
Chen’s eyebrow twitched. Noticing this, he immediately brushed it with his hand and stopped the convulsions. Then, making a straight face, he returned to his place. A few moments after Chen sat down at the table, the deputy director began to ask.
“So, the first question that came to my mind is what is the difference between this product and the ones that exist today... well, for example, the T-virus?”
Chen’s eyes widened and he asked a counter question: “Why did you mention that?”
“Because of the video you showed,” said another board member. “According to what we saw, the results are similar to the results when the development of the T-virus was not yet completed.”
“The rate of change in DNA structure is different. Since the start of recombination of the DNA sequence, approximately...”
“You read the report,” another member of the council interrupted with the next question, “About another virus created on the basis of T, samples of which were collected in Raccoon City?”
“Are you talking about the G-virus? Of course I did.”
“Is the new development faster than the speed of G-virus?”
“Didn’t you notice? The development results are clearly visible on the video...” Robert abruptly fell silent and lowered his head. Then he raised his head and smiled at the second or third attempt. “What are you trying to say here? Tell me straight.”
“The fact is that we have...” the deputy said. “There are certain concerns regarding the originality of the virus that you are developing.”
Biting his nails, Chen carefully listened to the deputy’s opinion.
“Indeed, the mutation rate of the virus carrier is amazing. And probably, this virus is faster than all the previous ones in speed. But only in speed. Though...”
Suddenly, it seemed to break through, everyone vied with each other to start questioning:
“You are not a scientist, are you? Indeed, you have the title of doctor... but of technical sciences. And that means that you are still an engineer.”
“But this is a pharmaceutical corporation. Can you guarantee that your development matches the products of a pharmaceutical corporation?”
“At least I would like to see the completed host form. Something like Tyrant.”
Council members attacked Chen in their own words. Silently listening to everything they said, he swung back and forth in a chair like a restless child. When at last everyone around was silent and only the creaking of the chair was audible and how Chen chewed his nails, he spoke softly:
“Speaking of Tyrant, do you mean that hefty log?”
“Choose your words, Chen. People of noble origin are gathered here.”
“I apologize. So this new virus...” And Chen suddenly shut up. Then he pretended as if a thought had occurred to him and, after a short pause, opened his mouth again:
“The development... No. This is a finished product.”
Chen stopped creaking the chair. There was a terrible silence in the room. Chen got up from his chair and pulled a small object from his jacket pocket and threw it on the table in front of him. A small acrylic tube sealed with a rubber stopper appeared before the eyes of those present. It contained a kind of magic fluid that glowed and shimmered in red.
“Let me introduce you to a new virus. Its name has not yet been approved. Let’s call it ‘Red Light’ for now.”
Chen tilted his head to the left and snapped his neck joints. At this moment, the council members did not believe their eyes. Chen threw up his hand over his head, clenched his fist and with all his strength lowered it onto the table. There was a sound chopping through the air, then a loud crash of a blow. Acrylic cracked mixed with the rumble. The liquid spread, and painted the documents lying nearby with a red glow. Then Chen crushed the remains of the broken test tube with his fist. There was a smile on his face.
At the same time, the light in the room went out and emergency lights turned on, staining the entire room in red.
“Attention! Biological threat.” The synthetic female voice repeated from the speakers at the same time as the alarm, a warning sign about a biological threat appeared on the screen.
From the crack under the door leading to the corridor, the sound of compressed air was heard, a rubber partition inflated completely blocking the air in the room.
All present immediately panicked.
“Quiet! Someone turn off the siren!” cried Chen.
But the deputy director immediately shouted in response: “Are you are crazy?”
“There is no threat of infection. I ask you all to calm down.”
Finally, the warning system turned off and normal lighting returned to the room. However, the commotion did not stop, they still could not calm down. The only one who was calm was Chen, he raised his fist and looked at the part of his hand where the blow had occurred. Fragments of a test tube protruded from the wound and bright red blood dripped, falling on the table, it mixed with the liquid from the test tube and became indistinguishable from it.
“Please give something to bandage my hand.” Chen turned to the man sitting next to him.
His neighbor passed his handkerchief with trembling hands. Chen took it without even saying thank you. He pressed the handkerchief to the wound, then looked around, members of the council who continued to panic appeared before his eyes.
Chen said with a smile on his face: “Well, you are so alarmed. This is a gathering of people of noble birth.”
“You, you got infected!” the deputy, whose place was opposite, with a trembling hand pointed to Chen.
“Yes, I got infected.” Chen spread his arms to the sides. “But I remained the same as I was. You can relax.”
“What does this all mean?”
“As you noticed in the video, the peculiarity of this virus is to quickly change the DNA structure of an infected object. With all this, it interacts with any structure.”
Chen showed his hand where there was a wound to everyone present.
“A change in my arm, as well as a change in the paws of a laboratory rat... happens like the appearance of beautiful white wings on the back of an angel. It does not have an established change system; the virus is designed with the ability to not make changes. The only obstacle is how to make it transform into a certain form, to establish specific abilities, which, in fact, will be possessed by the virus in the future. Due to the fact that there is such a problem, I would like to understand in which direction the changes in the virus as a whole should occur.”
“So, having infected yourself you do not know what changes...”
“No, it’s still Red Light.” All at the same time looked questioningly at Chen. Without paying attention, he continued to explain: “As I said, this virus excludes the given ability to change. Therefore, Red Light... is a bit of a red light. A further change will never occur. Despite the fact that it has a “real ability” to change, it completely lacks the “ability” that triggers this mechanism.”
“Then how does the virus behave when it enters the body?”
“Under the influence of a rapid increase in virus cells in an infected sample, the temperature rises at the same time. In simple terms, it looks like flu. For a while I will have to suffer.”
From everywhere came a sigh of relief.
“Then, is it still a virus under development?”
“What happened to the rat in the video? Did she mutate because you used the previous T and G viruses on her?”
On all sides criticism fell upon Chen. He listened silently. In the end, the deputy asked everyone to shut up and silence returned to the room. He turned to Chen:
“Chen, you’re close to failure. It may be difficult for you to understand this as a beginner, but here the orders are different from the Chen Industries network in which you worked before. Umbrella is a corporation with a history. Also, almost all who are here come from aristocratic families. There is not a single person who would have risen from the poor, like your father was. In other words, truly worthy people are present at this meeting. You don’t realise that we need something more complete to take seriously than the swindlers who suddenly got into this room from the backyard of Asia.”
Chen laughed. “Well, it turns out that the only one who actually sits in my way right now is Red Light?”
Everyone laughed at the same time.
“A good joke and a very accurate expression. There is no chairman or president with us today, are you sure this will help you stay here? Everything that happened now will remain only in the heads of those who are here. And of course, the report will not be reflected either. Yes, such meaningless results do not even represent any value for the report.”
Having said this, the deputy plunged into the study of materials that were at his fingertips.
“You are here because you represent the second generation of the president of the company we acquired. If you are not liked by someone high up, your place will quickly disappear.”
At this moment, on the side, someone touched his shoulder several times. It was the person next to him. Noticing this, the deputy turned to him and saw that his neighbor in an armchair with his mouth open was pointing at Chen.
The deputy looked in his direction.
Chen was holding the same test tube as the previous one. However, its contents were different; it contained a green liquid.
“What it is?”
“Green Light.”
Chen got up from the table and went to the center of the room.
“Chen, get back to your place.”
He ignored the words of the deputy and continued into the center.
“Initially, there is real power, but there is no ability to launch it. Just like this company. Although many excellent viruses have been developed here, company management is unable to take advantage of them. Raccoon City? The tragedy that happened is where the failure is. Because an unprepared management system entailed unpreparedness for the consequences.”
“And what do you propose?”
“Red Light is the most excellent virus. However, this alone is not enough. In this case, perhaps it is worth paying attention in your excellent little heads.”
When he reached the center of the logo, Chen stopped and turned.
“Let me introduce... Green Light, a continuation of the development of Red Light.”
Chen held the test tube high. All the attention of the board members focused on his hand.
“The Red Light demonstrated earlier was a viral component, and now I will talk about an activator for controlling the virus. In it, on the contrary, there is no viral component. It is just a compound of ultrathin semiconductors, reduced to the size of a DNA molecule.”
The room immediately made a noise. But as soon as Chen opened his mouth, everyone immediately shut up and concentrated on his words.
“In the experiment on the video with the rat, a combination of these two components was introduced. As I noted earlier, from the very beginning it makes sense how a smart animal with an understanding of “will” and “goals” can overcome an “obstacle”. A smart animal recognizes an “obstacle”, its brain detects a “target” and at this stage a “will” arises. “Aspiration”, in the language of physiology, is a violation of hormonal balance, an electrical effect on the neuromuscular synapse, accompanied by an increase in body temperature and other processes... Nano-activators recognize these processes at the level of feelings and at the same time throw out the response, corresponding to this “target”, transmitting a signal to the virus. Having received a signal, the virus changes according to the situation and the result of this change is overcoming the target.”
Someone swallowed loudly. In complete silence, this sound was heard by everyone present.
One of them asked a question: “And how many varieties of change...?”
“Depends on the object. It varies depending on the number of patterns of gene sequences that the activator remembers. At the stage with experiments on a laboratory rat, the number of stages is still small... In general, so far there are only about a thousand species.”
“A thousand...” the noise rose again in the room.
“In the latest version, it will be possible to remember the patterns of all types of living creatures that live on Earth... not only vertebrates, but crustaceans, simple living creatures such as amoebas and even plants. Everything created by God...”
“Enough. Stop it, Chen!” shouted the deputy.
Chen, not at all surprised, stopped and looked at him silently. Comments from other participants rained down:
“Well, this is blasphemy. Not only are you not giving us anything, but are you even going to defile God?”
“Of course you are an Asian. You have no fear of God.”
It became clear that they were going to make Chen a fool, he grunted and grinned.
“I apologize for the fact that, unlike you, I am not an aristocrat, but, as you rightly mentioned, I am a representative of a recent wealthy family. Yes, it is a fact. And I admit it. But there is one more fact. The Asian, to whom you are all so dismissive, created a ready-made virus that is unparalleled, superior to other Umbrella designs. I want you to understand and recognize this as quickly as possible. Would you be so kind?”
“A real Chimera,” one of the participants in the meeting threw right behind Chen’s back and he naturally heard this phrase. Turning to the speaker, he asked.
“Excuse me, what did you just say?”
“Chimera. According to legend, this is a complex living organism, consisting of elements of different genetic nature. Like a real Chimera.”
Chen’s eyes began to glow with a pale green light. He looked up at the tube in his hands and gazed steadily at its contents.
“I like it. This name is well suited to this virus. Chimera, yes... then, following the traditions of Umbrella, let’s call it the C-virus?”
“I wasn’t talking about the virus.” Continued the same man.
Chen made a bewildered face and looked at the speaker.
“I am talking about you. You came here from the street and in spite of this, you are going to introduce your technologies and let the corporation go along a different path of development. In a way, you yourself are a virus. The company should develop as a creation of worthy people, and are you going to recreate Umbrella to your ugly dirty monsters?”
In response to these words, Chen smiled all over his face. Wrinkles appeared on his face and to all this the eyebrow did not stop twitching, a terrible smile was obtained:
“Hold your tongue... I would also like to tell you something.”
The man looked at Chen in surprise.
“Do you know exactly what position you are in?”
“Naturally. But you are not aware of your own. Because for some time now I have been in a better position than any of you.”
After these words, Chen picked up the test tube and shook it to the sides. The green liquid on the surface foamed, and those present suddenly froze from tension.
“Have you noticed at last? Your vivid presentation is over. If you had brains, you would immediately understand even now. As I thought, those who call themselves aristocrats are sheer idiots. So yes, I already infected you with Red Light.”
“Have you lost your mind?” said one member with trembling lips.
Chen laughed.
“Before you get scared from the prospect of turning Umbrella into monsters, you should be afraid that first I can turn you into a monster. In any case, I want to ask you to recognize the C-virus and guarantee its release, I hope for your cooperation. Or will I make this decision myself, as the only survivor of an accident in which the entire board of directors died? Choose which option suits you. I’m waiting for the green light.”
Chen touched the cap on the test tube.
“Wait!” shouted the deputy “Chen, we understand! So calm down!”
“Robert... From the very beginning I said that I would like to be called Robert. Well, from now on, let’s work in an atmosphere of friendship and understanding. Will you really be nice to this poor Asian and will not speak insults anymore?”
As soon as Chen removed his hand from the lid, those present exhaled.
He straightened his tie and walked around the room with a relaxed face. Going to the deputy, he unconsciously threw the test tube on the table. The deputy caught it with trembling hands. Seeing this, Chen grunted contemptuously.
“I look forward to your assistance.”
Then, Chen also unconstrainedly returned to his place, then he handed a handkerchief to a neighbor on the chair, with which he had pressed the wound.
He, in turn, began to shake his head. “Chen, go take care of yourself...”
Chen then put his hand to his ear, as if he had not heard and clicked his tongue. His neighbor noticed and corrected.
“Robert...”
“Wonderful!”
Without sitting down in a chair, Chen went to the door, leaving the meeting room in complete silence. For a while, silence continued to hang in the air. It was so calm,
as if there was no commotion, and quietly, as if it had been all the time. In the midst of all this calm, the deputy slowly looked around the room.
“Dear colleagues, now that we have calmed down a bit, let’s think about this.”
Each person in turn began to express their opinion, as if reading out their role in the script.
“It’s not that bad.”
“Yes, it may well justify our expectations as a product of our corporation!”
“His development team must be excellent specialists.”
Like a snap of a finger, the attitude changed dramatically and everyone spoke about Chen only with kind words.
Summing up the honestly expressed opinion of all participants, the deputy quietly said:
“Well, that leaves only the development team. We do not change anything, but we continue its research. Anyway, Robert, thanks for the work he has done.”
Unexpectedly for himself, the deputy called him Robert, despite his absence in the room. Then, exchanging a happy smile with the others, he picked up the phone and started ringing.
“Yes. Keep Dr. Robert Chen’s laboratory safe... Yes, samples of each virus are needed... As usual... I ask quickly and without incident.”
Everyone in the room heard perfectly the words of the deputy. There were similar calls before, so no one was particularly surprised.
However, there was another person who was not in the room at that moment, but he also heard this conversation. And of course, no one noticed his presence, and even the deputy, on whose table the test tube was lying, did not at all pay attention to the lid on it.
Leaving the meeting room, Chen walked down the corridor, in his ear there was an earpiece that looked like a hearing aid. He walked along the corridor and carefully listened to the voices that the bug conveyed to him, which was built into the test tube lid.
“Indeed, among the aristocrats they are all idiots. To me, they are simply people who own the technology of manufacturing the C-virus, such a turn was completely obvious.”
Chen walked down a deserted corridor and smiled to himself.
“In any case, half of the work has already been done.”
“The trial “Will”, said a voice from the darkness.
In the image that was broadcast on a huge screen, the rat scurried right and left. At the edge of the screen, a time code was displayed, and also the inscription appeared: 48 HOURS SINCE INFECTION.
“Before the injection of the virus, she was trained to open the lid.”
The rat stopped, calmed down, and looked at the gap between the lid and the box. Then she began to rub her face against the lid and try to squeeze in from the inside.
“This time we first fixed the cover with a wire. In other words, she remembers that you need to open the cover to go free, so the wire is the first “obstacle”.
The rat poked its face into the lid many times, but the lid did not even move. Finally, she stretched out her face and began to sniff the gap between the lid and the box. When she reached the wire, she stopped and stretched out her face again.
Then a female voice came from the speakers of the dark room, but it was a synthetic voice.
“Nano activator, monitor, an increase in adrenaline in the blood was recorded. Installed command code, sending a command. A change in DNA structure has been confirmed.”
A rumble rose in the dark room.
Meanwhile, on the rat’s screen, the front paws took on a form far from their original. The hair on the legs turned black and if you looked closely enough, you could notice how the small toes on the legs grew together and the size of her head increased.
The front paws acquired a shape sharpened like a blade and became similar to the limbs of a mantis.
“How can a smart animal that owns “will” and “goals” overcome this “obstacle”? Here we find the answer to this question.”
The rat began to move its paws at a very high speed. Since the legs now became flat and narrow, they crawled effortlessly into the gap between the lid and the box and cut the wire wound several times.
Then, as if nothing had happened, the rat pushed its head back on the lid, and it flew off the box.
The broadcast from the projector turned off and the light returned to the room. The room was a large meeting room with a large table that had a hole in the middle, at which several dozen people sat. All of different ages, among them were also women. In the middle of the table, in an empty space, lay a carpet with a logo and company name. The logo was an open umbrella, the letters next to it indicated that the company was called Umbrella. A pair of legs in leather shoes spread out on the carpet. Their owner, a young man in an expensive suit, Robert Chen. Only that was explained to the audience through the contents of what was happening on the screen. He was Chinese by nationality and the only Asian, as well as the youngest among those present in the room. Now there was a noise and in order to supplement an explanation, he headed to the center of the hall, drawing attention to himself.
At that moment, a voice came from one of the participants in the meeting:
“Dr. Chen.”
Chen stopped.
“It is not necessary to go to the center, return to your place.”
Chen froze in place. He raised an eyebrow, breathed air into his lungs, turned to the person who spoke and answered: “I’ll ask you to stop calling me “doctor.” Such treatment is permissible if we are in the laboratory, but now we are at a meeting of the board of directors. Despite the fact that I am still a new person, I am as much a member of the council as you. Just call me Robert.”
“Then, Chen,” the deputy director corrected, it was he who owned the voice, “Return to your place. We would like to ask you some questions.”
Chen’s eyebrow twitched. Noticing this, he immediately brushed it with his hand and stopped the convulsions. Then, making a straight face, he returned to his place. A few moments after Chen sat down at the table, the deputy director began to ask.
“So, the first question that came to my mind is what is the difference between this product and the ones that exist today... well, for example, the T-virus?”
Chen’s eyes widened and he asked a counter question: “Why did you mention that?”
“Because of the video you showed,” said another board member. “According to what we saw, the results are similar to the results when the development of the T-virus was not yet completed.”
“The rate of change in DNA structure is different. Since the start of recombination of the DNA sequence, approximately...”
“You read the report,” another member of the council interrupted with the next question, “About another virus created on the basis of T, samples of which were collected in Raccoon City?”
“Are you talking about the G-virus? Of course I did.”
“Is the new development faster than the speed of G-virus?”
“Didn’t you notice? The development results are clearly visible on the video...” Robert abruptly fell silent and lowered his head. Then he raised his head and smiled at the second or third attempt. “What are you trying to say here? Tell me straight.”
“The fact is that we have...” the deputy said. “There are certain concerns regarding the originality of the virus that you are developing.”
Biting his nails, Chen carefully listened to the deputy’s opinion.
“Indeed, the mutation rate of the virus carrier is amazing. And probably, this virus is faster than all the previous ones in speed. But only in speed. Though...”
Suddenly, it seemed to break through, everyone vied with each other to start questioning:
“You are not a scientist, are you? Indeed, you have the title of doctor... but of technical sciences. And that means that you are still an engineer.”
“But this is a pharmaceutical corporation. Can you guarantee that your development matches the products of a pharmaceutical corporation?”
“At least I would like to see the completed host form. Something like Tyrant.”
Council members attacked Chen in their own words. Silently listening to everything they said, he swung back and forth in a chair like a restless child. When at last everyone around was silent and only the creaking of the chair was audible and how Chen chewed his nails, he spoke softly:
“Speaking of Tyrant, do you mean that hefty log?”
“Choose your words, Chen. People of noble origin are gathered here.”
“I apologize. So this new virus...” And Chen suddenly shut up. Then he pretended as if a thought had occurred to him and, after a short pause, opened his mouth again:
“The development... No. This is a finished product.”
Chen stopped creaking the chair. There was a terrible silence in the room. Chen got up from his chair and pulled a small object from his jacket pocket and threw it on the table in front of him. A small acrylic tube sealed with a rubber stopper appeared before the eyes of those present. It contained a kind of magic fluid that glowed and shimmered in red.
“Let me introduce you to a new virus. Its name has not yet been approved. Let’s call it ‘Red Light’ for now.”
Chen tilted his head to the left and snapped his neck joints. At this moment, the council members did not believe their eyes. Chen threw up his hand over his head, clenched his fist and with all his strength lowered it onto the table. There was a sound chopping through the air, then a loud crash of a blow. Acrylic cracked mixed with the rumble. The liquid spread, and painted the documents lying nearby with a red glow. Then Chen crushed the remains of the broken test tube with his fist. There was a smile on his face.
At the same time, the light in the room went out and emergency lights turned on, staining the entire room in red.
“Attention! Biological threat.” The synthetic female voice repeated from the speakers at the same time as the alarm, a warning sign about a biological threat appeared on the screen.
From the crack under the door leading to the corridor, the sound of compressed air was heard, a rubber partition inflated completely blocking the air in the room.
All present immediately panicked.
“Quiet! Someone turn off the siren!” cried Chen.
But the deputy director immediately shouted in response: “Are you are crazy?”
“There is no threat of infection. I ask you all to calm down.”
Finally, the warning system turned off and normal lighting returned to the room. However, the commotion did not stop, they still could not calm down. The only one who was calm was Chen, he raised his fist and looked at the part of his hand where the blow had occurred. Fragments of a test tube protruded from the wound and bright red blood dripped, falling on the table, it mixed with the liquid from the test tube and became indistinguishable from it.
“Please give something to bandage my hand.” Chen turned to the man sitting next to him.
His neighbor passed his handkerchief with trembling hands. Chen took it without even saying thank you. He pressed the handkerchief to the wound, then looked around, members of the council who continued to panic appeared before his eyes.
Chen said with a smile on his face: “Well, you are so alarmed. This is a gathering of people of noble birth.”
“You, you got infected!” the deputy, whose place was opposite, with a trembling hand pointed to Chen.
“Yes, I got infected.” Chen spread his arms to the sides. “But I remained the same as I was. You can relax.”
“What does this all mean?”
“As you noticed in the video, the peculiarity of this virus is to quickly change the DNA structure of an infected object. With all this, it interacts with any structure.”
Chen showed his hand where there was a wound to everyone present.
“A change in my arm, as well as a change in the paws of a laboratory rat... happens like the appearance of beautiful white wings on the back of an angel. It does not have an established change system; the virus is designed with the ability to not make changes. The only obstacle is how to make it transform into a certain form, to establish specific abilities, which, in fact, will be possessed by the virus in the future. Due to the fact that there is such a problem, I would like to understand in which direction the changes in the virus as a whole should occur.”
“So, having infected yourself you do not know what changes...”
“No, it’s still Red Light.” All at the same time looked questioningly at Chen. Without paying attention, he continued to explain: “As I said, this virus excludes the given ability to change. Therefore, Red Light... is a bit of a red light. A further change will never occur. Despite the fact that it has a “real ability” to change, it completely lacks the “ability” that triggers this mechanism.”
“Then how does the virus behave when it enters the body?”
“Under the influence of a rapid increase in virus cells in an infected sample, the temperature rises at the same time. In simple terms, it looks like flu. For a while I will have to suffer.”
From everywhere came a sigh of relief.
“Then, is it still a virus under development?”
“What happened to the rat in the video? Did she mutate because you used the previous T and G viruses on her?”
On all sides criticism fell upon Chen. He listened silently. In the end, the deputy asked everyone to shut up and silence returned to the room. He turned to Chen:
“Chen, you’re close to failure. It may be difficult for you to understand this as a beginner, but here the orders are different from the Chen Industries network in which you worked before. Umbrella is a corporation with a history. Also, almost all who are here come from aristocratic families. There is not a single person who would have risen from the poor, like your father was. In other words, truly worthy people are present at this meeting. You don’t realise that we need something more complete to take seriously than the swindlers who suddenly got into this room from the backyard of Asia.”
Chen laughed. “Well, it turns out that the only one who actually sits in my way right now is Red Light?”
Everyone laughed at the same time.
“A good joke and a very accurate expression. There is no chairman or president with us today, are you sure this will help you stay here? Everything that happened now will remain only in the heads of those who are here. And of course, the report will not be reflected either. Yes, such meaningless results do not even represent any value for the report.”
Having said this, the deputy plunged into the study of materials that were at his fingertips.
“You are here because you represent the second generation of the president of the company we acquired. If you are not liked by someone high up, your place will quickly disappear.”
At this moment, on the side, someone touched his shoulder several times. It was the person next to him. Noticing this, the deputy turned to him and saw that his neighbor in an armchair with his mouth open was pointing at Chen.
The deputy looked in his direction.
Chen was holding the same test tube as the previous one. However, its contents were different; it contained a green liquid.
“What it is?”
“Green Light.”
Chen got up from the table and went to the center of the room.
“Chen, get back to your place.”
He ignored the words of the deputy and continued into the center.
“Initially, there is real power, but there is no ability to launch it. Just like this company. Although many excellent viruses have been developed here, company management is unable to take advantage of them. Raccoon City? The tragedy that happened is where the failure is. Because an unprepared management system entailed unpreparedness for the consequences.”
“And what do you propose?”
“Red Light is the most excellent virus. However, this alone is not enough. In this case, perhaps it is worth paying attention in your excellent little heads.”
When he reached the center of the logo, Chen stopped and turned.
“Let me introduce... Green Light, a continuation of the development of Red Light.”
Chen held the test tube high. All the attention of the board members focused on his hand.
“The Red Light demonstrated earlier was a viral component, and now I will talk about an activator for controlling the virus. In it, on the contrary, there is no viral component. It is just a compound of ultrathin semiconductors, reduced to the size of a DNA molecule.”
The room immediately made a noise. But as soon as Chen opened his mouth, everyone immediately shut up and concentrated on his words.
“In the experiment on the video with the rat, a combination of these two components was introduced. As I noted earlier, from the very beginning it makes sense how a smart animal with an understanding of “will” and “goals” can overcome an “obstacle”. A smart animal recognizes an “obstacle”, its brain detects a “target” and at this stage a “will” arises. “Aspiration”, in the language of physiology, is a violation of hormonal balance, an electrical effect on the neuromuscular synapse, accompanied by an increase in body temperature and other processes... Nano-activators recognize these processes at the level of feelings and at the same time throw out the response, corresponding to this “target”, transmitting a signal to the virus. Having received a signal, the virus changes according to the situation and the result of this change is overcoming the target.”
Someone swallowed loudly. In complete silence, this sound was heard by everyone present.
One of them asked a question: “And how many varieties of change...?”
“Depends on the object. It varies depending on the number of patterns of gene sequences that the activator remembers. At the stage with experiments on a laboratory rat, the number of stages is still small... In general, so far there are only about a thousand species.”
“A thousand...” the noise rose again in the room.
“In the latest version, it will be possible to remember the patterns of all types of living creatures that live on Earth... not only vertebrates, but crustaceans, simple living creatures such as amoebas and even plants. Everything created by God...”
“Enough. Stop it, Chen!” shouted the deputy.
Chen, not at all surprised, stopped and looked at him silently. Comments from other participants rained down:
“Well, this is blasphemy. Not only are you not giving us anything, but are you even going to defile God?”
“Of course you are an Asian. You have no fear of God.”
It became clear that they were going to make Chen a fool, he grunted and grinned.
“I apologize for the fact that, unlike you, I am not an aristocrat, but, as you rightly mentioned, I am a representative of a recent wealthy family. Yes, it is a fact. And I admit it. But there is one more fact. The Asian, to whom you are all so dismissive, created a ready-made virus that is unparalleled, superior to other Umbrella designs. I want you to understand and recognize this as quickly as possible. Would you be so kind?”
“A real Chimera,” one of the participants in the meeting threw right behind Chen’s back and he naturally heard this phrase. Turning to the speaker, he asked.
“Excuse me, what did you just say?”
“Chimera. According to legend, this is a complex living organism, consisting of elements of different genetic nature. Like a real Chimera.”
Chen’s eyes began to glow with a pale green light. He looked up at the tube in his hands and gazed steadily at its contents.
“I like it. This name is well suited to this virus. Chimera, yes... then, following the traditions of Umbrella, let’s call it the C-virus?”
“I wasn’t talking about the virus.” Continued the same man.
Chen made a bewildered face and looked at the speaker.
“I am talking about you. You came here from the street and in spite of this, you are going to introduce your technologies and let the corporation go along a different path of development. In a way, you yourself are a virus. The company should develop as a creation of worthy people, and are you going to recreate Umbrella to your ugly dirty monsters?”
In response to these words, Chen smiled all over his face. Wrinkles appeared on his face and to all this the eyebrow did not stop twitching, a terrible smile was obtained:
“Hold your tongue... I would also like to tell you something.”
The man looked at Chen in surprise.
“Do you know exactly what position you are in?”
“Naturally. But you are not aware of your own. Because for some time now I have been in a better position than any of you.”
After these words, Chen picked up the test tube and shook it to the sides. The green liquid on the surface foamed, and those present suddenly froze from tension.
“Have you noticed at last? Your vivid presentation is over. If you had brains, you would immediately understand even now. As I thought, those who call themselves aristocrats are sheer idiots. So yes, I already infected you with Red Light.”
“Have you lost your mind?” said one member with trembling lips.
Chen laughed.
“Before you get scared from the prospect of turning Umbrella into monsters, you should be afraid that first I can turn you into a monster. In any case, I want to ask you to recognize the C-virus and guarantee its release, I hope for your cooperation. Or will I make this decision myself, as the only survivor of an accident in which the entire board of directors died? Choose which option suits you. I’m waiting for the green light.”
Chen touched the cap on the test tube.
“Wait!” shouted the deputy “Chen, we understand! So calm down!”
“Robert... From the very beginning I said that I would like to be called Robert. Well, from now on, let’s work in an atmosphere of friendship and understanding. Will you really be nice to this poor Asian and will not speak insults anymore?”
As soon as Chen removed his hand from the lid, those present exhaled.
He straightened his tie and walked around the room with a relaxed face. Going to the deputy, he unconsciously threw the test tube on the table. The deputy caught it with trembling hands. Seeing this, Chen grunted contemptuously.
“I look forward to your assistance.”
Then, Chen also unconstrainedly returned to his place, then he handed a handkerchief to a neighbor on the chair, with which he had pressed the wound.
He, in turn, began to shake his head. “Chen, go take care of yourself...”
Chen then put his hand to his ear, as if he had not heard and clicked his tongue. His neighbor noticed and corrected.
“Robert...”
“Wonderful!”
Without sitting down in a chair, Chen went to the door, leaving the meeting room in complete silence. For a while, silence continued to hang in the air. It was so calm,
as if there was no commotion, and quietly, as if it had been all the time. In the midst of all this calm, the deputy slowly looked around the room.
“Dear colleagues, now that we have calmed down a bit, let’s think about this.”
Each person in turn began to express their opinion, as if reading out their role in the script.
“It’s not that bad.”
“Yes, it may well justify our expectations as a product of our corporation!”
“His development team must be excellent specialists.”
Like a snap of a finger, the attitude changed dramatically and everyone spoke about Chen only with kind words.
Summing up the honestly expressed opinion of all participants, the deputy quietly said:
“Well, that leaves only the development team. We do not change anything, but we continue its research. Anyway, Robert, thanks for the work he has done.”
Unexpectedly for himself, the deputy called him Robert, despite his absence in the room. Then, exchanging a happy smile with the others, he picked up the phone and started ringing.
“Yes. Keep Dr. Robert Chen’s laboratory safe... Yes, samples of each virus are needed... As usual... I ask quickly and without incident.”
Everyone in the room heard perfectly the words of the deputy. There were similar calls before, so no one was particularly surprised.
However, there was another person who was not in the room at that moment, but he also heard this conversation. And of course, no one noticed his presence, and even the deputy, on whose table the test tube was lying, did not at all pay attention to the lid on it.
Leaving the meeting room, Chen walked down the corridor, in his ear there was an earpiece that looked like a hearing aid. He walked along the corridor and carefully listened to the voices that the bug conveyed to him, which was built into the test tube lid.
“Indeed, among the aristocrats they are all idiots. To me, they are simply people who own the technology of manufacturing the C-virus, such a turn was completely obvious.”
Chen walked down a deserted corridor and smiled to himself.
“In any case, half of the work has already been done.”
# 5 Half
The halfway point was passed.
This was confirmed by the GPS signal. There was no mistake. Definitely this satellite belonged to the Pentagon. And there was no reason to doubt the data of their own government. In every corner of the world there were satellites sending false information about the situation, in case of war, hiding behind strategic reasons, but this was not like that.
Usually I don’t read newspapers, and its pointless recent newspapers don’t even get here. Therefore, if there is a war somewhere or not, I wouldn’t know. For these purposes, satellite communications are here. Students in the vicinity of the West Coast pose as hackers, so if there is no manipulation of information, then it must be true. And for this reason, we can think that the half way point has passed and this is a fact. Yes, after spending about ten days, Liberty finally reached the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. But also, this meant that before arriving on the mainland you needed to spend the same amount of time here, no less.
Lopez involuntarily sighed. It was boring anyway. No matter how big the liner was, still the space on which you can walk was limited, and the view of the ocean surface had already become tiresome. The United Center in Chicago in the homeland of Lopez was much smaller than the liner, but it was a sight to see. Until he set foot on the mainland, Lopez remained in the line of duty. Without the opportunity to walk around the liner and practically without leaving the cabin, together with Kulik he had to guard the suspect. The cabin was equipped with a bathroom and they were provided with regular meals, so you could not even go outside. When seasickness prevailed, Lopez left the cabin to “feed the fish,” but Umbrella’s medicine was frighteningly strong and somewhere in the first three days the seasickness was completely cured. All he had was only short breaks when he could walk, the rest of the time Lopez had to spend time with Jack. But it also did not differ in variety. During the program, enthusiastic about inspecting Liberty, Lopez was late and did not see Jack’s face without a mask; the opportunity to examine him properly appeared only some time after arriving on the liner. This happened at the first meal, at the directions of Kulik, Lopez unholstered his weapon. While from a short distance Kulik carefully unfastened the straps on Jack’s mask, Lopez silently held him under the sight of (his) Beretta. The muzzle of the pistol was directed to the floor, but Lopez was also worried about the fact that he was standing with a gun in front of a dangerous criminal, whose presence could cause a big sensation around the world. On the side of the bed, for safety, was Kulik’s Glock, prudently pulled out of his holster.
Which means that you have an alliance with your partner – only Lopez will be able to protect him. And Lopez in his heart was ready to quickly point the barrel at Jack and pull the trigger. After the mask was removed, Lopez saw the real face of Jack. It was a calm, peaceful face, as rumors circulated, even the thought would not arise that it could belong to a very dangerous criminal, and the eyes that used to seem to be dangerous to Kulik were so emotional and could not be believed that they belonged to a living person.
The journey turned into a complete disappointment. Moreover, the crazy routine continued to defeat Lopez. Jack usually behaved quietly and did not cause problems. Despite the endless remarks, as soon as Kulik just turned away, Lopez tried to speak with Jack. But it all ended with the fact that in the end Lopez talked to himself. The only time Jack opened his mouth was during meals.
And today, Lopez again fought with routine. And the battle was still halfway. Remembering this, Lopez sighed, then looked up from the materials of Jack’s case, which he had re-read for the hundredth time, as he yawned loudly.
“Judging by what they wrote, you’re a crazy serial killer.” Lopez wiped his eyes and looked into the eyes of Jack sitting by the window. But, as before, Jack looked somewhere in front of him, eyes similar to the eyes of a dead fish. “But nevertheless, the police extradited you at the request of our government... What did you do before leaving America?”
Jack of course did not answer. Lopez put down the documents.
“Damn you, why did I get a job as a marshal. This is much more interesting than working as an accountant in a government office in Chicago.”
Lopez yawned again loudly, and then looked at his watch. Kulik at this time was off to make a report to Washington by radio. There was still some time before his return to the cabin. But his return would not affect the overcoming boredom. In order to somehow amuse himself, Lopez began to make inclines, not getting out of bed and reaching for the floor with his hands. He wanted to do exercises, but in fact his movements looked very ridiculous.
He made two or three inclinations, and when his head was below, somewhere from the side of the door he heard a sound as if something was scratching at the door. Lopez froze and strained his ears. And again he heard this sound. He clearly felt that there was someone outside. If Kulik had returned from the meeting earlier, he would have to notify him by knocking on the door. It was uncomfortable to peek out the door where a peephole was not originally intended, but such a door in the cabin was precisely at his (Lopez’s) proposal, being a tidy person, he did not forget to take into account such trifles. Conversely, he was angry if someone forgot about precaution.
It was too early for Kulik to return. Trying not to make any sounds, Lopez straightened up, put his hand on the holster and quickly pulled a pistol out of it. Lopez’s face had never been so serious. Relaxing a little, he carefully took the gun in one hand and, with his free left, grabbed the door handle, then slowly and silently turned it. Feeling that the handle turned to the end, he slightly opened the door.
What he saw behind the door made him doubt his own eyes. As if lack of sleep was felt, but it was still too early for dreams. If this could be a dream, where he stood with a gun in his hands, then even waking up to what was behind the door could not be real. However, the muzzle of the gun was aimed at a head with two red pigtails and with freckles on her face. He wouldn’t, but if he had pulled the trigger, a lump of cotton wool would have scattered from the bullet. Such a thought visited Lopez. Opening the door wider, Lopez stuck his face into the opening. A girl stood in front of him, hugging a doll twice as large as herself. With round eyes, she looked at the Beretta in Lopez’s hands.
This was confirmed by the GPS signal. There was no mistake. Definitely this satellite belonged to the Pentagon. And there was no reason to doubt the data of their own government. In every corner of the world there were satellites sending false information about the situation, in case of war, hiding behind strategic reasons, but this was not like that.
Usually I don’t read newspapers, and its pointless recent newspapers don’t even get here. Therefore, if there is a war somewhere or not, I wouldn’t know. For these purposes, satellite communications are here. Students in the vicinity of the West Coast pose as hackers, so if there is no manipulation of information, then it must be true. And for this reason, we can think that the half way point has passed and this is a fact. Yes, after spending about ten days, Liberty finally reached the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. But also, this meant that before arriving on the mainland you needed to spend the same amount of time here, no less.
Lopez involuntarily sighed. It was boring anyway. No matter how big the liner was, still the space on which you can walk was limited, and the view of the ocean surface had already become tiresome. The United Center in Chicago in the homeland of Lopez was much smaller than the liner, but it was a sight to see. Until he set foot on the mainland, Lopez remained in the line of duty. Without the opportunity to walk around the liner and practically without leaving the cabin, together with Kulik he had to guard the suspect. The cabin was equipped with a bathroom and they were provided with regular meals, so you could not even go outside. When seasickness prevailed, Lopez left the cabin to “feed the fish,” but Umbrella’s medicine was frighteningly strong and somewhere in the first three days the seasickness was completely cured. All he had was only short breaks when he could walk, the rest of the time Lopez had to spend time with Jack. But it also did not differ in variety. During the program, enthusiastic about inspecting Liberty, Lopez was late and did not see Jack’s face without a mask; the opportunity to examine him properly appeared only some time after arriving on the liner. This happened at the first meal, at the directions of Kulik, Lopez unholstered his weapon. While from a short distance Kulik carefully unfastened the straps on Jack’s mask, Lopez silently held him under the sight of (his) Beretta. The muzzle of the pistol was directed to the floor, but Lopez was also worried about the fact that he was standing with a gun in front of a dangerous criminal, whose presence could cause a big sensation around the world. On the side of the bed, for safety, was Kulik’s Glock, prudently pulled out of his holster.
Which means that you have an alliance with your partner – only Lopez will be able to protect him. And Lopez in his heart was ready to quickly point the barrel at Jack and pull the trigger. After the mask was removed, Lopez saw the real face of Jack. It was a calm, peaceful face, as rumors circulated, even the thought would not arise that it could belong to a very dangerous criminal, and the eyes that used to seem to be dangerous to Kulik were so emotional and could not be believed that they belonged to a living person.
The journey turned into a complete disappointment. Moreover, the crazy routine continued to defeat Lopez. Jack usually behaved quietly and did not cause problems. Despite the endless remarks, as soon as Kulik just turned away, Lopez tried to speak with Jack. But it all ended with the fact that in the end Lopez talked to himself. The only time Jack opened his mouth was during meals.
And today, Lopez again fought with routine. And the battle was still halfway. Remembering this, Lopez sighed, then looked up from the materials of Jack’s case, which he had re-read for the hundredth time, as he yawned loudly.
“Judging by what they wrote, you’re a crazy serial killer.” Lopez wiped his eyes and looked into the eyes of Jack sitting by the window. But, as before, Jack looked somewhere in front of him, eyes similar to the eyes of a dead fish. “But nevertheless, the police extradited you at the request of our government... What did you do before leaving America?”
Jack of course did not answer. Lopez put down the documents.
“Damn you, why did I get a job as a marshal. This is much more interesting than working as an accountant in a government office in Chicago.”
Lopez yawned again loudly, and then looked at his watch. Kulik at this time was off to make a report to Washington by radio. There was still some time before his return to the cabin. But his return would not affect the overcoming boredom. In order to somehow amuse himself, Lopez began to make inclines, not getting out of bed and reaching for the floor with his hands. He wanted to do exercises, but in fact his movements looked very ridiculous.
He made two or three inclinations, and when his head was below, somewhere from the side of the door he heard a sound as if something was scratching at the door. Lopez froze and strained his ears. And again he heard this sound. He clearly felt that there was someone outside. If Kulik had returned from the meeting earlier, he would have to notify him by knocking on the door. It was uncomfortable to peek out the door where a peephole was not originally intended, but such a door in the cabin was precisely at his (Lopez’s) proposal, being a tidy person, he did not forget to take into account such trifles. Conversely, he was angry if someone forgot about precaution.
It was too early for Kulik to return. Trying not to make any sounds, Lopez straightened up, put his hand on the holster and quickly pulled a pistol out of it. Lopez’s face had never been so serious. Relaxing a little, he carefully took the gun in one hand and, with his free left, grabbed the door handle, then slowly and silently turned it. Feeling that the handle turned to the end, he slightly opened the door.
What he saw behind the door made him doubt his own eyes. As if lack of sleep was felt, but it was still too early for dreams. If this could be a dream, where he stood with a gun in his hands, then even waking up to what was behind the door could not be real. However, the muzzle of the gun was aimed at a head with two red pigtails and with freckles on her face. He wouldn’t, but if he had pulled the trigger, a lump of cotton wool would have scattered from the bullet. Such a thought visited Lopez. Opening the door wider, Lopez stuck his face into the opening. A girl stood in front of him, hugging a doll twice as large as herself. With round eyes, she looked at the Beretta in Lopez’s hands.
“Real?”
Sweat appeared on Lopez’s face. He immediately removed the Beretta and put it back on the safety and aimed the barrel at the ceiling.
“What are you doing here?!” Lopez involuntarily screamed out, he surprised the girl.
“Sorry. I felt better, and I began to explore the ship. Dad said there might be other passengers here. And I thought that among them there could also be children.”
“What are you talking about! And, there are no children here!” Lopez said in exasperation and slammed the door. Then he turned and his face turned purple, putting his gun back in its holster, he muttered, “Damn, that idiot! I almost shot!”
He straightened up, took a breath, and calmed down. His heart stopped beating furiously, it became quiet around.
Lopez turned around again and grabbed the doorknob. Opening the door, he found the same girl, she stopped crying and looked up at Lopez. Lopez shook his head.
“Sorry for yelling. Are you alone, girl?”
She nodded and answered in a crying voice. “And also Lily. She is Lily.” The girl pointed to the doll.
“Lily, you say? Nice to meet you, Lily. By the way, what is your name?”
“I’m Sylvia, what about you, Uncle?”
Lopez frowned.
“Uncle?... Jose. Jose Lopez.”
“Nice to meet Uncle Jose.”
Lopez nodded. After a short pause, he asked Sylvia. “Listen, Sylvia. You talked about your dad, are you traveling on the liner with your parents?”
“Yes, dad works for the company that owns this ship. And my mother died when I was little. But I have a dad and Lily, so everything is fine. Plus, dad says mom watches me from heaven.”
“That’s nice. You have a good dad. So he works at Umbrella Corporation?”
“Yes. And I’m sick too. But if Dad talks to the big bosses, then in New York they will put me in the hospital. That’s why dad is on the ship.”
“What a nightmare. But if you obey your dad, you will surely recover. I also drank medicine from this company and immediately recovered.”
“Uncle, are you sick?”
Lopez coughed: “A little, at first, now not so much.”
“Is he sick too?”
Lopez noticed that Sylvia was looking behind him and turned around. It was about Jack.
“He seems very bad,” said Sylvia sadly.
Lopez abruptly turned his head: “Sylvia, I have to ask you not to tell anyone about what you saw. If anyone finds out about this man with uncle, they will get very angry.”
In response to Lopez’s serious face, Sylvia smiled innocently. “Understood, very well.”
“You promise?”
“I promise. This will be my secret with Uncle Jose.”
“Well, Sylvia, I have something to do, is it okay if I go back in the cabin?”
“Yeah. But will we talk again? There are almost no people on the ship and it’s boring.”
“Yes OK. But not here... when I’m not busy, then we’ll talk somewhere in a more spacious place.”
“Yeah. Then see you, Uncle Jose. I was glad to talk with you.”
“I was glad to talk too, Sylvia.”
As soon as he said this, Sylvia turned and ran past the cabins along the corridor.
Watching her, Lopez sighed loudly and closed the door behind him. “Well that was a mess, I could have lost my job.”
“Sylvia...”
Lopez suddenly heard. This was not his own voice. Kulik, of course, had not returned yet, and Sylvia had just left, except for Lopez and Jack, there should be no one in the room.
Lopez mechanically turned around and stared at Jack.
“Sylvia... The name is like my girlfriend’s.”
Due to the plastic mask, the voice was muffled and could not be heard clearly. But clearly these words were pronounced by Jack. Lopez’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Hey you, did you just say that?”
Jack was silent.
“No, I heard right! What did you say there? Something about an ex-girlfriend.”
Lopez rushed to Jack’s case file, which lay on the bed.
“Sylvia, Sylvia... she was mentioned somewhere.” Lopez began to look through a long list of female names, victims of Jack. As soon as he embarked on this, Jack spoke again.
“New York... Madison Square Garden ... Knicks. I often went there, I took with me my beloved Sylvia...”
Lopez glanced from the papers.
“Knicks? Are you fond of basketball too? I’m from Chicago, the home of the Bulls!”
Lopez’s eyes lit up. Then, a little nervous, he moved to the edge of the bed closer to Jack and sat right in front of his face.
“You see, we have something to talk about. Right to the point, I want to ask you something...”
Looking up at this point, Jack’s eyes ran, but there was nowhere to go from Lopez. Lopez, making sure that he attracted the attention of Jack, for a second bashfully lowered his eyes and grabbed his hands.
“Before, when I was talking with the girl... and I think you heard...”
Lopez raised his head and looked Jack straight in the eye.
“Tell me, do I really look like an “uncle”?”
Jack’s eyes began to look in front of him again. He didn’t say anything.
Lopez made a displeased face.
“Does that mean that I do look like one? Hey. Answer the question!”
No matter how many times Lopez asked, Jack only looked in front of him and remained silent.
A security camera watched this scene from a corner on the ceiling.
At the guard post, a girl with a tattoo on her shoulder silently watched a video broadcast from Lopez’s cabin. The one with whom Lopez missed in the hallway on the way to his cabin. On the table in front of the monitors was a laptop, at it a girl, slowly began to type. The lines “Liberty. Report, Lieutenant U.B.C.S. Louise Kah” appeared on the screen.
Sweat appeared on Lopez’s face. He immediately removed the Beretta and put it back on the safety and aimed the barrel at the ceiling.
“What are you doing here?!” Lopez involuntarily screamed out, he surprised the girl.
“Sorry. I felt better, and I began to explore the ship. Dad said there might be other passengers here. And I thought that among them there could also be children.”
“What are you talking about! And, there are no children here!” Lopez said in exasperation and slammed the door. Then he turned and his face turned purple, putting his gun back in its holster, he muttered, “Damn, that idiot! I almost shot!”
He straightened up, took a breath, and calmed down. His heart stopped beating furiously, it became quiet around.
Lopez turned around again and grabbed the doorknob. Opening the door, he found the same girl, she stopped crying and looked up at Lopez. Lopez shook his head.
“Sorry for yelling. Are you alone, girl?”
She nodded and answered in a crying voice. “And also Lily. She is Lily.” The girl pointed to the doll.
“Lily, you say? Nice to meet you, Lily. By the way, what is your name?”
“I’m Sylvia, what about you, Uncle?”
Lopez frowned.
“Uncle?... Jose. Jose Lopez.”
“Nice to meet Uncle Jose.”
Lopez nodded. After a short pause, he asked Sylvia. “Listen, Sylvia. You talked about your dad, are you traveling on the liner with your parents?”
“Yes, dad works for the company that owns this ship. And my mother died when I was little. But I have a dad and Lily, so everything is fine. Plus, dad says mom watches me from heaven.”
“That’s nice. You have a good dad. So he works at Umbrella Corporation?”
“Yes. And I’m sick too. But if Dad talks to the big bosses, then in New York they will put me in the hospital. That’s why dad is on the ship.”
“What a nightmare. But if you obey your dad, you will surely recover. I also drank medicine from this company and immediately recovered.”
“Uncle, are you sick?”
Lopez coughed: “A little, at first, now not so much.”
“Is he sick too?”
Lopez noticed that Sylvia was looking behind him and turned around. It was about Jack.
“He seems very bad,” said Sylvia sadly.
Lopez abruptly turned his head: “Sylvia, I have to ask you not to tell anyone about what you saw. If anyone finds out about this man with uncle, they will get very angry.”
In response to Lopez’s serious face, Sylvia smiled innocently. “Understood, very well.”
“You promise?”
“I promise. This will be my secret with Uncle Jose.”
“Well, Sylvia, I have something to do, is it okay if I go back in the cabin?”
“Yeah. But will we talk again? There are almost no people on the ship and it’s boring.”
“Yes OK. But not here... when I’m not busy, then we’ll talk somewhere in a more spacious place.”
“Yeah. Then see you, Uncle Jose. I was glad to talk with you.”
“I was glad to talk too, Sylvia.”
As soon as he said this, Sylvia turned and ran past the cabins along the corridor.
Watching her, Lopez sighed loudly and closed the door behind him. “Well that was a mess, I could have lost my job.”
“Sylvia...”
Lopez suddenly heard. This was not his own voice. Kulik, of course, had not returned yet, and Sylvia had just left, except for Lopez and Jack, there should be no one in the room.
Lopez mechanically turned around and stared at Jack.
“Sylvia... The name is like my girlfriend’s.”
Due to the plastic mask, the voice was muffled and could not be heard clearly. But clearly these words were pronounced by Jack. Lopez’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Hey you, did you just say that?”
Jack was silent.
“No, I heard right! What did you say there? Something about an ex-girlfriend.”
Lopez rushed to Jack’s case file, which lay on the bed.
“Sylvia, Sylvia... she was mentioned somewhere.” Lopez began to look through a long list of female names, victims of Jack. As soon as he embarked on this, Jack spoke again.
“New York... Madison Square Garden ... Knicks. I often went there, I took with me my beloved Sylvia...”
Lopez glanced from the papers.
“Knicks? Are you fond of basketball too? I’m from Chicago, the home of the Bulls!”
Lopez’s eyes lit up. Then, a little nervous, he moved to the edge of the bed closer to Jack and sat right in front of his face.
“You see, we have something to talk about. Right to the point, I want to ask you something...”
Looking up at this point, Jack’s eyes ran, but there was nowhere to go from Lopez. Lopez, making sure that he attracted the attention of Jack, for a second bashfully lowered his eyes and grabbed his hands.
“Before, when I was talking with the girl... and I think you heard...”
Lopez raised his head and looked Jack straight in the eye.
“Tell me, do I really look like an “uncle”?”
Jack’s eyes began to look in front of him again. He didn’t say anything.
Lopez made a displeased face.
“Does that mean that I do look like one? Hey. Answer the question!”
No matter how many times Lopez asked, Jack only looked in front of him and remained silent.
A security camera watched this scene from a corner on the ceiling.
At the guard post, a girl with a tattoo on her shoulder silently watched a video broadcast from Lopez’s cabin. The one with whom Lopez missed in the hallway on the way to his cabin. On the table in front of the monitors was a laptop, at it a girl, slowly began to type. The lines “Liberty. Report, Lieutenant U.B.C.S. Louise Kah” appeared on the screen.
# 6 Report
It was the dead of night. Rain was pouring outside. Large drops of rain fell on the glass and then flowed down, forming a waterfall outside the window. Periodically, flashes of lightning from thunderclouds illuminated a dark room with the light off for a moment.
Chen sat at a table in his office, clutching a handkerchief from time to time, and between suffered a severe cough. A computer was standing in front of him, reports were displayed on the screen. They came from all over the world and in such a huge quantity that the reports were unnecessary according to Chen. He closed without reading and switched to the next one.
This occupation was interrupted by a knock on the door. Without looking up from the monitor, Chen reached out to the control panel and pressed the button. The door opened automatically. Behind it stood the deputy of the board of directors, watching how the door came open, he went inside.
“You went into equipment modification without asking?”
“Due to problems with its effectiveness.”
Chen finally looked up from the monitor and looked at the deputy standing in front of him.
“For me, to offer you to even sit down is a waste of time. Let’s get down to business. If possible, keep it short.”
“Well then, I’ll be honest,” the deputy smiled. “Chen, I want to ask you to refuse to participate in the current project.”
Suddenly, Chen sneezed loudly. The deputy grimaced at such an ugly sound.
“Sorry. It’s the virus. An increase in temperature in the carrier will be enhanced until Red Light loses its effect.” Chen pulled out a handkerchief and blew his nose.
“However... what you said... about, the C-virus. I disagree. Because this is my project.”
“You no longer have the authority to make decisions.”
The deputy took a cigar from his pocket and set it on fire with a lighter. Then, inhaling deeply, he released smoke into Chen’s face, who coughed several times.
“After you left the meeting, the whole council voted. You are no longer a member. From this moment we wanted to appoint you as an ordinary employee of our
laboratory, but, unfortunately, even this is not possible. Your lab and virus samples are now in our hands.”
“And you specially came to inform me about this?” Chen looked at the deputy with a piercing gaze.
“No,” the deputy placed the cigar in his mouth and shook his head. “During a security check, a missing virus was detected. Namely, 2 cases, in which there were five sets of samples. Naturally, under your name.”
Chen spread his hands inquiringly.
“Immediately bring them back.”
Chen began to blow his nose, a handkerchief covering his lower face. With his free hand, he pointed behind the deputy’s back to a long table.
The deputy turned around, saw a white case on the table, went up and picked it up.
“Where is the other one? Probably concealed a long time ago outside the company?”
There was no response from Chen, who was supposed to be behind him.
“Okay. Do not take us for idiots. We can easily calculate your actions. And we’ll immediately understand where you sent it.”
The deputy opened the cover of the case and looked inside. It contained three Red Light and Green Light samples, as well as empty cells from under two sets of samples. The deputy frowned.
“What happened here?!”
Suddenly he felt a slight pain in his thigh. He turned and saw Chen’s face half covered with a handkerchief.
“Well, if you are not an idiot and know how to make calculations, then you probably can easily predict my actions? One kit I used during the meeting. Another kit, I just gave your ass now.”
Chen had a small syringe in the shape of a spray gun in his hands. The deputy’s face froze and the cigar dropped out of his mouth.
“Chimera cocktail just made especially for you!”
Chen pulled the trigger. The solution level in the gun, followed by the sound of fluid injection in an instant, disappeared from the gun.
Chen pulled out the needle and stepped back.
The deputy threw away the case, which he had previously held in his hands. He bent over and moaned loudly.
His face instantly flushed red, blood vessels began to appear through his body, as if sprawling.
“Does it hurt? Heck probably, such a shame. You can hate me!” Chen approached the deputy, not a bit afraid of him, and whispered these words in his ear with ominously polite intonation: “You were right. C-virus is not yet ready complete. But it cannot be called incomplete. Virus changes themselves were tested only in rats. With an increase in the level of intelligence, the physiological functions responsible for the expression of emotions become more complicated and it is more difficult for an activator to recognize commands. In this case, he tries to count the simplest teams from the most difficult ones, but his own recognition criterion is reduced, because of this, our research on this virus is limited by the level of development of physiological functions. In other words, we got confused at the stage who should recognize the commands: virus or carrier.”
Unable to resist, the deputy fell on his back face-up. Chen straightened his back and looked contemptuously at the deputy.
“There is confusion in your body. The virus or the deputy board of directors of Umbrella, now the activator is painfully trying to determine who is really the master of your body. In the case of primates, chimpanzees 75%, with people... you are the first, but 95% of everything will end with the body not accepting the virus. If the virus seizes the initiative, then the goal of Red Light is only to “grow” and no more. It lacks even the principles of symbiosis. It will end with a complete absorption of the medium.”
Chen did not take his eyes off the deputy. Blood flowed from the deputy’s nose. It flowed over his face, from the pores all over his body. The expensive carpet in the office began to turn crimson. The whites of the eyes turned bright red, bloody tears came from the deputy’s eyes. With difficulty focusing his vision, he stared at Chen.
“Yes, fight! Fill yourself with hatred for me! Wretched Asian, because of which you were filled with pride full of such disgrace, awaken in yourself the desire to kill me with your own hands! This is the only way to salvation! Only with the help of a strong “will” can a clear “target” be discovered and gain control over the activator. After defeating the virus, overcome the final “obstacle”! You have no idea with what joy I will receive watching your sacrifice as the first completed form of the human-based virus.”
There were bursting sounds, as if toasting popcorn. Throughout the body, from the bottom up, the skin began to swell and contract. The lips were swollen, the teeth extended, sharpened and looked like fangs. He (the deputy) let out a menacing roar, as if a predator was about to pounce on prey.
From an overabundance of feelings, Chen made tears. Then he looked at the deputy with adoration and spread his arms wide.
“Come to daddy.”
But expectations turned into collapse. The deputy’s body burst. An explosion occurred, the flesh tore and blood flew all over the room. Chen quickly returned the handkerchief to his face, and closed his eyes tightly. As darkness fell, he felt a lukewarm liquid gush over his face.
A little later silence reigned. Chen, calmly looking around in despair, began to gently wipe his face.
“It seems that even after death you did not want to be tied by blood with a poor Asian.”
The handkerchief immediately turned completely red. Chen discovered this after he was finally able to open his eyes, then he threw the handkerchief, heavy with blood, to where the deputy’s body lay.
“I have to be careful. I’m still infected with Red Light. If Green Light enters the bloodstream and the virus swallows the body, I will become the same as you. And then what would we do?”
The words sounded in such a tone as if someone would hear them, but there was nobody on the floor where they were addressed to. Only a huge dark red stain and scattered fragments of flesh resembling a huge blot with splashes scattered in different directions. Chen picked up a blood-stained sample case from the floor, closed the lid, and returned the case to the table. He sat down in his working chair and calmly, turned to the monitor and again began to study the reports. Both the table and the chair and keyboard were stained with blood, but Chen, not at all worried about this, knocked on his keys, as if looking for something.
After a while, Chen stopped and stared at the monitor, lost in thought, then pressed a key. A window appeared on the screen copying the telephone keypad. Chen approached the built-in microphone and said;
“Liberty, challenge.”
From the speakers three times the dial tone sounded and cut off. Chen immediately spoke up.
“It’s me.”
“Dr. Chen, is that you,” answered a female voice through weak interference.
Chen sat at a table in his office, clutching a handkerchief from time to time, and between suffered a severe cough. A computer was standing in front of him, reports were displayed on the screen. They came from all over the world and in such a huge quantity that the reports were unnecessary according to Chen. He closed without reading and switched to the next one.
This occupation was interrupted by a knock on the door. Without looking up from the monitor, Chen reached out to the control panel and pressed the button. The door opened automatically. Behind it stood the deputy of the board of directors, watching how the door came open, he went inside.
“You went into equipment modification without asking?”
“Due to problems with its effectiveness.”
Chen finally looked up from the monitor and looked at the deputy standing in front of him.
“For me, to offer you to even sit down is a waste of time. Let’s get down to business. If possible, keep it short.”
“Well then, I’ll be honest,” the deputy smiled. “Chen, I want to ask you to refuse to participate in the current project.”
Suddenly, Chen sneezed loudly. The deputy grimaced at such an ugly sound.
“Sorry. It’s the virus. An increase in temperature in the carrier will be enhanced until Red Light loses its effect.” Chen pulled out a handkerchief and blew his nose.
“However... what you said... about, the C-virus. I disagree. Because this is my project.”
“You no longer have the authority to make decisions.”
The deputy took a cigar from his pocket and set it on fire with a lighter. Then, inhaling deeply, he released smoke into Chen’s face, who coughed several times.
“After you left the meeting, the whole council voted. You are no longer a member. From this moment we wanted to appoint you as an ordinary employee of our
laboratory, but, unfortunately, even this is not possible. Your lab and virus samples are now in our hands.”
“And you specially came to inform me about this?” Chen looked at the deputy with a piercing gaze.
“No,” the deputy placed the cigar in his mouth and shook his head. “During a security check, a missing virus was detected. Namely, 2 cases, in which there were five sets of samples. Naturally, under your name.”
Chen spread his hands inquiringly.
“Immediately bring them back.”
Chen began to blow his nose, a handkerchief covering his lower face. With his free hand, he pointed behind the deputy’s back to a long table.
The deputy turned around, saw a white case on the table, went up and picked it up.
“Where is the other one? Probably concealed a long time ago outside the company?”
There was no response from Chen, who was supposed to be behind him.
“Okay. Do not take us for idiots. We can easily calculate your actions. And we’ll immediately understand where you sent it.”
The deputy opened the cover of the case and looked inside. It contained three Red Light and Green Light samples, as well as empty cells from under two sets of samples. The deputy frowned.
“What happened here?!”
Suddenly he felt a slight pain in his thigh. He turned and saw Chen’s face half covered with a handkerchief.
“Well, if you are not an idiot and know how to make calculations, then you probably can easily predict my actions? One kit I used during the meeting. Another kit, I just gave your ass now.”
Chen had a small syringe in the shape of a spray gun in his hands. The deputy’s face froze and the cigar dropped out of his mouth.
“Chimera cocktail just made especially for you!”
Chen pulled the trigger. The solution level in the gun, followed by the sound of fluid injection in an instant, disappeared from the gun.
Chen pulled out the needle and stepped back.
The deputy threw away the case, which he had previously held in his hands. He bent over and moaned loudly.
His face instantly flushed red, blood vessels began to appear through his body, as if sprawling.
“Does it hurt? Heck probably, such a shame. You can hate me!” Chen approached the deputy, not a bit afraid of him, and whispered these words in his ear with ominously polite intonation: “You were right. C-virus is not yet ready complete. But it cannot be called incomplete. Virus changes themselves were tested only in rats. With an increase in the level of intelligence, the physiological functions responsible for the expression of emotions become more complicated and it is more difficult for an activator to recognize commands. In this case, he tries to count the simplest teams from the most difficult ones, but his own recognition criterion is reduced, because of this, our research on this virus is limited by the level of development of physiological functions. In other words, we got confused at the stage who should recognize the commands: virus or carrier.”
Unable to resist, the deputy fell on his back face-up. Chen straightened his back and looked contemptuously at the deputy.
“There is confusion in your body. The virus or the deputy board of directors of Umbrella, now the activator is painfully trying to determine who is really the master of your body. In the case of primates, chimpanzees 75%, with people... you are the first, but 95% of everything will end with the body not accepting the virus. If the virus seizes the initiative, then the goal of Red Light is only to “grow” and no more. It lacks even the principles of symbiosis. It will end with a complete absorption of the medium.”
Chen did not take his eyes off the deputy. Blood flowed from the deputy’s nose. It flowed over his face, from the pores all over his body. The expensive carpet in the office began to turn crimson. The whites of the eyes turned bright red, bloody tears came from the deputy’s eyes. With difficulty focusing his vision, he stared at Chen.
“Yes, fight! Fill yourself with hatred for me! Wretched Asian, because of which you were filled with pride full of such disgrace, awaken in yourself the desire to kill me with your own hands! This is the only way to salvation! Only with the help of a strong “will” can a clear “target” be discovered and gain control over the activator. After defeating the virus, overcome the final “obstacle”! You have no idea with what joy I will receive watching your sacrifice as the first completed form of the human-based virus.”
There were bursting sounds, as if toasting popcorn. Throughout the body, from the bottom up, the skin began to swell and contract. The lips were swollen, the teeth extended, sharpened and looked like fangs. He (the deputy) let out a menacing roar, as if a predator was about to pounce on prey.
From an overabundance of feelings, Chen made tears. Then he looked at the deputy with adoration and spread his arms wide.
“Come to daddy.”
But expectations turned into collapse. The deputy’s body burst. An explosion occurred, the flesh tore and blood flew all over the room. Chen quickly returned the handkerchief to his face, and closed his eyes tightly. As darkness fell, he felt a lukewarm liquid gush over his face.
A little later silence reigned. Chen, calmly looking around in despair, began to gently wipe his face.
“It seems that even after death you did not want to be tied by blood with a poor Asian.”
The handkerchief immediately turned completely red. Chen discovered this after he was finally able to open his eyes, then he threw the handkerchief, heavy with blood, to where the deputy’s body lay.
“I have to be careful. I’m still infected with Red Light. If Green Light enters the bloodstream and the virus swallows the body, I will become the same as you. And then what would we do?”
The words sounded in such a tone as if someone would hear them, but there was nobody on the floor where they were addressed to. Only a huge dark red stain and scattered fragments of flesh resembling a huge blot with splashes scattered in different directions. Chen picked up a blood-stained sample case from the floor, closed the lid, and returned the case to the table. He sat down in his working chair and calmly, turned to the monitor and again began to study the reports. Both the table and the chair and keyboard were stained with blood, but Chen, not at all worried about this, knocked on his keys, as if looking for something.
After a while, Chen stopped and stared at the monitor, lost in thought, then pressed a key. A window appeared on the screen copying the telephone keypad. Chen approached the built-in microphone and said;
“Liberty, challenge.”
From the speakers three times the dial tone sounded and cut off. Chen immediately spoke up.
“It’s me.”
“Dr. Chen, is that you,” answered a female voice through weak interference.
“Yes it’s me. And once again I say, stop calling me “doctor”, you can just call me Robert.”
“I did not expect you to call directly. Besides, now I have a watch on duty. Nothing personal.”
“Cold as always, this is what attracts me. And yet, you must call me “Lieutenant Kah.” Somehow sounds too formal. I know best of all how you hate your last name. Don’t you, Louise.”
There was no response. Lieutenant Kah said nothing.
“Never mind. I know, you’re very busy right now. I finally read the reports that have accumulated from you. And I found extremely interesting information in them, for example, here, one of the passengers is the Ripper, because of him there was great hype throughout England.”
“Jack Trump. Is being convoyed with US Marshals.”
“I have not heard of this from other employees.”
Veins appeared on Chen’s forehead. To let off the steam, he glanced his eyes at the deputy.
“Their duties do not include a report to you. Your authority does not extend to Liberty, Doctor. He is not the property of Chen Industries.”
“Clearly, this fucking thing was blown away.” Remembering what happened before the call, he laughed.
“Did you say something?”
“Do not pay attention, just a thought out loud. Yes, by the way, is the case with the samples in order?”
“Yes, there were no problems. If everything goes according to plan, then it will be delivered to New York along with Liberty.”
“Speaking of plans... The situation has changed a bit. Now, everything has become complicated. As a result, I am completely isolated. And there is nobody on my side.”
Suddenly, Chen cried. The tone of his voice changed, on the other end of the line, although it was not possible to see Chen, but somehow Lieutenant Kah imagined him in person.
“I’m flying out right now. I want to at least see you.”
“Doctor...”
“I said Robert,” Chen sniffed, “I can’t even do that. Louise, listen. The people on the board of directors were not complete idiots. Perhaps in a few days, someone, under some pretext, will come to collect the samples. But samples are the second thing that matters to me after you.”
The lieutenant said nothing. Chen continued on.
“The expected guests at Liberty will be Umbrella’s employees... Most likely the Special Forces that protect Umbrella, perhaps even some will be your colleagues. In any case, they will be very strong. I think it’s not going to be pleasant for you. Forgive me. For putting you through such tests. I’m sorry.”
“Robert...”
Chen hit the keys several times. When the “Enter Password” window appeared and his fingers ran across the keyboard. Then it was replaced by the heading “C-virus, top secret”, then he typed something else and a long download bar appeared “File sent”.
“Now, together with the materials, I sent you plans, in case something happens to me, carefully read them. Samples of the C-virus must be delivered to New York, no matter in what form. I will go there first and wait for you. I love you, Louise.”
The scale was full, sending was completed.
Through the weak interference, the lieutenant’s voice overflowing with tenderness sounded:
“You too, Robert.”
“Meet me at the skyscraper.”
Chen pressed a key. The sound broke off. The lieutenant’s voice disappeared from the speakers.
“It was Louise. Yes. I remembered this time. I almost called her a different name.”
Chen turned on the chair. Through the glass in the dark, he looked at his dim reflection, with both hands he collected the blood adhered to the suit and began to apply it to his hair as a styling tool. He did it whistling merrily, and nothing reminded him that there were just streams of it on his cheeks. Chen turned back in his chair, this time to the computer, and started typing. Several pages of newspaper articles appeared immediately on the monitor. In all of them it was written about Jack.
“The “target” is nowhere closer. If we need a strong “will”, he would have it. He will definitely be able to overcome the “obstacle”.”
Chen made a pleased face: “My most welcome guest.”
“I did not expect you to call directly. Besides, now I have a watch on duty. Nothing personal.”
“Cold as always, this is what attracts me. And yet, you must call me “Lieutenant Kah.” Somehow sounds too formal. I know best of all how you hate your last name. Don’t you, Louise.”
There was no response. Lieutenant Kah said nothing.
“Never mind. I know, you’re very busy right now. I finally read the reports that have accumulated from you. And I found extremely interesting information in them, for example, here, one of the passengers is the Ripper, because of him there was great hype throughout England.”
“Jack Trump. Is being convoyed with US Marshals.”
“I have not heard of this from other employees.”
Veins appeared on Chen’s forehead. To let off the steam, he glanced his eyes at the deputy.
“Their duties do not include a report to you. Your authority does not extend to Liberty, Doctor. He is not the property of Chen Industries.”
“Clearly, this fucking thing was blown away.” Remembering what happened before the call, he laughed.
“Did you say something?”
“Do not pay attention, just a thought out loud. Yes, by the way, is the case with the samples in order?”
“Yes, there were no problems. If everything goes according to plan, then it will be delivered to New York along with Liberty.”
“Speaking of plans... The situation has changed a bit. Now, everything has become complicated. As a result, I am completely isolated. And there is nobody on my side.”
Suddenly, Chen cried. The tone of his voice changed, on the other end of the line, although it was not possible to see Chen, but somehow Lieutenant Kah imagined him in person.
“I’m flying out right now. I want to at least see you.”
“Doctor...”
“I said Robert,” Chen sniffed, “I can’t even do that. Louise, listen. The people on the board of directors were not complete idiots. Perhaps in a few days, someone, under some pretext, will come to collect the samples. But samples are the second thing that matters to me after you.”
The lieutenant said nothing. Chen continued on.
“The expected guests at Liberty will be Umbrella’s employees... Most likely the Special Forces that protect Umbrella, perhaps even some will be your colleagues. In any case, they will be very strong. I think it’s not going to be pleasant for you. Forgive me. For putting you through such tests. I’m sorry.”
“Robert...”
Chen hit the keys several times. When the “Enter Password” window appeared and his fingers ran across the keyboard. Then it was replaced by the heading “C-virus, top secret”, then he typed something else and a long download bar appeared “File sent”.
“Now, together with the materials, I sent you plans, in case something happens to me, carefully read them. Samples of the C-virus must be delivered to New York, no matter in what form. I will go there first and wait for you. I love you, Louise.”
The scale was full, sending was completed.
Through the weak interference, the lieutenant’s voice overflowing with tenderness sounded:
“You too, Robert.”
“Meet me at the skyscraper.”
Chen pressed a key. The sound broke off. The lieutenant’s voice disappeared from the speakers.
“It was Louise. Yes. I remembered this time. I almost called her a different name.”
Chen turned on the chair. Through the glass in the dark, he looked at his dim reflection, with both hands he collected the blood adhered to the suit and began to apply it to his hair as a styling tool. He did it whistling merrily, and nothing reminded him that there were just streams of it on his cheeks. Chen turned back in his chair, this time to the computer, and started typing. Several pages of newspaper articles appeared immediately on the monitor. In all of them it was written about Jack.
“The “target” is nowhere closer. If we need a strong “will”, he would have it. He will definitely be able to overcome the “obstacle”.”
Chen made a pleased face: “My most welcome guest.”
# 7 Guest
The mainland was getting closer and closer.
But if you look from the point of view of the number of days since departure from the port, there were still several hundred miles ahead. And while traveling by sea took quite a lot of time, on the other hand, this meant that the time to arrival on the mainland was also reduced. Unless, of course, after crossing the ocean, the continent really existed, but its existence was proved by the great sailors more than five hundred years ago. So for this, Lopez was calm.
Most of the time he spent in the cabin guarding Jack, but several times a day Lopez had short breaks, and if you add them all together, it turned out that during them Lopez mostly met on deck with several people from the few passengers on the ship. And since this happened on board the liner, usually Lopez met a man who admired the ocean and exchanged a few words with him. Where he came from, where he worked, whether he had a family, conversations about hobbies, Lopez always talked about basketball, but it was only interesting to Americans and the conversation did not move on. Jack and Kulik, although they were Americans, Jack remained speechless, as always, and Kulik was a baseball fan. Until his arrival on the mainland, Lopez had an eternity in which there was no one to talk about his hobby with.
In addition, Lopez was very interested in why he did not have a badge unlike almost everyone he met. From the very beginning, Kulik answered the question about the name of badges with general phrases that there was no need to publicize the presence of US Marshals, otherwise you could put an end to your career, but over time, the answer for the constantly annoying Lopez became clear. It was not clear whether this was the influence of Hollywood films or the cooperation of the local police with the FBI, while the work of the Marshals’ service did not imply detailed explanations, absolutely no one was interested in this. Even Lopez knew only one way about the work of the Marshal’s service; he saw this film adaptation in his childhood on television. In the story one doctor committed the murder of his wife and went on the run, the man chasing him was an employee of the same Marshal’s service, in which Lopez now worked. It was still a film, and despite the fact that they were escorting a dangerous criminal, their daily work was completely locked up with a mountain of reports on the table and a quiet escort. Despite this, if they mentioned that they were transporting Jack the Ripper himself, they probably could have earned respect, but, unfortunately, it was impossible, and Lopez in the eyes of his workers looked like an errand boy in the US government.
In addition, he communicated with Sylvia, as agreed. Lopez did not yet have children, so he had no idea how to interact with them, but Sylvia was a friendly girl, who often found Lopez and ran to him. Most likely of all the adult passengers on the liner, she felt that Lopez was her closest friend. It was not a matter of age or environmental conditions; the characteristic features were suggested that Lopez was a man loving children, although he himself did not realize this, and simply met to play with Sylvia.
And today during the break, he again walked along the deck of the liner. It was evening and the sun was about to set over the horizon. Passing by the dining room, he saw a crowd of workers on the liner, they were very noisy. Having looked more closely, he distinguished two men who, holding onto a table, were competing in arm wrestling. The sailors around them were strong, as expected from sailors, in contrast to them, one of the participants in a struggle was a fairly young man, and Lopez even thought that it would turn out to be an interesting struggle. However, his opponent resisted and used different tactics, trying with two hands to put one hand on the young sailor down. It was the journalist whom Lopez met on the first day of his voyage. The journalist’s face became crimson, finally unable to withstand the journalist exhaled loudly. It was his maximum. His two hands were pressed to the table. The result was predictable for those around him, and the table immediately toppled. Coins and banknotes of European countries that were in circulation before the emergence of the European Union began to fly off the table. The pounds that the journalist gave were most likely a bet in the fight.
Of course, the journalist was the loser.
“Well, one more time?” one of the sailors asked the journalist. The journalist smiled and shook his head. The sailors gathered money in packs and dispersed.
But if you look from the point of view of the number of days since departure from the port, there were still several hundred miles ahead. And while traveling by sea took quite a lot of time, on the other hand, this meant that the time to arrival on the mainland was also reduced. Unless, of course, after crossing the ocean, the continent really existed, but its existence was proved by the great sailors more than five hundred years ago. So for this, Lopez was calm.
Most of the time he spent in the cabin guarding Jack, but several times a day Lopez had short breaks, and if you add them all together, it turned out that during them Lopez mostly met on deck with several people from the few passengers on the ship. And since this happened on board the liner, usually Lopez met a man who admired the ocean and exchanged a few words with him. Where he came from, where he worked, whether he had a family, conversations about hobbies, Lopez always talked about basketball, but it was only interesting to Americans and the conversation did not move on. Jack and Kulik, although they were Americans, Jack remained speechless, as always, and Kulik was a baseball fan. Until his arrival on the mainland, Lopez had an eternity in which there was no one to talk about his hobby with.
In addition, Lopez was very interested in why he did not have a badge unlike almost everyone he met. From the very beginning, Kulik answered the question about the name of badges with general phrases that there was no need to publicize the presence of US Marshals, otherwise you could put an end to your career, but over time, the answer for the constantly annoying Lopez became clear. It was not clear whether this was the influence of Hollywood films or the cooperation of the local police with the FBI, while the work of the Marshals’ service did not imply detailed explanations, absolutely no one was interested in this. Even Lopez knew only one way about the work of the Marshal’s service; he saw this film adaptation in his childhood on television. In the story one doctor committed the murder of his wife and went on the run, the man chasing him was an employee of the same Marshal’s service, in which Lopez now worked. It was still a film, and despite the fact that they were escorting a dangerous criminal, their daily work was completely locked up with a mountain of reports on the table and a quiet escort. Despite this, if they mentioned that they were transporting Jack the Ripper himself, they probably could have earned respect, but, unfortunately, it was impossible, and Lopez in the eyes of his workers looked like an errand boy in the US government.
In addition, he communicated with Sylvia, as agreed. Lopez did not yet have children, so he had no idea how to interact with them, but Sylvia was a friendly girl, who often found Lopez and ran to him. Most likely of all the adult passengers on the liner, she felt that Lopez was her closest friend. It was not a matter of age or environmental conditions; the characteristic features were suggested that Lopez was a man loving children, although he himself did not realize this, and simply met to play with Sylvia.
And today during the break, he again walked along the deck of the liner. It was evening and the sun was about to set over the horizon. Passing by the dining room, he saw a crowd of workers on the liner, they were very noisy. Having looked more closely, he distinguished two men who, holding onto a table, were competing in arm wrestling. The sailors around them were strong, as expected from sailors, in contrast to them, one of the participants in a struggle was a fairly young man, and Lopez even thought that it would turn out to be an interesting struggle. However, his opponent resisted and used different tactics, trying with two hands to put one hand on the young sailor down. It was the journalist whom Lopez met on the first day of his voyage. The journalist’s face became crimson, finally unable to withstand the journalist exhaled loudly. It was his maximum. His two hands were pressed to the table. The result was predictable for those around him, and the table immediately toppled. Coins and banknotes of European countries that were in circulation before the emergence of the European Union began to fly off the table. The pounds that the journalist gave were most likely a bet in the fight.
Of course, the journalist was the loser.
“Well, one more time?” one of the sailors asked the journalist. The journalist smiled and shook his head. The sailors gathered money in packs and dispersed.
Lopez approached the table, the journalist noticed him and spoke, “And it’s Mr. Detective.”
“Marshal. I told you so many times, you can’t remember. It appears, you lost.”
The journalist got up from around the table and went to Lopez.
“A problem with physical strength. I’m far from the blue collars.”
As an American, he never used the phrase “Blue Collar”, Lopez once again confirmed that the journalist was really English.
The journalist caught up with Lopez and they continued to stroll together.
“Therefore, here... to overcome my opponent, I used my head as a weapon.” The journalist pointed a finger at his head.
“What are you using, Mr. Detective? Do Americans use guns?”
Lopez smiled tightly.
“As a Marshal, they require you to have a clear head. People working in the services of our government equally require both head and physical strength. You must at least be a graduate of a state university and at the same time have the physicality of a professional athlete. The state needs supermen. I have both of these qualities, so I work in the Service.”
“Supermen, it’s so American.” The journalist laughed. “Possessing such qualities, you could become anyone. Why then would you want to serve in the government? Sense of justice? Or is it the desire to serve their country inherent in the Americans?”
Lopez did not answer.
“Would you like to become someone more?”
“And from childhood, you wanted to become a journalist?”
“Haha, it’s complicated,” the journalist laughed again. “But I always thought about that. In all likelihood, the direction in which a person moves is determined from the moment of his birth. His environment, a set of genes that he inherits from his parents. If you think about it, then a person becomes what he should become, and on the contrary, he cannot become someone else, because he does not even imagine another scenario, does he? And if we continue this thought, it turns out there is no god and miracles do not happen. Therefore, there is no other way out than to quickly take the path that is intended for you, and wisely follow it.”
“True. And indeed you have a bright mind.”
“But there are those who do not understand this – people like the Ripper. As I believe, they simply do not want to accept their reality and therefore do such cruelty.”
Lopez raised his eyebrows.
“How unexpected that you mentioned him. I see that the English like to discuss such topics.”
“You cannot pretend. You are escorting him, aren’t you?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about?”
Lopez tried to pretend that he was completely calm, but he immediately understood everything.
“There are no secrets for newspaper journalists. Don’t worry. I will not tell anyone about this. After all, my task now is to write an article about Liberty’s test route.”
“Here I am stuck.”
“Detective... no, Marshal, so what do you think about what I said earlier. Not about the Ripper, but about God, miracles, fate and the like?”
Lopez turned and made a serious face, thought for a moment. Two, three seconds later, he began to say, “My opinion differs quite a bit, I believe that God exists. He’s just very busy. Therefore, miracles or something like that happen so rarely. I must say, I myself have never seen a miracle. I mean, if they happened all the time, they would lose their value. God needs to maintain dignity, so he rarely performs miracles.”
The journalist silently looked at Lopez.
Noticing this, Lopez asked: “Did I say something strange?”
“No, your point of view is very insightful. Such thoughts can only come from a bright mind. It sounded very poetic. Perhaps you are journalist even more than I. Because you are a romantic.”
Lopez’s face flushed.
“Miracles, then. Let’s suppose that God really exists, and will ever perform a miracle, so what would you wish, Mr. Marshal?”
“I need to think... no, let’s not. It is very indecent to make such orders with God with such thoughts. Even if a miracle happens, it will be part of one’s own destiny. And all that remains is to accept this miracle, right?”
“On this ship a lot of drugs are onboard. What if at least one of them is able to work a miracle?”
“That does not count. Whoever the current pharmaceutical company, it’s still medicine made by people, so God may lose his job.”
The journalist suddenly stopped and looked in the face of Lopez.
“Let’s stop discussing this issue. After all, Mr. Marshal, it’s also inconvenient for you to continue talking about such things. I would like to know your opinion out of sheer curiosity.”
“What for?”
The journalist’s serious face made Lopez swallow saliva.
“It doesn’t matter, medicine or deeds of God. But if a miracle descends on the Ripper, and he really can continue to go against his fate. What can he become then?”
Lopez stared? silently at the journalist. At that moment he heard a voice behind him.
“Uncle Jose!”
Lopez turned and saw Sylvia, she was dragging an adult man by the hand. He had not seen him before but he must have already been on the deck, bathed by the sun with a tan. Sylvia approached Lopez, continuing to drag the man.
“Good evening, Uncle Lopez.”
“Hello, Sylvia. How are you?”
“Dad, look, this is him. Uncle Jose.”
When Sylvia turned to the man, he offered his free hand to shake it with Lopez.
“I heard a lot about you from Sylvia. I am her father.”
Lopez shook his hand in response. “Ah, very nice to meet you. Jose Lopez.”
“Sorry, Sylvia gives you so much trouble.”
“What are you – it’s no trouble. She is a very wise and a good child, your Sylvia.”
The journalist behind Lopez gave voice, “Mr. Marshal, I think I’ll go.” And without waiting for an answer, he went towards the passenger cabins.
Lopez turned and asked: “Are you sure? You have not finished your question.”
“We will continue next time... Perhaps later return me my handkerchief.”
After these words, the journalist left.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Lopez, that man called you the Marshal,” said the father of Sylvia. But the first one to answer was Sylvia.
“Uncle Jose is an American Marshal. When we first met him, he almost shot Lily.”
Sylvia clasped tightly around Lily’s neck, and from the side it seemed that the doll nodded in agreement.
Lopez was petrified. She was too honest.
Sylvia vowed that she would not tell her father about him, Kulik and another uncle. Not only the journalist knows, but when ordinary passengers find out about Jack, there will be problems. In the worst case, at the end of the voyage, a new journey will immediately begin—into the world of job search. All these prospects instantly appeared in Lopez’s head.
He coughed and asked Sylvia, “Yes, by the way, Sylvia, did you keep your promise?”
“It’s all right, I’m a good girl.” And Sylvia smiled innocently.
“Sylvia, go for a short walk, dad needs to have a conversation with uncle.”
Sylvia nodded to these words. “Yeah, good. See you, Uncle Jose!” Waving her hand, she withdrew.
Lopez waved back and watched her.
Immediately, the father of Sylvia began a conversation. “Lopez, do you have any children?”
“No, I’m still single.”
“So this is how it is. Sylvia is very attached to you. I constantly hear from her about Uncle Jose... She has a lot of fun talking with you. I really thank you.”
“Well you know, it’s nothing...”
“You can’t help her anymore.”
For a moment, Lopez doubted his ears, but he did not have the determination to ask again. Turning, he saw the profile of Sylvia’s father in the orange light of the sunset, with a smile on his face, he watched the playfully running away Sylvia.
“Did she tell you about her illness?”
“Yes, she said that you will talk with important people from your company upon arrival in New York, she will be placed in a large hospital.”
“This is all a lie. She was examined by doctors all over Europe. It’s too late.”
Lopez looked at Father Sylvia for a while. Then he very carefully asked the following question.
“Does Sylvia know?”
Father shook his head. “It looks like some kind of extremely rare blood disease, it occurs in one in a million. There is no way to cure her. I started work at Umbrella for her, but even with such connections – this is my last hope. Do not think that I am showing off, but Umbrella is probably the most advanced pharmaceutical corporation in the world. And if they cannot help, then there will be nothing left but to put up with... In fact, I quit recently, the last thing that connects me with the company is now floating on this ship. I want at least Sylvia to have memories of this cruise. Her mother was an American by birth, a native of New York. And there we met. And then... Sylvia was born.
Lopez could not tear himself away from the serious face of his father. He (the father), in turn, continued to watch his beloved daughter.
“If God really is...” His eyes filled with tears. “Do you believe... in miracles? I would really like to believe.”
Lopez did not answer. He desperately tried to find the words for the answer, but they were not found. His thoughts, previously expressed to the journalist, were out of place trivial, that even his mouth was not worth opening.
Finally, Sylvia briskly ran back to the men. Her father’s face immediately brightened, and in a hurry he wiped away his tears.
“Already finished talking?”
“Yes, done. Well, Sylvia, we have to go back to the cabin.”
But Sylvia shook her head. “Nope, I also want to talk with Uncle Jose.”
“But uncle is busy.”
But Sylvia did not listen to him at all. Then Lopez crouched down and caught up with Sylvia’s eyes.
“Sylvia, today is not the last day we’ll see each other. We will definitely meet next time and then we’ll talk. Be a good girl and listen to dad.”
Sylvia nodded, took her father’s hand and together they left. Lopez watched the two silhouettes of an adult and a child illuminated by sunset light until they were out of sight, then returned to his cabin. Several hours had passed since sunset. And it was already deep into the night, this time he was awake in their cabin. They had organized shift duty and that night was Lopez’s turn. The light in the cabin was turned off. Lopez sat on one half of the bed with his legs dangling and leaned against the wall, re-reading the newspaper bought before boarding the liner. Kulik was sleeping in the second half of the bed. Jack, as always, was sitting on a chair, tilting his head and leaning his back against the porthole, calmly sleeping.
Sometimes a short but very loud snoring was heard from Kulik, and the rest of the time it was very quiet. The night was calm.
The place where Lopez sat was illuminated by the bright light from the porthole. He looked up and saw that a full moon was floating across the sky outside the window. Lopez folded the newspaper and turned to the porthole. Until now, every day was monotonous, but today was a little different. Lopez scrolled through his head memories of today’s events. A conversation with a journalist, the future of Sylvia and the grief of her father. Each passenger on this ship that Lopez met had their own lives and their problems.
Even the cruel maniac who was sleeping in front of him now, and the unfriendly partner, fixated on the performance of work duties, without exception they had their own past and future. And Lopez himself now just shared the current moment with all of them. For each of them, it was absolutely impossible to calculate what kind of life, fate and miracles anyone had. The attitude to the thoughts said at first by the journalist had not changed inside Lopez, but at that moment he could not have repeated them to Sylvia’s father. Even if he had the guts to say so, the words about the existence of God would have sounded absurd. Still, as a result of his idea that fate was predetermined from the very beginning. God existed and worked miracles, people who did not accept their destiny were just looking for excuses? At least Lopez thought.
After some time, an old memory came to life before Lopez’s eyes. He continued to look at the moon, and in an instant he was looking at his palms, and his feet on a smooth floor. There was a roar from a crowd. In the midst of all this, a voice familiar from his time at university came to Lopez.
“Hey, what are you doing? If you aren’t going to pass, then throw it in the basket!”
It was the voice of his basketball coach. Lopez held the ball in his hands and decided to make the throw. The opponent’s defense was too tight. His path was blocked by the inscription “Illinois” on a sports uniform. I’ll shoot, Lopez thought.
Lopez broke through the opponent, advancing with his team, using the strength of the legs, which he was so proud of, he soared forward.
At that moment, something strange happened. A great pain ran through the ankle of his right leg, and his whole body lost speed, the direction of his throw changed. Lopez crashed down and hit the floor hard. What happened next he did not remember. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in a hospital bed, and his right leg was firmly strapped. The tendon seemed to be torn. There was no permanent damage, but for a short player of a basketball team whose only weapon was his speed, this meant that he would no longer be able to jump with such force. The childhood dream of a professional basketball player of his native Chicago team remained on the hospital bed.
Lopez opened his eyes wide, the ball in his hands again only now it became the moon in the porthole. It looked like he disconnected for a short while. He looked around and made sure that both Kulik and Jack had not seen, nobody had seen and with a sigh of relief, he ran a hand over his chest, then got out of bed. If I fall asleep on duty, it would not be good, thought Lopez. As if to make sure that he had a dream, Lopez rolled his trouser leg on his right foot, pulled his sock off and looked at the old wound. Lopez has long realized that this scar after surgery was a symbol of the ego of a person suffering from pain because he tried to change his destiny. And, of course, without any miracles, Lopez graduated from a law school, joined the Marshals Service, and he was where he was to this day.
As a result, Lopez was a man who did not become who he wanted to become. After receiving an injury, to some extent he accepted his fate. Maybe for this reason he had never witnessed a miracle. But despite this, deep down, he believed in miracles. And if it ever happens, if this time I will be able to see it with my own eyes, I want it to happen not with me, but with Sylvia, thought Lopez.
At that moment, Jack’s eyebrows twitched. Asleep. He was probably dreaming of something. Watching Jack, Lopez remembered what the journalist was saying. He called Jack a man who did not accept his destiny, but Lopez did not think so. He watched Jack out of the corner of his eye throughout the journey, and Lopez had the impression that Jack had accepted his destiny. Most dangerous criminals that Lopez had to deal with before, did not want to realize their situation and, at the slightest opportunity, looked for a way to escape. Usually in the depths of their eyes the flame of hope continued to burn, it was the flame of expectation of a miracle. However, Jack did not have this. In fact, he had no ambitions and in his behavior did not feel that he was hoping for a miracle. In the words of the journalist there was some strange conviction. His words are full of confidence where they came from, Lopez mused.
Thinking deep in thought, Lopez closed his eyes again. Physically, fatigue was not felt, but morally he was exhausted.
This time he fell into a deep sleep. If he wakes up before Kulik catches him, then there will be no problems. Until now, he seized the moment several times and slept while on duty. Even then there were no problems. And tonight was no different than usual. Lopez had no worries.
However, his intentions were not hidden from the video surveillance camera in the corner on the ceiling. Focusing on Lopez, the camera watched. Then the door silently opened and the night began, which was different from a usual one. Blocking the light from the corridor into the cabin where Lopez was, a pair of legs penetrated without a single sound. Making sure that Lopez and Kulik did not wake up, the legs immediately moved toward Jack. Jack stood before Lieutenant Kah. In her hands was a syringe gun. Then she very quickly took Jack’s head in her hands and put her index finger on the trigger. But nothing happened yet. The lieutenant took a deep breath and nodded quietly to herself.
“Marshal. I told you so many times, you can’t remember. It appears, you lost.”
The journalist got up from around the table and went to Lopez.
“A problem with physical strength. I’m far from the blue collars.”
As an American, he never used the phrase “Blue Collar”, Lopez once again confirmed that the journalist was really English.
The journalist caught up with Lopez and they continued to stroll together.
“Therefore, here... to overcome my opponent, I used my head as a weapon.” The journalist pointed a finger at his head.
“What are you using, Mr. Detective? Do Americans use guns?”
Lopez smiled tightly.
“As a Marshal, they require you to have a clear head. People working in the services of our government equally require both head and physical strength. You must at least be a graduate of a state university and at the same time have the physicality of a professional athlete. The state needs supermen. I have both of these qualities, so I work in the Service.”
“Supermen, it’s so American.” The journalist laughed. “Possessing such qualities, you could become anyone. Why then would you want to serve in the government? Sense of justice? Or is it the desire to serve their country inherent in the Americans?”
Lopez did not answer.
“Would you like to become someone more?”
“And from childhood, you wanted to become a journalist?”
“Haha, it’s complicated,” the journalist laughed again. “But I always thought about that. In all likelihood, the direction in which a person moves is determined from the moment of his birth. His environment, a set of genes that he inherits from his parents. If you think about it, then a person becomes what he should become, and on the contrary, he cannot become someone else, because he does not even imagine another scenario, does he? And if we continue this thought, it turns out there is no god and miracles do not happen. Therefore, there is no other way out than to quickly take the path that is intended for you, and wisely follow it.”
“True. And indeed you have a bright mind.”
“But there are those who do not understand this – people like the Ripper. As I believe, they simply do not want to accept their reality and therefore do such cruelty.”
Lopez raised his eyebrows.
“How unexpected that you mentioned him. I see that the English like to discuss such topics.”
“You cannot pretend. You are escorting him, aren’t you?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about?”
Lopez tried to pretend that he was completely calm, but he immediately understood everything.
“There are no secrets for newspaper journalists. Don’t worry. I will not tell anyone about this. After all, my task now is to write an article about Liberty’s test route.”
“Here I am stuck.”
“Detective... no, Marshal, so what do you think about what I said earlier. Not about the Ripper, but about God, miracles, fate and the like?”
Lopez turned and made a serious face, thought for a moment. Two, three seconds later, he began to say, “My opinion differs quite a bit, I believe that God exists. He’s just very busy. Therefore, miracles or something like that happen so rarely. I must say, I myself have never seen a miracle. I mean, if they happened all the time, they would lose their value. God needs to maintain dignity, so he rarely performs miracles.”
The journalist silently looked at Lopez.
Noticing this, Lopez asked: “Did I say something strange?”
“No, your point of view is very insightful. Such thoughts can only come from a bright mind. It sounded very poetic. Perhaps you are journalist even more than I. Because you are a romantic.”
Lopez’s face flushed.
“Miracles, then. Let’s suppose that God really exists, and will ever perform a miracle, so what would you wish, Mr. Marshal?”
“I need to think... no, let’s not. It is very indecent to make such orders with God with such thoughts. Even if a miracle happens, it will be part of one’s own destiny. And all that remains is to accept this miracle, right?”
“On this ship a lot of drugs are onboard. What if at least one of them is able to work a miracle?”
“That does not count. Whoever the current pharmaceutical company, it’s still medicine made by people, so God may lose his job.”
The journalist suddenly stopped and looked in the face of Lopez.
“Let’s stop discussing this issue. After all, Mr. Marshal, it’s also inconvenient for you to continue talking about such things. I would like to know your opinion out of sheer curiosity.”
“What for?”
The journalist’s serious face made Lopez swallow saliva.
“It doesn’t matter, medicine or deeds of God. But if a miracle descends on the Ripper, and he really can continue to go against his fate. What can he become then?”
Lopez stared? silently at the journalist. At that moment he heard a voice behind him.
“Uncle Jose!”
Lopez turned and saw Sylvia, she was dragging an adult man by the hand. He had not seen him before but he must have already been on the deck, bathed by the sun with a tan. Sylvia approached Lopez, continuing to drag the man.
“Good evening, Uncle Lopez.”
“Hello, Sylvia. How are you?”
“Dad, look, this is him. Uncle Jose.”
When Sylvia turned to the man, he offered his free hand to shake it with Lopez.
“I heard a lot about you from Sylvia. I am her father.”
Lopez shook his hand in response. “Ah, very nice to meet you. Jose Lopez.”
“Sorry, Sylvia gives you so much trouble.”
“What are you – it’s no trouble. She is a very wise and a good child, your Sylvia.”
The journalist behind Lopez gave voice, “Mr. Marshal, I think I’ll go.” And without waiting for an answer, he went towards the passenger cabins.
Lopez turned and asked: “Are you sure? You have not finished your question.”
“We will continue next time... Perhaps later return me my handkerchief.”
After these words, the journalist left.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Lopez, that man called you the Marshal,” said the father of Sylvia. But the first one to answer was Sylvia.
“Uncle Jose is an American Marshal. When we first met him, he almost shot Lily.”
Sylvia clasped tightly around Lily’s neck, and from the side it seemed that the doll nodded in agreement.
Lopez was petrified. She was too honest.
Sylvia vowed that she would not tell her father about him, Kulik and another uncle. Not only the journalist knows, but when ordinary passengers find out about Jack, there will be problems. In the worst case, at the end of the voyage, a new journey will immediately begin—into the world of job search. All these prospects instantly appeared in Lopez’s head.
He coughed and asked Sylvia, “Yes, by the way, Sylvia, did you keep your promise?”
“It’s all right, I’m a good girl.” And Sylvia smiled innocently.
“Sylvia, go for a short walk, dad needs to have a conversation with uncle.”
Sylvia nodded to these words. “Yeah, good. See you, Uncle Jose!” Waving her hand, she withdrew.
Lopez waved back and watched her.
Immediately, the father of Sylvia began a conversation. “Lopez, do you have any children?”
“No, I’m still single.”
“So this is how it is. Sylvia is very attached to you. I constantly hear from her about Uncle Jose... She has a lot of fun talking with you. I really thank you.”
“Well you know, it’s nothing...”
“You can’t help her anymore.”
For a moment, Lopez doubted his ears, but he did not have the determination to ask again. Turning, he saw the profile of Sylvia’s father in the orange light of the sunset, with a smile on his face, he watched the playfully running away Sylvia.
“Did she tell you about her illness?”
“Yes, she said that you will talk with important people from your company upon arrival in New York, she will be placed in a large hospital.”
“This is all a lie. She was examined by doctors all over Europe. It’s too late.”
Lopez looked at Father Sylvia for a while. Then he very carefully asked the following question.
“Does Sylvia know?”
Father shook his head. “It looks like some kind of extremely rare blood disease, it occurs in one in a million. There is no way to cure her. I started work at Umbrella for her, but even with such connections – this is my last hope. Do not think that I am showing off, but Umbrella is probably the most advanced pharmaceutical corporation in the world. And if they cannot help, then there will be nothing left but to put up with... In fact, I quit recently, the last thing that connects me with the company is now floating on this ship. I want at least Sylvia to have memories of this cruise. Her mother was an American by birth, a native of New York. And there we met. And then... Sylvia was born.
Lopez could not tear himself away from the serious face of his father. He (the father), in turn, continued to watch his beloved daughter.
“If God really is...” His eyes filled with tears. “Do you believe... in miracles? I would really like to believe.”
Lopez did not answer. He desperately tried to find the words for the answer, but they were not found. His thoughts, previously expressed to the journalist, were out of place trivial, that even his mouth was not worth opening.
Finally, Sylvia briskly ran back to the men. Her father’s face immediately brightened, and in a hurry he wiped away his tears.
“Already finished talking?”
“Yes, done. Well, Sylvia, we have to go back to the cabin.”
But Sylvia shook her head. “Nope, I also want to talk with Uncle Jose.”
“But uncle is busy.”
But Sylvia did not listen to him at all. Then Lopez crouched down and caught up with Sylvia’s eyes.
“Sylvia, today is not the last day we’ll see each other. We will definitely meet next time and then we’ll talk. Be a good girl and listen to dad.”
Sylvia nodded, took her father’s hand and together they left. Lopez watched the two silhouettes of an adult and a child illuminated by sunset light until they were out of sight, then returned to his cabin. Several hours had passed since sunset. And it was already deep into the night, this time he was awake in their cabin. They had organized shift duty and that night was Lopez’s turn. The light in the cabin was turned off. Lopez sat on one half of the bed with his legs dangling and leaned against the wall, re-reading the newspaper bought before boarding the liner. Kulik was sleeping in the second half of the bed. Jack, as always, was sitting on a chair, tilting his head and leaning his back against the porthole, calmly sleeping.
Sometimes a short but very loud snoring was heard from Kulik, and the rest of the time it was very quiet. The night was calm.
The place where Lopez sat was illuminated by the bright light from the porthole. He looked up and saw that a full moon was floating across the sky outside the window. Lopez folded the newspaper and turned to the porthole. Until now, every day was monotonous, but today was a little different. Lopez scrolled through his head memories of today’s events. A conversation with a journalist, the future of Sylvia and the grief of her father. Each passenger on this ship that Lopez met had their own lives and their problems.
Even the cruel maniac who was sleeping in front of him now, and the unfriendly partner, fixated on the performance of work duties, without exception they had their own past and future. And Lopez himself now just shared the current moment with all of them. For each of them, it was absolutely impossible to calculate what kind of life, fate and miracles anyone had. The attitude to the thoughts said at first by the journalist had not changed inside Lopez, but at that moment he could not have repeated them to Sylvia’s father. Even if he had the guts to say so, the words about the existence of God would have sounded absurd. Still, as a result of his idea that fate was predetermined from the very beginning. God existed and worked miracles, people who did not accept their destiny were just looking for excuses? At least Lopez thought.
After some time, an old memory came to life before Lopez’s eyes. He continued to look at the moon, and in an instant he was looking at his palms, and his feet on a smooth floor. There was a roar from a crowd. In the midst of all this, a voice familiar from his time at university came to Lopez.
“Hey, what are you doing? If you aren’t going to pass, then throw it in the basket!”
It was the voice of his basketball coach. Lopez held the ball in his hands and decided to make the throw. The opponent’s defense was too tight. His path was blocked by the inscription “Illinois” on a sports uniform. I’ll shoot, Lopez thought.
Lopez broke through the opponent, advancing with his team, using the strength of the legs, which he was so proud of, he soared forward.
At that moment, something strange happened. A great pain ran through the ankle of his right leg, and his whole body lost speed, the direction of his throw changed. Lopez crashed down and hit the floor hard. What happened next he did not remember. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in a hospital bed, and his right leg was firmly strapped. The tendon seemed to be torn. There was no permanent damage, but for a short player of a basketball team whose only weapon was his speed, this meant that he would no longer be able to jump with such force. The childhood dream of a professional basketball player of his native Chicago team remained on the hospital bed.
Lopez opened his eyes wide, the ball in his hands again only now it became the moon in the porthole. It looked like he disconnected for a short while. He looked around and made sure that both Kulik and Jack had not seen, nobody had seen and with a sigh of relief, he ran a hand over his chest, then got out of bed. If I fall asleep on duty, it would not be good, thought Lopez. As if to make sure that he had a dream, Lopez rolled his trouser leg on his right foot, pulled his sock off and looked at the old wound. Lopez has long realized that this scar after surgery was a symbol of the ego of a person suffering from pain because he tried to change his destiny. And, of course, without any miracles, Lopez graduated from a law school, joined the Marshals Service, and he was where he was to this day.
As a result, Lopez was a man who did not become who he wanted to become. After receiving an injury, to some extent he accepted his fate. Maybe for this reason he had never witnessed a miracle. But despite this, deep down, he believed in miracles. And if it ever happens, if this time I will be able to see it with my own eyes, I want it to happen not with me, but with Sylvia, thought Lopez.
At that moment, Jack’s eyebrows twitched. Asleep. He was probably dreaming of something. Watching Jack, Lopez remembered what the journalist was saying. He called Jack a man who did not accept his destiny, but Lopez did not think so. He watched Jack out of the corner of his eye throughout the journey, and Lopez had the impression that Jack had accepted his destiny. Most dangerous criminals that Lopez had to deal with before, did not want to realize their situation and, at the slightest opportunity, looked for a way to escape. Usually in the depths of their eyes the flame of hope continued to burn, it was the flame of expectation of a miracle. However, Jack did not have this. In fact, he had no ambitions and in his behavior did not feel that he was hoping for a miracle. In the words of the journalist there was some strange conviction. His words are full of confidence where they came from, Lopez mused.
Thinking deep in thought, Lopez closed his eyes again. Physically, fatigue was not felt, but morally he was exhausted.
This time he fell into a deep sleep. If he wakes up before Kulik catches him, then there will be no problems. Until now, he seized the moment several times and slept while on duty. Even then there were no problems. And tonight was no different than usual. Lopez had no worries.
However, his intentions were not hidden from the video surveillance camera in the corner on the ceiling. Focusing on Lopez, the camera watched. Then the door silently opened and the night began, which was different from a usual one. Blocking the light from the corridor into the cabin where Lopez was, a pair of legs penetrated without a single sound. Making sure that Lopez and Kulik did not wake up, the legs immediately moved toward Jack. Jack stood before Lieutenant Kah. In her hands was a syringe gun. Then she very quickly took Jack’s head in her hands and put her index finger on the trigger. But nothing happened yet. The lieutenant took a deep breath and nodded quietly to herself.
# 8 Dream
In general, for a long time he had not been clean of his sins. The priest at the shelter constantly said “the only thing that will come of you is a notorious criminal” and if these words could be called a prophecy, then it was fulfilled. The first obstacle he overcame were the locks on the shelter’s doors.
Then, before his coming of age, he learned to open all kinds of locks. When it came time to handle computer systems, he learned on his own and then hacked them.
Although he became neither a hacker nor a software cracker, he was thorough in opening and breaking locks and safes. At some point, Jack’s friends began to call him “the code cracker.” His surname Trump surprisingly began to correspond to him – he masterfully, like a magician, picked up keys and opened doors, as if there were no locks at all.
A native of New York, Jack calmly continued to work in the city area, but despite the fact that his name was known, in the criminal world he remained just a petty thief. He realized that he was unhappy with this state of affairs, the interest of the police in him was inevitable, and no matter what names he was given, it all came to the point that he should be put on trial.
His life journey ended with a cell in a federal prison, a tarnished bed with handcuffs, ending life through the introduction of a lethal injection.
At this point, Jack woke up. In his dream, memories of what happened to him to this day were intertwined. He did not understand why he was dreaming all this, most likely, deep down in his soul, he felt everything was going exactly to the end he saw in a dream. And this dream seemed to sum up his life, and then Jack woke up.
Expecting that the dream had already ended, Jack had the exact end of the life that he represented. It was as if he had overslept his court sentencing, and he was sent to sleep in his cell. And something similar to a syringe was already put to his head. The eyes of Jack and the girl who held the syringe met. He heard the injection almost like he had dreamed, but unlike what he imagined, there was a girl in front of him, and she injected Jack with her own hands. Even if what he was seeing was true, he thought that she should have been in a white coat or in the form of a nurse, but she was dressed extremely boring. Despite the fact that this situation was clearly unusual, Jack continued to sit, not reacting at all. Whatever it was – a dream or reality, whatever efforts you made, in the near future everything would come to an end.
In the next instant, everything changed. Another hand appeared and grabbed the girl’s hand. Having firmly fixed it before the girl managed to recover, a whisper sounded. Jack heard him too. Hearing Lopez’s familiar voice, Jack realized that everything was happening in reality.
Lopez threw the lieutenant to the floor and trapped her from above with his knee.
The syringe fell but the contents remained in it. Lopez took his Beretta and put the barrel to her head. A light was lit in the cabin, it was Kulik, who turned it on, he stood holding the Glock in his hands and aimed at the lieutenant.
Lopez told her: “We are professionals. We’re not going to beat your brains out. But do you even have an idea where you are?”
Having said this, Lopez grabbed Lieutenant Kah’s hands behind her back and handcuffed her. Then he sat her on the floor, and continuing to aim, walked away from her.
“Who are you, why are you here, and who sent you?”
The lieutenant did not answer. Lopez cocked the trigger. And he slightly changed the direction of the gun barrel.
“We can shoot her in the knee?”
“Just ask her is she American first or not?” said Kulik.
Lopez turned to Lieutenant Kah. “Our responsibility is to protect the state, citizens and territory of the United States. If you are an American and, moreover, a taxpayer, then I will not shoot, if you’re the citizen of another country, then the conversation will be different. The cabin on this liner is a premise rented by the Marshals’ service and is the territory of the service. And this means that you invaded the territory of our country.”
The lieutenant did not even flinch and continued to look at Lopez.
“Well, I ask only once. Are you American?”
The answer was silence. Lopez made a face frustrated by hopelessness and said, “Okay, I get it.”
Lopez pulled the trigger. The trigger fell with a loud sound. But there was only a metallic click without a shot. The bullet was still in the magazine, the chamber was empty.
“Such a bluff is useless. She is undoubtedly a mercenary. And well-versed in weapons.”
Lopez raised his hands, representing impotence and complained to Kulik:
“Since she recognised that, at least we know she was not an amateur.”
“Perhaps my assumption regarding her is true.”
“Do not worry. We are not experts in international law. In the worst case scenario, even if she is an American, you acted guided by your instincts.”
Kulik got out of bed and approached Lieutenant Kah. Lopez opened his mouth in amazement and, with bulging eyes, followed his partner.
“We better ask, what is this?”
Kulik bent down and picked up the syringe gun.
“What an interesting model, without a needle. If you pull the trigger, the contents will spray. Such devices are used by professionals.”
“Are you from Umbrella?”
Lopez again aimed the gun at the lieutenant. She was still silent, as expected, the bluff did not work.
“Nothing left to do. Go to the liner staff, ask for a list of passenger names. Let’s try to find out which cabin she is from and search her.”
“Will they show it to me?”
“Use your identity card, then persist.”
“Isn’t that illegal?”
“How do I know, I’m not an expert in international law.”
Kulik took the place of Lopez and aimed the Glock at Lieutenant Kah. Lopez, having received instructions, made a displeased face and put his pistol into a holster, picked up his jacket and left the cabin.
When the door was completely closed, Lopez, began assuming what words Kulik would say to him, said:
“If this is illegal, then you acted guided by your instincts.”
Then, before his coming of age, he learned to open all kinds of locks. When it came time to handle computer systems, he learned on his own and then hacked them.
Although he became neither a hacker nor a software cracker, he was thorough in opening and breaking locks and safes. At some point, Jack’s friends began to call him “the code cracker.” His surname Trump surprisingly began to correspond to him – he masterfully, like a magician, picked up keys and opened doors, as if there were no locks at all.
A native of New York, Jack calmly continued to work in the city area, but despite the fact that his name was known, in the criminal world he remained just a petty thief. He realized that he was unhappy with this state of affairs, the interest of the police in him was inevitable, and no matter what names he was given, it all came to the point that he should be put on trial.
His life journey ended with a cell in a federal prison, a tarnished bed with handcuffs, ending life through the introduction of a lethal injection.
At this point, Jack woke up. In his dream, memories of what happened to him to this day were intertwined. He did not understand why he was dreaming all this, most likely, deep down in his soul, he felt everything was going exactly to the end he saw in a dream. And this dream seemed to sum up his life, and then Jack woke up.
Expecting that the dream had already ended, Jack had the exact end of the life that he represented. It was as if he had overslept his court sentencing, and he was sent to sleep in his cell. And something similar to a syringe was already put to his head. The eyes of Jack and the girl who held the syringe met. He heard the injection almost like he had dreamed, but unlike what he imagined, there was a girl in front of him, and she injected Jack with her own hands. Even if what he was seeing was true, he thought that she should have been in a white coat or in the form of a nurse, but she was dressed extremely boring. Despite the fact that this situation was clearly unusual, Jack continued to sit, not reacting at all. Whatever it was – a dream or reality, whatever efforts you made, in the near future everything would come to an end.
In the next instant, everything changed. Another hand appeared and grabbed the girl’s hand. Having firmly fixed it before the girl managed to recover, a whisper sounded. Jack heard him too. Hearing Lopez’s familiar voice, Jack realized that everything was happening in reality.
Lopez threw the lieutenant to the floor and trapped her from above with his knee.
The syringe fell but the contents remained in it. Lopez took his Beretta and put the barrel to her head. A light was lit in the cabin, it was Kulik, who turned it on, he stood holding the Glock in his hands and aimed at the lieutenant.
Lopez told her: “We are professionals. We’re not going to beat your brains out. But do you even have an idea where you are?”
Having said this, Lopez grabbed Lieutenant Kah’s hands behind her back and handcuffed her. Then he sat her on the floor, and continuing to aim, walked away from her.
“Who are you, why are you here, and who sent you?”
The lieutenant did not answer. Lopez cocked the trigger. And he slightly changed the direction of the gun barrel.
“We can shoot her in the knee?”
“Just ask her is she American first or not?” said Kulik.
Lopez turned to Lieutenant Kah. “Our responsibility is to protect the state, citizens and territory of the United States. If you are an American and, moreover, a taxpayer, then I will not shoot, if you’re the citizen of another country, then the conversation will be different. The cabin on this liner is a premise rented by the Marshals’ service and is the territory of the service. And this means that you invaded the territory of our country.”
The lieutenant did not even flinch and continued to look at Lopez.
“Well, I ask only once. Are you American?”
The answer was silence. Lopez made a face frustrated by hopelessness and said, “Okay, I get it.”
Lopez pulled the trigger. The trigger fell with a loud sound. But there was only a metallic click without a shot. The bullet was still in the magazine, the chamber was empty.
“Such a bluff is useless. She is undoubtedly a mercenary. And well-versed in weapons.”
Lopez raised his hands, representing impotence and complained to Kulik:
“Since she recognised that, at least we know she was not an amateur.”
“Perhaps my assumption regarding her is true.”
“Do not worry. We are not experts in international law. In the worst case scenario, even if she is an American, you acted guided by your instincts.”
Kulik got out of bed and approached Lieutenant Kah. Lopez opened his mouth in amazement and, with bulging eyes, followed his partner.
“We better ask, what is this?”
Kulik bent down and picked up the syringe gun.
“What an interesting model, without a needle. If you pull the trigger, the contents will spray. Such devices are used by professionals.”
“Are you from Umbrella?”
Lopez again aimed the gun at the lieutenant. She was still silent, as expected, the bluff did not work.
“Nothing left to do. Go to the liner staff, ask for a list of passenger names. Let’s try to find out which cabin she is from and search her.”
“Will they show it to me?”
“Use your identity card, then persist.”
“Isn’t that illegal?”
“How do I know, I’m not an expert in international law.”
Kulik took the place of Lopez and aimed the Glock at Lieutenant Kah. Lopez, having received instructions, made a displeased face and put his pistol into a holster, picked up his jacket and left the cabin.
When the door was completely closed, Lopez, began assuming what words Kulik would say to him, said:
“If this is illegal, then you acted guided by your instincts.”
# 9 Search
With his mind spinning he began walking idle, Lopez walked down the corridor with small and quick steps. In his hands was Lieutenant Kah’s laptop. The cabin that belonged to her, as Lopez suggested, looked like it was used as just a place to relax, from her personal belongings there was only a computer. But Lopez was trembling. An hour passed, since he left his cabin, the sky brightened so much that it became possible to distinguish the horizon with the naked eye. Dawn was coming soon. He was indignant, because he hoped to solve this quickly, and spent too much time away. Lopez presented his ID, but that did not help, because the officer could not understand who the Marshals were and he had to explain. When everything became clear, it was necessary to evade in every possible way, so as not to be caught in illegal actions. And when he was finally given a list of passengers, things went a little faster. There were few passengers, among them there were two women. One of them was Sylvia. Due to this, the passenger check was over. But the liner’s employee, with whom Lopez talked, was a rookie, he had no idea about the location of the cabins on the liner, so in the process of finding the right one they got lost several times before they reached their destination.
But Lopez was trembling not only for one reason. The answer was in a laptop. And now he definitely had problems in his hands. Having finished with the errand, he returned to the cabin. Entering, he roughly threw the laptop onto the bed.
“What?” Kulik turned to him.
Lopez did not stop shaking, sat on the floor and pointed to Lieutenant Kah.
“I was in her cabin, on the list of passengers she is listed under the name of Louise Kah, I did not recognize anyone else. I searched the cabin, but there was only this laptop.”
“Why are you shaking so much?”
“Why don’t you look at what’s on the computer?”
Kulik dragged the laptop, opened it and turned it on. On the LCD monitor for some time there was a loading window, and then a window filled with characters of an unknown alphabet opened.
“What is this? It’s broken?”
Lopez shook his head in a negative manner.
“You need a password, you can’t get into the system without it.”
Kulik looked at the tattoo on Kah’s arm. Then he put his hands on the keyboard and slowly typed “UBCS”, after a few seconds the screen went blank, then loaded again. Then the screen with rows of signs returned.
“I have tried several times before. Signs change every time you turn it on. It seems like you only need to enter a special word.”
“If you do not know the decryption, you can’t do anything? It turns out it uses the same cipher that is used by Pentagon employees.”
“This woman is not a mere mercenary. I will make a request to the Ministry of Security to send a decryption.”
Kulik looked at the lieutenant and thought for a moment. Then he checked the time on his watch, got up and picked up his jacket.
“Well, I’ll do it. If the person from the administration is in touch, it will be possible to quickly find out. Perhaps someone uses a cipher leaked from the Ministry of Security. Anyway, I’ll go find out about it. I’ll be back soon, look after them.” After saying this Kulik left the cabin.
“Well, why does he take the simple tasks for himself?” Lopez got angry more than usual and threw his jacket on the bed. His black hair, his pride, was completely disheveled. He pulled out a comb and began to comb to calm down.
Suddenly there was a knock on the door. The usual knock. Of course, it was not Kulik, his return was too soon. Lopez put away the hairbrush, and replaced it with a Beretta instead. Holding the gun ready, he grabbed the door handle and opened it with one movement. Behind it stood a short, thin man. The journalist. He stood with wide eyes.
“About my handkerchief...”
The journalist stared into the barrel aimed at him. Lopez, surprised by the unexpected visitor, said without removing his pistol, “What? What are you doing here?”
The journalist raised his hands and answered.
“Wait, it’s already morning? I was jogging. I run every day. Running past here, I saw you entered this cabin. Then, I also saw someone leave the cabin, was it your colleague? At such an early time and in such a hurry, I thought suddenly something happened. Sorry, this is all a professional habit.”
Lopez looked down at the journalist. Indeed, he was wearing a sweat suit and sneakers. For Lopez, confused by the appearance, the style was terrible, but nevertheless the journalist did not lie. Believing the Englishman, Lopez lowered his gun.
“You have to leave.”
Lopez sighed loudly and clutched his head.
Ignoring Lopez’s concern, the journalist peered into the cabin.
“That’s the Ripper. And who is the woman next to him? Are you escorting both of them?”
Lopez quickly blocked the view of the journalist. “Hey, this is a service restricted area, you can’t enter any further.”
The journalist was trying to get a view into the gap between Lopez and the doorway in order to look into the cabin. His attempts to squeeze through did not go unnoticed, Lopez began to lose his temper, so much that even the journalist felt this. Lopez understood that the man in front of him was not a threat. However, the anger that had accumulated already negated the entire supply of his patience. The situation was like fire building inside him, one step further until the explosion.
But exactly at that moment the journalist uttered words that stopped time.
“Is that “Fortune”?”
“What?” asked Lopez.
The journalist pointed to the bed. Turning around, he saw a computer on which rows of signs were displayed.
“Fortune I recognize. The cipher developed by the Pentagon.”
“Do you know it?” a surprised Lopez asked. Then he immediately froze in a thoughtful pose. Pondering what he heard, he bowed his head to one side, then to the other, and asked again, “So wait. Why do you know about that?”
“Well, half a year ago there was hype with its leak to the internet. According to rumors... but it was actually only rumors. This code controls a missile developed by the US Department of Security. Our newspaper was going to write an article about this, but it became clear after having spent a lot of time trying, that anyone can decrypt it. So most likely, these were false rumors. Even if the cipher was developed by the Pentagon, it seems that it was not finished. And since the material was not enough, the article was rejected.”
“So you can decrypt it?”
“Um. If I had a lot of paper, a pen, a calculator, and a lot of time for this...”
Suddenly Lopez grabbed the journalist’s hand and dragged him into the room. Due to the fact that he was dragged forcibly, the journalist lost his balance and fell a little to the floor. Surprisingly, Lopez ignored this and quickly closed the door, began to search for something. Finally, he threw paper, a pen, and a calculator on the bed.
“Here, begin.”
The journalist stood in amazement and asked Lopez, “Begin what?”
“Code decryption. Could you?”
Lopez turned his laptop monitor to the journalist. He understood what the case was and began to refuse.
“No! I said that it will take a lot of time!”
Lieutenant Kah grinned. Lopez squinted at the journalist and asked, “How long?”
“Maybe a day... First, why should I decrypt it?”
At that moment there was a knock on the door. At certain intervals, the frequency. Lopez knew very well who was outside. Kulik was back. Lopez clearly understood the scene that would follow when Kulik found an outsider in the cabin.
And, of course, Kulik’s head stuck in the open door and his eyes immediately widened in surprise. Then, as Lopez imagined, pointing a finger at the journalist, he burst out in indignation.
“Who is that? Why is there an outsider here?! Did you let him in?!”
Kulik stared at the journalist. Lopez interrupted him, and he tried to quickly reassure his colleague:
“Okay, okay, first tell me how it went with the Pentagon?”
“The radio connection is bad, I could not make contact.”
“How lucky we got him then!”
Lopez’s mouth spread a smile all over his face. Seeing the joy of Lopez, Kulik, on the contrary, became even angrier.
“What luck are you talking about? Are you completely insane?”
“No, as always, I am calm and serious. He is the very journalist I told you about...”
Lopez, making a significant pause, pointed to the journalist. Kulik was furious:
“Journalist? Do you even understand what you did by letting this person in here?”
“Wait, calm down, listen to the full story. He says he can decipher these scribbles.”
Lopez pointed to a laptop monitor. Kulik looked at the laptop, then immediately switched to the journalist and stared at him and took the Glock out of his holster.
“Who are you?”
“Well, I said he is a journalist! Did you listen at all? I will explain the rest later...”
Lopez reassured Kulik and turned to the journalist.
“You heard what we were talking about. Right now, due to communication problems, we were not able to contact the headquarters and it turns out that you accidentally found yourself here and know the key to decrypt the code.”
“And quite an accident it was, Mr. Marshal you forcibly dragged me...”
Lopez put his index finger to his lips so that Kulik would not see.
“You said earlier that miracles exist. But isn’t this a miracle? The Lord really exists, his paths are inscrutable, and now he has sent you to us. Therefore, let’s get started. If you decrypt, you can pacify both my anger and my colleagues.”
“What are you talking about?! Without an obligation of non-disclosure, furthermore he is a foreign citizen...”
Grabbing Kulik with both hands, Lopez tried to calm him:
“Now it’s too late, what’s done is done. This approach is our only shot, isn’t it? Everything is good. If he talks about it, or writes an article, I’ll just shoot him.”
Either the atmosphere had gotten to him, or the journalist realized that he had no choice, silently he sat at the computer.
The night receded, the sun rose. The huge silhouette of the Liberty moved along the waves, steadily following the planned route to the east coast of America to New York. On the surface of the Atlantic Ocean, nothing was visible around except the water. However, this day was different. An antenna emerged from beneath the water. Keeping its distance, it followed Liberty.
But Lopez was trembling not only for one reason. The answer was in a laptop. And now he definitely had problems in his hands. Having finished with the errand, he returned to the cabin. Entering, he roughly threw the laptop onto the bed.
“What?” Kulik turned to him.
Lopez did not stop shaking, sat on the floor and pointed to Lieutenant Kah.
“I was in her cabin, on the list of passengers she is listed under the name of Louise Kah, I did not recognize anyone else. I searched the cabin, but there was only this laptop.”
“Why are you shaking so much?”
“Why don’t you look at what’s on the computer?”
Kulik dragged the laptop, opened it and turned it on. On the LCD monitor for some time there was a loading window, and then a window filled with characters of an unknown alphabet opened.
“What is this? It’s broken?”
Lopez shook his head in a negative manner.
“You need a password, you can’t get into the system without it.”
Kulik looked at the tattoo on Kah’s arm. Then he put his hands on the keyboard and slowly typed “UBCS”, after a few seconds the screen went blank, then loaded again. Then the screen with rows of signs returned.
“I have tried several times before. Signs change every time you turn it on. It seems like you only need to enter a special word.”
“If you do not know the decryption, you can’t do anything? It turns out it uses the same cipher that is used by Pentagon employees.”
“This woman is not a mere mercenary. I will make a request to the Ministry of Security to send a decryption.”
Kulik looked at the lieutenant and thought for a moment. Then he checked the time on his watch, got up and picked up his jacket.
“Well, I’ll do it. If the person from the administration is in touch, it will be possible to quickly find out. Perhaps someone uses a cipher leaked from the Ministry of Security. Anyway, I’ll go find out about it. I’ll be back soon, look after them.” After saying this Kulik left the cabin.
“Well, why does he take the simple tasks for himself?” Lopez got angry more than usual and threw his jacket on the bed. His black hair, his pride, was completely disheveled. He pulled out a comb and began to comb to calm down.
Suddenly there was a knock on the door. The usual knock. Of course, it was not Kulik, his return was too soon. Lopez put away the hairbrush, and replaced it with a Beretta instead. Holding the gun ready, he grabbed the door handle and opened it with one movement. Behind it stood a short, thin man. The journalist. He stood with wide eyes.
“About my handkerchief...”
The journalist stared into the barrel aimed at him. Lopez, surprised by the unexpected visitor, said without removing his pistol, “What? What are you doing here?”
The journalist raised his hands and answered.
“Wait, it’s already morning? I was jogging. I run every day. Running past here, I saw you entered this cabin. Then, I also saw someone leave the cabin, was it your colleague? At such an early time and in such a hurry, I thought suddenly something happened. Sorry, this is all a professional habit.”
Lopez looked down at the journalist. Indeed, he was wearing a sweat suit and sneakers. For Lopez, confused by the appearance, the style was terrible, but nevertheless the journalist did not lie. Believing the Englishman, Lopez lowered his gun.
“You have to leave.”
Lopez sighed loudly and clutched his head.
Ignoring Lopez’s concern, the journalist peered into the cabin.
“That’s the Ripper. And who is the woman next to him? Are you escorting both of them?”
Lopez quickly blocked the view of the journalist. “Hey, this is a service restricted area, you can’t enter any further.”
The journalist was trying to get a view into the gap between Lopez and the doorway in order to look into the cabin. His attempts to squeeze through did not go unnoticed, Lopez began to lose his temper, so much that even the journalist felt this. Lopez understood that the man in front of him was not a threat. However, the anger that had accumulated already negated the entire supply of his patience. The situation was like fire building inside him, one step further until the explosion.
But exactly at that moment the journalist uttered words that stopped time.
“Is that “Fortune”?”
“What?” asked Lopez.
The journalist pointed to the bed. Turning around, he saw a computer on which rows of signs were displayed.
“Fortune I recognize. The cipher developed by the Pentagon.”
“Do you know it?” a surprised Lopez asked. Then he immediately froze in a thoughtful pose. Pondering what he heard, he bowed his head to one side, then to the other, and asked again, “So wait. Why do you know about that?”
“Well, half a year ago there was hype with its leak to the internet. According to rumors... but it was actually only rumors. This code controls a missile developed by the US Department of Security. Our newspaper was going to write an article about this, but it became clear after having spent a lot of time trying, that anyone can decrypt it. So most likely, these were false rumors. Even if the cipher was developed by the Pentagon, it seems that it was not finished. And since the material was not enough, the article was rejected.”
“So you can decrypt it?”
“Um. If I had a lot of paper, a pen, a calculator, and a lot of time for this...”
Suddenly Lopez grabbed the journalist’s hand and dragged him into the room. Due to the fact that he was dragged forcibly, the journalist lost his balance and fell a little to the floor. Surprisingly, Lopez ignored this and quickly closed the door, began to search for something. Finally, he threw paper, a pen, and a calculator on the bed.
“Here, begin.”
The journalist stood in amazement and asked Lopez, “Begin what?”
“Code decryption. Could you?”
Lopez turned his laptop monitor to the journalist. He understood what the case was and began to refuse.
“No! I said that it will take a lot of time!”
Lieutenant Kah grinned. Lopez squinted at the journalist and asked, “How long?”
“Maybe a day... First, why should I decrypt it?”
At that moment there was a knock on the door. At certain intervals, the frequency. Lopez knew very well who was outside. Kulik was back. Lopez clearly understood the scene that would follow when Kulik found an outsider in the cabin.
And, of course, Kulik’s head stuck in the open door and his eyes immediately widened in surprise. Then, as Lopez imagined, pointing a finger at the journalist, he burst out in indignation.
“Who is that? Why is there an outsider here?! Did you let him in?!”
Kulik stared at the journalist. Lopez interrupted him, and he tried to quickly reassure his colleague:
“Okay, okay, first tell me how it went with the Pentagon?”
“The radio connection is bad, I could not make contact.”
“How lucky we got him then!”
Lopez’s mouth spread a smile all over his face. Seeing the joy of Lopez, Kulik, on the contrary, became even angrier.
“What luck are you talking about? Are you completely insane?”
“No, as always, I am calm and serious. He is the very journalist I told you about...”
Lopez, making a significant pause, pointed to the journalist. Kulik was furious:
“Journalist? Do you even understand what you did by letting this person in here?”
“Wait, calm down, listen to the full story. He says he can decipher these scribbles.”
Lopez pointed to a laptop monitor. Kulik looked at the laptop, then immediately switched to the journalist and stared at him and took the Glock out of his holster.
“Who are you?”
“Well, I said he is a journalist! Did you listen at all? I will explain the rest later...”
Lopez reassured Kulik and turned to the journalist.
“You heard what we were talking about. Right now, due to communication problems, we were not able to contact the headquarters and it turns out that you accidentally found yourself here and know the key to decrypt the code.”
“And quite an accident it was, Mr. Marshal you forcibly dragged me...”
Lopez put his index finger to his lips so that Kulik would not see.
“You said earlier that miracles exist. But isn’t this a miracle? The Lord really exists, his paths are inscrutable, and now he has sent you to us. Therefore, let’s get started. If you decrypt, you can pacify both my anger and my colleagues.”
“What are you talking about?! Without an obligation of non-disclosure, furthermore he is a foreign citizen...”
Grabbing Kulik with both hands, Lopez tried to calm him:
“Now it’s too late, what’s done is done. This approach is our only shot, isn’t it? Everything is good. If he talks about it, or writes an article, I’ll just shoot him.”
Either the atmosphere had gotten to him, or the journalist realized that he had no choice, silently he sat at the computer.
The night receded, the sun rose. The huge silhouette of the Liberty moved along the waves, steadily following the planned route to the east coast of America to New York. On the surface of the Atlantic Ocean, nothing was visible around except the water. However, this day was different. An antenna emerged from beneath the water. Keeping its distance, it followed Liberty.
# 10 Method
A day passed. Then evening and night fell.
Kulik could not calm himself and went to the radio communication cabin several times, but at the other end of the communication nothing was heard but interference. In the end Kulik was reconciled to Lopez’s idea. The journalist substituted the numbers instead of the letters of the alphabet: “A” – 1, “B” – 2 and calculated it using the same formula that he remembered. Sitting next to Lopez helping the journalist by taking the input of numbers on a calculator. Kulik entrusted them with the decryption and read a magazine sitting on the bed. Lieutenant Kah was indifferent to their attempts to unravel the code, and she looked around the cabin with a calm expression on her face. Jack seemed to be starting to remember something. Looking closely at the profile of the journalist, Jack rummaged through his memories. He saw this face at some point in yesterday’s dream. Not in a memory from childhood, not among friends, not in New York. Yes, in London. Not among the police, if he was a journalist.
When I was arrested and brought to the police station, this person was in a crowd of people waiting near the entrance. In the pouring rain, he looked at me through the lens of his camera.
Scenes from the past and the future overlapped, memories blinded his eyes with a flash. Jack automatically closed his eyes. But after that, the scene with Lopez talking about chance came to mind. Clearly, this was an even greater coincidence. If so, then even the existence of miracles is not surprising, Jack thought. Darkness shrouded himself again, the last thing to dissolve in the darkness – the face of a journalist. At this moment, it seemed to him that he had met the journalist in other circumstances, which he hadn’t envisioned before, but where and when Jack couldn’t remember.
“Got it!”
Jack opened his eyes to an unexpected scream. And immediately saw the happy face of the journalist with a sheet of paper in his hands. Lopez peered at this sheet on the side and looked worried.
“Isn’t that just some numbers?”
“These numbers need to be converted back to the alphabet.”
It was already deep into the night. The journalist with his fingers calculated which letters to enter, then checking the sheet entered the letters on the keyboard. All this was repeated several times and in the end he pressed enter. Lopez stared at the screen.
Kulik broke away from reading the magazine. The laptop screen went blank, a loading screen appeared, and again a series of numbers, but different. Failure. Everyone just dropped their hands.
“We spent all day and this is the result?” shouted Kulik.
“Let’s try again, only now first write down the transcript on paper,” Lopez told a reporter.
“Useless. The order has changed again and previous calculations are no longer valid.”
“So again you need to spend the same amount of time!”
There was a muffled laugh. Everyone turned to this sound and saw Lieutenant Kah, her shoulders shaking with laughter.
“You can laugh out loud. For a long time I have not heard female laughter.”
Lopez threw away the calculator, which he had previously held in his hands and collapsed on the bed with all his strength. The laptop, which stood on it, was thrown back several times, but Lopez no longer paid attention.
The journalist said, “Maybe it’s not Fortune. And maybe it was modified to be different. And if so, then no one can decrypt the code.”
Kulik coughed and met his eyes with the lieutenant:
“Okay. Upon return, we will deliver this supercomputer to the Pentagon. Until that moment, we are holding Louise Kah.”
The response was an inappropriate smile from Lieutenant Kah.
At that moment, Lopez suddenly jumped out of bed, his sudden movement immediately attracted the attention of the journalist, Kulik and even the lieutenant. Then, realizing what Lopez was focused on, everyone followed his gaze. He looked at Jack’s mouth.
“C... R, MU.”
Jack stared blankly at the laptop screen, which everyone had already forgotten about, and spoke in a barely audible voice.
Lopez stood up and picked up the laptop. The first letter he saw in the upper left suddenly turned out to be “C”. No, it was no coincidence. Lopez checked for letters in the remaining corners. In the upper right “R”, in the lower left “M”, in the lower right “U”, guided by instinct, Lopez moved his finger across the screen, he entered the letters spoken by Jack.
The letters disappeared, instead an Umbrella logo began to rotate on the screen. The well-known logo of the Umbrella Corporation.
Lopez looked up from the monitor and smiled, showing his white teeth, an object of pride.
“You want to hear me laugh, Louise Kah, if you want to cry so that no one sees, I can offer you my umbrella.”
The lieutenant gritted her teeth.
“It was not Fortune.” added the journalist.
And Kulik continued: “It turns out, they wanted to confuse us. Well, they did it.”
“But the Ripper...”
Until that moment, Lopez had re-read Jack’s case several times, he and Kulik looked at each other and laughed:
“Codebreaker”
The journalist, not understanding what was happening, looked questioningly at both. Lopez looked at Jack.
“With such a talent, it is quite possible to live a life without feeling the need. It’s a damn shame that you became a serial killer.”
Soon, new rows of letters appeared on the screen. This time everyone focused on the letters with a short explanation.
“C-Virus, Top Secret”
Suddenly, something unusual and creepy came from the contents of the laptop, but Lopez, Kulik, and even the journalist, focused on the monitor. Because the intuition of each of them sensed a great deal of danger.
Kulik could not calm himself and went to the radio communication cabin several times, but at the other end of the communication nothing was heard but interference. In the end Kulik was reconciled to Lopez’s idea. The journalist substituted the numbers instead of the letters of the alphabet: “A” – 1, “B” – 2 and calculated it using the same formula that he remembered. Sitting next to Lopez helping the journalist by taking the input of numbers on a calculator. Kulik entrusted them with the decryption and read a magazine sitting on the bed. Lieutenant Kah was indifferent to their attempts to unravel the code, and she looked around the cabin with a calm expression on her face. Jack seemed to be starting to remember something. Looking closely at the profile of the journalist, Jack rummaged through his memories. He saw this face at some point in yesterday’s dream. Not in a memory from childhood, not among friends, not in New York. Yes, in London. Not among the police, if he was a journalist.
When I was arrested and brought to the police station, this person was in a crowd of people waiting near the entrance. In the pouring rain, he looked at me through the lens of his camera.
Scenes from the past and the future overlapped, memories blinded his eyes with a flash. Jack automatically closed his eyes. But after that, the scene with Lopez talking about chance came to mind. Clearly, this was an even greater coincidence. If so, then even the existence of miracles is not surprising, Jack thought. Darkness shrouded himself again, the last thing to dissolve in the darkness – the face of a journalist. At this moment, it seemed to him that he had met the journalist in other circumstances, which he hadn’t envisioned before, but where and when Jack couldn’t remember.
“Got it!”
Jack opened his eyes to an unexpected scream. And immediately saw the happy face of the journalist with a sheet of paper in his hands. Lopez peered at this sheet on the side and looked worried.
“Isn’t that just some numbers?”
“These numbers need to be converted back to the alphabet.”
It was already deep into the night. The journalist with his fingers calculated which letters to enter, then checking the sheet entered the letters on the keyboard. All this was repeated several times and in the end he pressed enter. Lopez stared at the screen.
Kulik broke away from reading the magazine. The laptop screen went blank, a loading screen appeared, and again a series of numbers, but different. Failure. Everyone just dropped their hands.
“We spent all day and this is the result?” shouted Kulik.
“Let’s try again, only now first write down the transcript on paper,” Lopez told a reporter.
“Useless. The order has changed again and previous calculations are no longer valid.”
“So again you need to spend the same amount of time!”
There was a muffled laugh. Everyone turned to this sound and saw Lieutenant Kah, her shoulders shaking with laughter.
“You can laugh out loud. For a long time I have not heard female laughter.”
Lopez threw away the calculator, which he had previously held in his hands and collapsed on the bed with all his strength. The laptop, which stood on it, was thrown back several times, but Lopez no longer paid attention.
The journalist said, “Maybe it’s not Fortune. And maybe it was modified to be different. And if so, then no one can decrypt the code.”
Kulik coughed and met his eyes with the lieutenant:
“Okay. Upon return, we will deliver this supercomputer to the Pentagon. Until that moment, we are holding Louise Kah.”
The response was an inappropriate smile from Lieutenant Kah.
At that moment, Lopez suddenly jumped out of bed, his sudden movement immediately attracted the attention of the journalist, Kulik and even the lieutenant. Then, realizing what Lopez was focused on, everyone followed his gaze. He looked at Jack’s mouth.
“C... R, MU.”
Jack stared blankly at the laptop screen, which everyone had already forgotten about, and spoke in a barely audible voice.
Lopez stood up and picked up the laptop. The first letter he saw in the upper left suddenly turned out to be “C”. No, it was no coincidence. Lopez checked for letters in the remaining corners. In the upper right “R”, in the lower left “M”, in the lower right “U”, guided by instinct, Lopez moved his finger across the screen, he entered the letters spoken by Jack.
The letters disappeared, instead an Umbrella logo began to rotate on the screen. The well-known logo of the Umbrella Corporation.
Lopez looked up from the monitor and smiled, showing his white teeth, an object of pride.
“You want to hear me laugh, Louise Kah, if you want to cry so that no one sees, I can offer you my umbrella.”
The lieutenant gritted her teeth.
“It was not Fortune.” added the journalist.
And Kulik continued: “It turns out, they wanted to confuse us. Well, they did it.”
“But the Ripper...”
Until that moment, Lopez had re-read Jack’s case several times, he and Kulik looked at each other and laughed:
“Codebreaker”
The journalist, not understanding what was happening, looked questioningly at both. Lopez looked at Jack.
“With such a talent, it is quite possible to live a life without feeling the need. It’s a damn shame that you became a serial killer.”
Soon, new rows of letters appeared on the screen. This time everyone focused on the letters with a short explanation.
“C-Virus, Top Secret”
Suddenly, something unusual and creepy came from the contents of the laptop, but Lopez, Kulik, and even the journalist, focused on the monitor. Because the intuition of each of them sensed a great deal of danger.
# 11 Sense of Danger
At that time, a middle-aged man stood by following the Liberty and peered through binoculars into the blackness of the sea. A cigar stuck out from under his mustache, and several times releasing smoke, he peered into the expanse of water. After some time, driving away the smoke drifting in his face, a young man appeared behind his back.
“Captain.”
Without even attempting a subordinate to address him, he asked again: “Have you fixed it?”
“It’s not that they fixed it... it suddenly recovered by itself.”
“Well, then let’s go back.”
Having removed the binoculars, the captain and his assistant headed towards the bridge.
The captain asked: “And the connection?”
“Not yet. But the radars are fine. Noises disappeared and now there is no interference.”
“Almost all day. This was the first time I encountered such a problem in autopilots that are completely computer-controlled, and it turns out that it happens to them, but thanks to the latest and most powerful equipment they managed to stop the ship.”
The captain took up the handrail on the deck:
“If you work on manual control, radars are vital.”
“However, the fact that the eyes and ears of the liner behaved strangely, do you think someone could intentionally interfere?”
“Despite the fact that there is nobody around?” His assistant spread his arms inquiringly and laughed. “You tried to see this with binoculars, right?”
“Don’t be silly, because the radars are out of order, all that was left for me was to look at the ocean. The cyclone is approaching at an alarming rate, maybe we will hit it.”
“Is that what you saw?” the assistant’s eyes widened.
“It’s not what I saw. These are just ordinary binoculars. In such darkness, visibility is not more than a meter. This was a feeling I had. You yourself, as a sailor, must have a sense of the approach of this storm.”
“Then why did you look through binoculars?”
“Because it looks cool.” the captain grinned.
Soon both came to the bridge. As soon as they went inside, the captain checked the monitors of the weather radars.
“As I thought. Because of the clouds, nothing is visible.” The captain looked up from the radars and gave instructions: “No choice. It may take more time, but we will bypass the cyclone. Calculate the course again and add it to the on-board computer.”
“Captain!” the assistant suddenly called. The captain walked to him and looked at the monitor, which the assistant was watching. A red dot blinked on it, moving in front of the Liberty.
“Since when?”
“Unknown. Perhaps before the radars recovered...”
“Captain!” called another assistant. In his hands was a handset for intercom on the ship.
“This is from the wheelhouse of radio communications. Some strange calls have come in.”
The assistant and the captain looked at each other, then turned back to the monitor and held their breath.
At the same time, there were still people holding their breath.
Lopez, Kulik, the journalist, sat as if chained to a laptop monitor in the cabin. They briefly reviewed the C-virus report, then opened a video file called “Addition”, in which there was footage in an Umbrella office with the explosion of the deputy’s body in front of Chen.
When the timeline on the video window came to an end, Lopez looked up from the screen, his face was covered with droplets of sweat.
“It looks like a movie.”
“95%?” Kulik got up, went to the lieutenant and looked into her eyes: “Umbrella creates such things? Just like in Raccoon City.”
Lopez nodded, agreeing with his words.
The journalist asked Lopez:
“Raccoon City?”
“You don’t know, as a journalist? This is the small city in the Midwest of America, destroyed by a missile.”
“Of course I know about it, but why do you mention it now?”
Kulik answered his question: “There was an Umbrella connection. According to rumors, it secretly developed a virus for military purposes and leaked it. Almost all residents in the city turned into zombies.”
“Wow, unbelievable,” the journalist grinned wryly.
“I myself would not believe it, but...” Lopez pointed to the laptop. “But what I see now has convinced me that it was no rumor.”
The smile from the journalist’s face disappeared.
Lopez pointed at Lieutenant Kah.
“This woman tried to inject Jack. And if the contents in the syringe are the C-virus...”
Kulik continued, “Then, with a ratio of 95%, everything here will turn into a blood bath. The remaining 5%, will turn to monsters, and it is possible that a missile will strike here, just like in Raccoon.”
“And unless a miracle happens, there’s nothing we can do. Is there, Louise Kah?” uttering the name Lopez turned to the lieutenant and looked at her face.
“You are aware of this right, why did you agree to a suicide mission? Did someone order you to do this?”
Lieutenant Kah averted her eyes. Lopez, enraged, turned the laptop screen to her face:
“This man...”
Chen’s motionless back was displayed in the video window. Just for a moment, an emotion appeared on Lieutenant Kah’s face.
“Despite the fact that a man was torn apart in front of his eyes, he remains very calm. He looks like the developer himself or a person responsible for it. Who is he? How is he related to you?”
Neither Kulik nor Lopez noticed any lieutenant reaction. To provoke her, Kulik dropped: “ A lover?”
Losing patience, Lieutenant Kah lunged. Kulik immediately pinned her down, it was useless to resist. The lieutenant slumped to the floor pinned under the weight.
Kulik continued with the same expression, “So he is.”
Suddenly, a noise came from outside. Usually the sounds of steps in the corridor were completely absorbed by an expensive carpet, but now they could hear people much louder, running here and there. Then, at the moment when everyone in the cabin noticed a noise behind the door, immediately they felt the liner smoothly decline.
Liberty had stopped.
Kulik turned to Lopez and said, “Go see what happened.”
Lopez got up and walked out of the cabin with his jacket in his hands. When he opened the door, he almost collided with a carriage running along the corridor. In fact, everyone looked in a panic. Lopez hurried after them along the corridor towards the deck.
The deck was equipped with spotlights and now they brightly illuminated the surface of the ocean to the side of the liner. Spotlights illuminated the sea near the liner itself, so Lopez made some of his assumptions, and catching the sailor who was just running in front of him, he asked;
“Someone fell into the water?”
“No. An unscheduled check of the liner...”
With these words, the sailor escaped from Lopez’s hands and ran away very quickly. Lopez spread his arms inquiringly and shouted at the sailor’s back, “What check... There is no one around!”
Lopez’s ears were deafened by the roar. Behind the deck railing, on the illuminated water surface, a large foam began to rise. Overwhelmed by anxious foreboding, Lopez felt numb. After a few moments, he was able to slowly turn his head towards the sound of the source and saw what was happening. What appeared on the surface from the swirl of foam was undoubtedly a submarine. Lopez was astounded. Uniformed people appeared from the black submarine, for the first time in a long time he saw someone other than Kulik, who was a compatriot.
On the side of Liberty, illuminated by searchlights, observing the distance, a strategic nuclear submarine of the Navy of America was alongside.
“Captain.”
Without even attempting a subordinate to address him, he asked again: “Have you fixed it?”
“It’s not that they fixed it... it suddenly recovered by itself.”
“Well, then let’s go back.”
Having removed the binoculars, the captain and his assistant headed towards the bridge.
The captain asked: “And the connection?”
“Not yet. But the radars are fine. Noises disappeared and now there is no interference.”
“Almost all day. This was the first time I encountered such a problem in autopilots that are completely computer-controlled, and it turns out that it happens to them, but thanks to the latest and most powerful equipment they managed to stop the ship.”
The captain took up the handrail on the deck:
“If you work on manual control, radars are vital.”
“However, the fact that the eyes and ears of the liner behaved strangely, do you think someone could intentionally interfere?”
“Despite the fact that there is nobody around?” His assistant spread his arms inquiringly and laughed. “You tried to see this with binoculars, right?”
“Don’t be silly, because the radars are out of order, all that was left for me was to look at the ocean. The cyclone is approaching at an alarming rate, maybe we will hit it.”
“Is that what you saw?” the assistant’s eyes widened.
“It’s not what I saw. These are just ordinary binoculars. In such darkness, visibility is not more than a meter. This was a feeling I had. You yourself, as a sailor, must have a sense of the approach of this storm.”
“Then why did you look through binoculars?”
“Because it looks cool.” the captain grinned.
Soon both came to the bridge. As soon as they went inside, the captain checked the monitors of the weather radars.
“As I thought. Because of the clouds, nothing is visible.” The captain looked up from the radars and gave instructions: “No choice. It may take more time, but we will bypass the cyclone. Calculate the course again and add it to the on-board computer.”
“Captain!” the assistant suddenly called. The captain walked to him and looked at the monitor, which the assistant was watching. A red dot blinked on it, moving in front of the Liberty.
“Since when?”
“Unknown. Perhaps before the radars recovered...”
“Captain!” called another assistant. In his hands was a handset for intercom on the ship.
“This is from the wheelhouse of radio communications. Some strange calls have come in.”
The assistant and the captain looked at each other, then turned back to the monitor and held their breath.
At the same time, there were still people holding their breath.
Lopez, Kulik, the journalist, sat as if chained to a laptop monitor in the cabin. They briefly reviewed the C-virus report, then opened a video file called “Addition”, in which there was footage in an Umbrella office with the explosion of the deputy’s body in front of Chen.
When the timeline on the video window came to an end, Lopez looked up from the screen, his face was covered with droplets of sweat.
“It looks like a movie.”
“95%?” Kulik got up, went to the lieutenant and looked into her eyes: “Umbrella creates such things? Just like in Raccoon City.”
Lopez nodded, agreeing with his words.
The journalist asked Lopez:
“Raccoon City?”
“You don’t know, as a journalist? This is the small city in the Midwest of America, destroyed by a missile.”
“Of course I know about it, but why do you mention it now?”
Kulik answered his question: “There was an Umbrella connection. According to rumors, it secretly developed a virus for military purposes and leaked it. Almost all residents in the city turned into zombies.”
“Wow, unbelievable,” the journalist grinned wryly.
“I myself would not believe it, but...” Lopez pointed to the laptop. “But what I see now has convinced me that it was no rumor.”
The smile from the journalist’s face disappeared.
Lopez pointed at Lieutenant Kah.
“This woman tried to inject Jack. And if the contents in the syringe are the C-virus...”
Kulik continued, “Then, with a ratio of 95%, everything here will turn into a blood bath. The remaining 5%, will turn to monsters, and it is possible that a missile will strike here, just like in Raccoon.”
“And unless a miracle happens, there’s nothing we can do. Is there, Louise Kah?” uttering the name Lopez turned to the lieutenant and looked at her face.
“You are aware of this right, why did you agree to a suicide mission? Did someone order you to do this?”
Lieutenant Kah averted her eyes. Lopez, enraged, turned the laptop screen to her face:
“This man...”
Chen’s motionless back was displayed in the video window. Just for a moment, an emotion appeared on Lieutenant Kah’s face.
“Despite the fact that a man was torn apart in front of his eyes, he remains very calm. He looks like the developer himself or a person responsible for it. Who is he? How is he related to you?”
Neither Kulik nor Lopez noticed any lieutenant reaction. To provoke her, Kulik dropped: “ A lover?”
Losing patience, Lieutenant Kah lunged. Kulik immediately pinned her down, it was useless to resist. The lieutenant slumped to the floor pinned under the weight.
Kulik continued with the same expression, “So he is.”
Suddenly, a noise came from outside. Usually the sounds of steps in the corridor were completely absorbed by an expensive carpet, but now they could hear people much louder, running here and there. Then, at the moment when everyone in the cabin noticed a noise behind the door, immediately they felt the liner smoothly decline.
Liberty had stopped.
Kulik turned to Lopez and said, “Go see what happened.”
Lopez got up and walked out of the cabin with his jacket in his hands. When he opened the door, he almost collided with a carriage running along the corridor. In fact, everyone looked in a panic. Lopez hurried after them along the corridor towards the deck.
The deck was equipped with spotlights and now they brightly illuminated the surface of the ocean to the side of the liner. Spotlights illuminated the sea near the liner itself, so Lopez made some of his assumptions, and catching the sailor who was just running in front of him, he asked;
“Someone fell into the water?”
“No. An unscheduled check of the liner...”
With these words, the sailor escaped from Lopez’s hands and ran away very quickly. Lopez spread his arms inquiringly and shouted at the sailor’s back, “What check... There is no one around!”
Lopez’s ears were deafened by the roar. Behind the deck railing, on the illuminated water surface, a large foam began to rise. Overwhelmed by anxious foreboding, Lopez felt numb. After a few moments, he was able to slowly turn his head towards the sound of the source and saw what was happening. What appeared on the surface from the swirl of foam was undoubtedly a submarine. Lopez was astounded. Uniformed people appeared from the black submarine, for the first time in a long time he saw someone other than Kulik, who was a compatriot.
On the side of Liberty, illuminated by searchlights, observing the distance, a strategic nuclear submarine of the Navy of America was alongside.
# 12 Check
Between Liberty and the submarine there was a ramp wide enough for the passage of one person. A detachment of mercenaries in full equipment aligned the boat and awaited orders: helmets, camouflage and bulletproof vests, the detachment began to land on Liberty on a suspended gangway.
The Liberty crew on the deck stepped back at the sight of the mercenaries armed with M16 rifles. As soon as the detachment stepped aboard, each of them was immediately distributed on the liner to carry out the mission according to the plan of operation. A mercenary with a rifle in one hand and a folder in the other, in the company of another, who carried a portable radio communication device on his shoulder, they headed towards the bridge. Each time, along the way, they met passengers who made noise, the soldiers politely greeted them with a smile.
“Good evening, US Navy.”
All passengers met a completely inappropriate contrast of their form and a polite smile with a surprised expression on their face along with complete silence.
After some time, both mercenaries, arriving at the bridge, went inside as if nothing had happened. The captain, as always, was smoking cigars, upon noticing them he approached and blocked their path.
“What are you doing here? If this is a test, then why are you armed?”
The mercenary who entered was the first to ignore the captain’s words, bypassed him and went to the on-board computer, approaching, he opened the folder. The Liberty Liner Operation Manual was written on the first sheet and the logos of Umbrella Corporation and Chen Industries were printed on the back.
“Hey, why do you need these instructions?” The captain was surprised.
The mercenary turned his head to the attached microphone of the intercom and spoke, “Barbara, this is George W, do you copy? Arrived at the bridge. Proceeding with the operation.”
He frowned, tapped his earpiece with his finger, then turned to the partner who stood in front of the captain.
“Hey, there’s still some interference. Mother’s voice is hard to hear. Is the interference turned off?”
Another mercenary twisted the settings on the portable station.
“Okay, I hear clearly. Then proceeding.” Looking at the instructions, he began to type on the keyboard of the on-board computer.
The captain ran to stop him, but another soldier blocked his path.
“How dare you? What the hell are you going to do?”
Instead of answering, they stood silent only the sound of chewing gum. Soon, a video window was opened on the monitor in front of the mercenary’s eyes, divided into four sections. On it, from the night vision camera of the submarine, a pale green image of the bow of the liner, the stern, both hulls, and the hull of the boat was broadcast. Having selected all four images with the cursor, the mercenary moved them up, an orange grid appeared on the screen, on which he fixed each image.
“The lock is complete. Doppler radar on.”
As soon as he finished talking, the submarine shook on the screen. The hull of the boat began to move forward, the grid automatically overlapped the image of the boat. Following this, Liberty’s on-board computer synchronized with the submarine and launched the liner propellers, maintaining the distance with millimeter accuracy, and began to move parallel to the boat.
“A brilliant piece of equipment. On a civilian ship, such technology is too much of a luxury. I would like to buy it and make it a gift to Mother,” the military said enthusiastically.
“It is the first of its kind, and extremely expensive. Not to mention the fact that the Navy could never afford it.”
The captain asked the military man, “Hey, why are you boarding us?”
The mercenary looked at the monitor and checked the reserve rate. “Do not worry, along the shortest route somewhere to the east coast of America. But not to New York, I can’t say any more precisely.”
“Are you out of your mind? Straight ahead is the storm!”
“Our board will check it. Everything is in order, this liner is equipped with the latest systems, like our boat. In addition, if the verification is successful, the ship will be gone before the storm.”
“For what purpose are you doing this?” the captain asked with an expression of unsatisfied explanation.
The mercenaries did not answer and continued to wait for the following instructions.
Located on the deck was Lopez, simultaneously with the launch of the engines the liner trembled. His foreboding said that this was not an ordinary test. Even if you do not take into account premonition, then, landing from a military submarine on a civilian liner in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean is not an ordinary occurrence. The scene with the landing of the Navy in full uniform is not the norm. In any case, I must return to the cabin and report to Kulik, Lopez thought that this should be done first. And when he had already turned and began to head towards the passenger cabins, he was stopped by one of the mercenaries, pointing his muzzle rifles.
“Hey, you.”
The barrel of the rifle was looking at Lopez.
“Where’s your badge?”
It seemed that Lopez was stopped only because he did not have a badge on his identity. Lopez took out his ID and showed it.
“How about that, an American?”
The mercenary redirected the barrel of the rifle to the ceiling. At this time, another soldier, passing by, said to the first, “Not a man, a woman. We are looking for a woman.”
They released Lopez and in a hurry they set off in search patterns.
Lopez also hurried back to the cabin. The detachment was looking for a woman. There were only two of them on the liner. It was obvious that their target was not Sylvia. Undoubtedly, this was about Lieutenant Kah. Imagining how things could turn out, Lopez hastened his pace. Soon he came into the passenger compartment and felt something was amiss. The door of their cabin was not locked and slightly ajar. The light in the cabin was turned on and a thin strip of light penetrated through the slot into the corridor, in the opposite direction from the one where Lopez was. He quickly pulled his gun out of its holster, readying it and, began crouching, slowly approaching the opening of the cabin door. When he was in front of the door, he pushed it, he went inside. Lopez swallowed. The first thing he saw was a piece of the journalist’s suit covered in blood. It appeared to have been torn by a knife or something sharp. The owner of the suit was not nearby. But the handcuffs with which lieutenant Kah was fastened were much more alarming – they were lying open on the floor. Jack’s leather belts and mask also lay on the floor; Jack and the lieutenant were nowhere to be found. In the cabin there was only Kulik lying on his back in a large pool of blood from a wound on his stomach. Lopez lowered his gun and rushed to his partner.
“What happened?”
“The remaining 5%...” Kulik breathed and pointed to the floor. Lopez traced where he pointed. On the floor lay an empty syringe gun.
Lopez turned pale.
“I do not believe in any gods and never thought that miracles could happen. But if they exist, then it happened, the worst of miracles...” saying this, Kulik died. His Glock had also disappeared somewhere from the holster. Lopez raised his face, and to calm down, began to take deep breaths. But, as luck would have it, his heartbeat did not calm down, but on the contrary began to beat even faster.
Lopez did not wait for his composure to return. He got up, aimed the Beretta and rushed out of the cabin.
The Liberty crew on the deck stepped back at the sight of the mercenaries armed with M16 rifles. As soon as the detachment stepped aboard, each of them was immediately distributed on the liner to carry out the mission according to the plan of operation. A mercenary with a rifle in one hand and a folder in the other, in the company of another, who carried a portable radio communication device on his shoulder, they headed towards the bridge. Each time, along the way, they met passengers who made noise, the soldiers politely greeted them with a smile.
“Good evening, US Navy.”
All passengers met a completely inappropriate contrast of their form and a polite smile with a surprised expression on their face along with complete silence.
After some time, both mercenaries, arriving at the bridge, went inside as if nothing had happened. The captain, as always, was smoking cigars, upon noticing them he approached and blocked their path.
“What are you doing here? If this is a test, then why are you armed?”
The mercenary who entered was the first to ignore the captain’s words, bypassed him and went to the on-board computer, approaching, he opened the folder. The Liberty Liner Operation Manual was written on the first sheet and the logos of Umbrella Corporation and Chen Industries were printed on the back.
“Hey, why do you need these instructions?” The captain was surprised.
The mercenary turned his head to the attached microphone of the intercom and spoke, “Barbara, this is George W, do you copy? Arrived at the bridge. Proceeding with the operation.”
He frowned, tapped his earpiece with his finger, then turned to the partner who stood in front of the captain.
“Hey, there’s still some interference. Mother’s voice is hard to hear. Is the interference turned off?”
Another mercenary twisted the settings on the portable station.
“Okay, I hear clearly. Then proceeding.” Looking at the instructions, he began to type on the keyboard of the on-board computer.
The captain ran to stop him, but another soldier blocked his path.
“How dare you? What the hell are you going to do?”
Instead of answering, they stood silent only the sound of chewing gum. Soon, a video window was opened on the monitor in front of the mercenary’s eyes, divided into four sections. On it, from the night vision camera of the submarine, a pale green image of the bow of the liner, the stern, both hulls, and the hull of the boat was broadcast. Having selected all four images with the cursor, the mercenary moved them up, an orange grid appeared on the screen, on which he fixed each image.
“The lock is complete. Doppler radar on.”
As soon as he finished talking, the submarine shook on the screen. The hull of the boat began to move forward, the grid automatically overlapped the image of the boat. Following this, Liberty’s on-board computer synchronized with the submarine and launched the liner propellers, maintaining the distance with millimeter accuracy, and began to move parallel to the boat.
“A brilliant piece of equipment. On a civilian ship, such technology is too much of a luxury. I would like to buy it and make it a gift to Mother,” the military said enthusiastically.
“It is the first of its kind, and extremely expensive. Not to mention the fact that the Navy could never afford it.”
The captain asked the military man, “Hey, why are you boarding us?”
The mercenary looked at the monitor and checked the reserve rate. “Do not worry, along the shortest route somewhere to the east coast of America. But not to New York, I can’t say any more precisely.”
“Are you out of your mind? Straight ahead is the storm!”
“Our board will check it. Everything is in order, this liner is equipped with the latest systems, like our boat. In addition, if the verification is successful, the ship will be gone before the storm.”
“For what purpose are you doing this?” the captain asked with an expression of unsatisfied explanation.
The mercenaries did not answer and continued to wait for the following instructions.
Located on the deck was Lopez, simultaneously with the launch of the engines the liner trembled. His foreboding said that this was not an ordinary test. Even if you do not take into account premonition, then, landing from a military submarine on a civilian liner in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean is not an ordinary occurrence. The scene with the landing of the Navy in full uniform is not the norm. In any case, I must return to the cabin and report to Kulik, Lopez thought that this should be done first. And when he had already turned and began to head towards the passenger cabins, he was stopped by one of the mercenaries, pointing his muzzle rifles.
“Hey, you.”
The barrel of the rifle was looking at Lopez.
“Where’s your badge?”
It seemed that Lopez was stopped only because he did not have a badge on his identity. Lopez took out his ID and showed it.
“How about that, an American?”
The mercenary redirected the barrel of the rifle to the ceiling. At this time, another soldier, passing by, said to the first, “Not a man, a woman. We are looking for a woman.”
They released Lopez and in a hurry they set off in search patterns.
Lopez also hurried back to the cabin. The detachment was looking for a woman. There were only two of them on the liner. It was obvious that their target was not Sylvia. Undoubtedly, this was about Lieutenant Kah. Imagining how things could turn out, Lopez hastened his pace. Soon he came into the passenger compartment and felt something was amiss. The door of their cabin was not locked and slightly ajar. The light in the cabin was turned on and a thin strip of light penetrated through the slot into the corridor, in the opposite direction from the one where Lopez was. He quickly pulled his gun out of its holster, readying it and, began crouching, slowly approaching the opening of the cabin door. When he was in front of the door, he pushed it, he went inside. Lopez swallowed. The first thing he saw was a piece of the journalist’s suit covered in blood. It appeared to have been torn by a knife or something sharp. The owner of the suit was not nearby. But the handcuffs with which lieutenant Kah was fastened were much more alarming – they were lying open on the floor. Jack’s leather belts and mask also lay on the floor; Jack and the lieutenant were nowhere to be found. In the cabin there was only Kulik lying on his back in a large pool of blood from a wound on his stomach. Lopez lowered his gun and rushed to his partner.
“What happened?”
“The remaining 5%...” Kulik breathed and pointed to the floor. Lopez traced where he pointed. On the floor lay an empty syringe gun.
Lopez turned pale.
“I do not believe in any gods and never thought that miracles could happen. But if they exist, then it happened, the worst of miracles...” saying this, Kulik died. His Glock had also disappeared somewhere from the holster. Lopez raised his face, and to calm down, began to take deep breaths. But, as luck would have it, his heartbeat did not calm down, but on the contrary began to beat even faster.
Lopez did not wait for his composure to return. He got up, aimed the Beretta and rushed out of the cabin.
# 13 The Worst of Miracles
There was a wide area at the back of the deck. Initially, it was supposed to be an entertainment area for passengers, where it was possible to hold various celebrations, in the middle of it was a swimming pool. However, Liberty had lost the purpose of a luxury passenger liner, and even in a test trip this area had never been used. No water was even in the pool.
The mercenary looked at the empty pool and said, “And I wanted to swim...”
“Where is it?” The partner’s voice rang out in the earpiece.
“Found it. Come down here.”
He headed for the side stairs of the pool. While he walked, he continued to talk with his comrade.
“Listen, take it slow. We are not on an official assignment. Everyone knows that this is a small side job at the personal request of the captain of our submarine. For some pharmaceutical company...”
“The Umbrella Corporation.”
“Well, this company. They are going to move into it after the resignation. Therefore, a public company uses the Navy of America as long as it pays...”
“And we are paid well. For us, the small man, it’s an insignificant pay cheque for such a large company. So there is nothing to complain about. I also forgot to say that the consultant should also be here.”
The military man frowned.
“Is this true?”
“True, in fact, he should be somewhere right there.”
As soon as the mercenary came down, he discovered a hangar. Right under the pool was one single helicopter. His partner, with whom he was talking, leaned into the cabin and pointed his hand.
“There!”
On the side of the helicopter appeared the figure of a man who was called a consultant. He was wearing a khaki shirt, displaying scarred tattooed hands like that of Lieutenant Kah. One eye was covered with a blindfold. When the soldier went down the stairs, he noticed how the consultant squinted at him with his only eye. The mercenary froze in place and swallowed.
The consultant opened the lid of the case with C-virus samples to check its contents.
The mercenary near the cockpit began reporting on the intercom:
“Barbara, this is Paul. Samples collected. The resulting liner plan is perfect, under the pool there really is a hangar. One single helicopter was discovered, most likely prepared for emergency evacuation, the case was hidden right there. Getting ready to leave.”
“Wait!” cried the consultant. “One set is not enough.”
Indeed, in the case, the place for one set was empty. The mercenary clicked on the intercom to cancel the report, as a scream was heard in the earpiece. At the same time, a scream came from the side of the stairs.
The consultant and the mercenary looked on the other side, a human figure appeared from the darkness. It was the lieutenant with a rifle – she stood near the stairs.
The mercenary quickly turned to the intercom and shouted.
“Barbara...” said the mercenary.
The consultant patted his chest, waited a moment, and then said, “Wow, lieutenant, how long has it been?”
“Do you know each other?” asked the mercenary in surprise.
“Colleagues.”
“How’s that possible. After all, from the side of Umbrella there should have been only one consultant, it is you.”
“She, like you, is on a side job. Aren’t you lieutenant?”
Lieutenant Kah, without answering, slowly approached the helicopter with a rifle ready. The consultant laughed.
“Stop there, it’s useless. Your work is done. Dr. Chen, who gave you directions. He is already dead.”
Chen’s face surfaced in Lieutenant Kah’s mind. Pointing the rifle at the consultant, she cried out, “He did not lie!”
“I’m not lying. A few days ago he headed to New York on a private plane, but along the way he was shot down by an unknown fighter. Didn’t you see the news on the liner?”
The lieutenant was stunned. Her hands with the rifle dropped in impotence.
“He was just one man, but Umbrella is a huge corporation with influence on the military in any country in the world. Do you know what I mean? Ultimately, one cannot win without great power. Now that you know, Lieutenant, could you please return the remaining samples?”
The consultant looked down at the barrel of her rifle. If it dropped another few centimeters, it would be possible to act. Weighing calmly all the options in his head, he felt the trouser belt with his hand. Several types of grenades hung on it, a case in which there was a knife, this would be enough to drive Lieutenant Kah into a corner. The consultant put his hand on the handle of the knife.
Lieutenant Kah noticed that something was happening and immediately raised the barrel of her rifle.
The consultant clicked his tongue. Following this, the lieutenant for some reason directed the barrel of the rifle over the head of the consultant.
Feeling something was amiss, the consultant looked into the lieutenant’s face and saw that his expression froze, and a drop of sweat came down his forehead.
“The remaining sample, is behind you!”
The consultant turned around. Faster than he could understand, in an instant something sharp, but not a knife, stuck into his only eye. Having lost the opportunity to see, the consultant collapsed in place and writhing in pain rolled along the floor.
The mercenary, who saw everything from beginning to end, froze in horror. A huge shadow loomed over him. His whole body shook, but he was unable to move, could only be horrified by the sight of the shadow. Lieutenant Kah, without lowering the barrel of the rifle, carefully stepped back. And immediately the smell of powder smoke hit her nose. But there were no shots yet. Looking down, Lieutenant Kah saw that the consultant was holding a cylindrical object – an incendiary grenade with the pin pulled out.
The flame exploded and hit the helicopter and the shadow in front of it. Lieutenant Kah was thrown back by a blast wave, a few meters later she landed on the floor. Despite the strong blow, she was still conscious and could move. Having ascertained this, she stood up with difficulty, and looked towards the flame to check that the shadow attacking the consultant was gone.
Helicopter fuel ignited and formed a whole sea of fire and not a single sign that it could be extinguished.
Lieutenant Kah looked at the damaged ceiling.
Mercenaries gathered from above at the noise of explosions around the pool. In the middle, the bottom of the pool fell through and instead of water, it was covered with a thick layer of flame.
Due to the large flame escaping, one of the mercenaries moved away from the edge of the pool and closed his eyes for a moment. At this time, in the darkness, he felt the cool wind moving from the pool. He opened his eyes and looked around, his colleagues, who were supposed to be nearby, were not. Surprised, he looked around beside him and saw that they were all lying on the floor bleeding. He realized that out of all those who were near the pool he was the only one standing by the dead bodies of other mercenaries. Among which they were completely disfigured. In a panic, he took a step back, intending to leave this place. At that moment, he felt a slight jolt in the back. He turned slowly, something stood behind him. He had never seen such a thing before. The mercenary stared at it. It opened its eyes. Their eyes met.
It’s alive. But what is it? No matter how much he tried to understand, the answer did not occur. Then he turned to the microphone of the intercom and said, “Barbara, get me out. There’s a monster...”
This was his last message.
The mercenary looked at the empty pool and said, “And I wanted to swim...”
“Where is it?” The partner’s voice rang out in the earpiece.
“Found it. Come down here.”
He headed for the side stairs of the pool. While he walked, he continued to talk with his comrade.
“Listen, take it slow. We are not on an official assignment. Everyone knows that this is a small side job at the personal request of the captain of our submarine. For some pharmaceutical company...”
“The Umbrella Corporation.”
“Well, this company. They are going to move into it after the resignation. Therefore, a public company uses the Navy of America as long as it pays...”
“And we are paid well. For us, the small man, it’s an insignificant pay cheque for such a large company. So there is nothing to complain about. I also forgot to say that the consultant should also be here.”
The military man frowned.
“Is this true?”
“True, in fact, he should be somewhere right there.”
As soon as the mercenary came down, he discovered a hangar. Right under the pool was one single helicopter. His partner, with whom he was talking, leaned into the cabin and pointed his hand.
“There!”
On the side of the helicopter appeared the figure of a man who was called a consultant. He was wearing a khaki shirt, displaying scarred tattooed hands like that of Lieutenant Kah. One eye was covered with a blindfold. When the soldier went down the stairs, he noticed how the consultant squinted at him with his only eye. The mercenary froze in place and swallowed.
The consultant opened the lid of the case with C-virus samples to check its contents.
The mercenary near the cockpit began reporting on the intercom:
“Barbara, this is Paul. Samples collected. The resulting liner plan is perfect, under the pool there really is a hangar. One single helicopter was discovered, most likely prepared for emergency evacuation, the case was hidden right there. Getting ready to leave.”
“Wait!” cried the consultant. “One set is not enough.”
Indeed, in the case, the place for one set was empty. The mercenary clicked on the intercom to cancel the report, as a scream was heard in the earpiece. At the same time, a scream came from the side of the stairs.
The consultant and the mercenary looked on the other side, a human figure appeared from the darkness. It was the lieutenant with a rifle – she stood near the stairs.
The mercenary quickly turned to the intercom and shouted.
“Barbara...” said the mercenary.
The consultant patted his chest, waited a moment, and then said, “Wow, lieutenant, how long has it been?”
“Do you know each other?” asked the mercenary in surprise.
“Colleagues.”
“How’s that possible. After all, from the side of Umbrella there should have been only one consultant, it is you.”
“She, like you, is on a side job. Aren’t you lieutenant?”
Lieutenant Kah, without answering, slowly approached the helicopter with a rifle ready. The consultant laughed.
“Stop there, it’s useless. Your work is done. Dr. Chen, who gave you directions. He is already dead.”
Chen’s face surfaced in Lieutenant Kah’s mind. Pointing the rifle at the consultant, she cried out, “He did not lie!”
“I’m not lying. A few days ago he headed to New York on a private plane, but along the way he was shot down by an unknown fighter. Didn’t you see the news on the liner?”
The lieutenant was stunned. Her hands with the rifle dropped in impotence.
“He was just one man, but Umbrella is a huge corporation with influence on the military in any country in the world. Do you know what I mean? Ultimately, one cannot win without great power. Now that you know, Lieutenant, could you please return the remaining samples?”
The consultant looked down at the barrel of her rifle. If it dropped another few centimeters, it would be possible to act. Weighing calmly all the options in his head, he felt the trouser belt with his hand. Several types of grenades hung on it, a case in which there was a knife, this would be enough to drive Lieutenant Kah into a corner. The consultant put his hand on the handle of the knife.
Lieutenant Kah noticed that something was happening and immediately raised the barrel of her rifle.
The consultant clicked his tongue. Following this, the lieutenant for some reason directed the barrel of the rifle over the head of the consultant.
Feeling something was amiss, the consultant looked into the lieutenant’s face and saw that his expression froze, and a drop of sweat came down his forehead.
“The remaining sample, is behind you!”
The consultant turned around. Faster than he could understand, in an instant something sharp, but not a knife, stuck into his only eye. Having lost the opportunity to see, the consultant collapsed in place and writhing in pain rolled along the floor.
The mercenary, who saw everything from beginning to end, froze in horror. A huge shadow loomed over him. His whole body shook, but he was unable to move, could only be horrified by the sight of the shadow. Lieutenant Kah, without lowering the barrel of the rifle, carefully stepped back. And immediately the smell of powder smoke hit her nose. But there were no shots yet. Looking down, Lieutenant Kah saw that the consultant was holding a cylindrical object – an incendiary grenade with the pin pulled out.
The flame exploded and hit the helicopter and the shadow in front of it. Lieutenant Kah was thrown back by a blast wave, a few meters later she landed on the floor. Despite the strong blow, she was still conscious and could move. Having ascertained this, she stood up with difficulty, and looked towards the flame to check that the shadow attacking the consultant was gone.
Helicopter fuel ignited and formed a whole sea of fire and not a single sign that it could be extinguished.
Lieutenant Kah looked at the damaged ceiling.
Mercenaries gathered from above at the noise of explosions around the pool. In the middle, the bottom of the pool fell through and instead of water, it was covered with a thick layer of flame.
Due to the large flame escaping, one of the mercenaries moved away from the edge of the pool and closed his eyes for a moment. At this time, in the darkness, he felt the cool wind moving from the pool. He opened his eyes and looked around, his colleagues, who were supposed to be nearby, were not. Surprised, he looked around beside him and saw that they were all lying on the floor bleeding. He realized that out of all those who were near the pool he was the only one standing by the dead bodies of other mercenaries. Among which they were completely disfigured. In a panic, he took a step back, intending to leave this place. At that moment, he felt a slight jolt in the back. He turned slowly, something stood behind him. He had never seen such a thing before. The mercenary stared at it. It opened its eyes. Their eyes met.
It’s alive. But what is it? No matter how much he tried to understand, the answer did not occur. Then he turned to the microphone of the intercom and said, “Barbara, get me out. There’s a monster...”
This was his last message.
# 14 Monster
Twenty-odd years ago.
New York, at the Grand Central station inside a locker of the left-luggage office, a newborn child was discovered. This child was Jack. An image was posted on the door it was a playing card, of which only the letter “J” was remaining, so the child was named Jack Trump. In the future, the child was treated as if he were a monster, the indifference of people to each other, gave rise to a young man named Ripper in the nooks of the city of the monster. Perhaps that period of time influenced the fact that he felt extreme hatred for enclosed spaces. For the most part, all problems began in precisely such places. Also probably the reason that he had mastered the skill of opening locks. However, in confined spaces, where the difference between fear and security was hardly noticeable, it made most sense. Jack noticed that he was now in just such a place. Not understanding this dream or reality, but in any case he was locked somewhere. And Jack calmly began to think of ways to get out of here.
In the pitch darkness a door began to loom. He tried to open it using his mind.
Trying to match the many doors that he could open, memory returned him to the very last door. It was a room in some cheap apartment, in the bathroom. He himself did not understand why he was there, but he was overcome by a strange impatience. But he could not remember the reason for this feeling. As soon as he intensely strained his brain to remember, some sound was heard from the next bedroom. Jack went to the door and grabbed the handle and was about to open it. As soon as he did this, a sound was heard again. With difficulty, Jack realized what was really the source of the sound. It was a soft female voice. After hesitating, he opened the door and into the resulting gap, looked towards the source of the sound.
On a huge bed, someone was lying on their back. Looking closely, he saw a bloody woman. Also, there was another man in the room – a man, that stood in front of the overturned body of the woman. Jack could see only his back, but he saw perfectly a sharp knife in his hands. There was blood on the blade, the drops fell to the floor. Then the man swung a knife at the laying woman and sharply pitched the knife into her body. A scream filled the room; it was the last sound she made. Leaving the knife stuck in her body, the man removed the leather glove from his hand, in which he had stabbed, he pulled out a handkerchief and wiped blood from his face.
The man turned to the door, intending to leave the room, and Jack saw his face.
The person that Jack was trying to recall undoubtedly belonged to the journalist. In surprise, Jack flopped to the floor and finally woke up.
He was in the bathroom again. However, not in a cheap apartment from his memories, but in reality on Liberty. The dim outline of the door in the darkness was a barely visible door to the cabin. Realizing that the leather straps that held him for a long time were removed, he got up, leaned his body on the door and fell out. Landing hard on the floor, the first thing he saw before his eyes was Kulik’s face. Even he knew that Kulik was already dead. Another shadow hung over Kulik’s body. Jack looked up and saw a young mercenary in full outfit looking in surprise in his direction. The mercenary’s gaze shifted to Jack’s arms. Jack looked there, holding up the long sleeve of a straitjacket, without even realizing it he was holding Kulik’s Glock. The mercenary aimed a rifle at him.
“Drop the weapon!”
Jack hesitated, he did not know what to do. Then, as if the mercenary noticed something, he took a closer look at Jack’s face.
“You, You are Jack the Ripper? I saw you on the news!”
The mercenary looked again, Jack also followed his eyes. First of all, his attention was turned to the Marshal’s ID, fixed on Kulik’s belt. Then on an empty holster, then on the Glock at Jack’s hand.
“Did you kill him?!”
The mercenary pointed the barrel of the rifle at Jack’s face. Jack wanted to say something, straining his thoughts, but the words seemed to be stuck in his throat. Then the soldier looked around and made sure that there were no signs of people around. Fortunately or unfortunately, almost his entire squad moved to the stern after hearing the rumble of an explosion. By accident, he was the only one who discovered the Marshal’s dead body and remained here to guard him. The mercenary swallowed and said to Jack;
“I was enrolled in the squad recently. And have never had to shoot anyone. However, in this situation, I am dealing with Jack the Ripper. So I have no problem about firing, right?”
His voice was trembling and his face was tense, slowly he put his finger on the trigger. Jack closed his eyes.
But instead of the sound of a shot, he heard a dull thud. Opening his eyes, he saw that the young mercenary was lying face down on Kulik’s body. The neck turned red, traces of internal hemorrhage appeared on the skin. It seems that he received a strong blow to the back of the head and lost consciousness.
Jack sank into the muzzle of a Beretta. In place of the mercenary was Lopez.
“You make a wrong move, I will shoot, just like he would. Now, let’s do this by the rules. I order. Throw away your weapon now.”
Jack, did as he was told, he removed his hands from the weapon. Lopez, not taking his eyes off him, picked up the Glock by him, and as soon as he took it in his hands, sniffed at it. The Glock smelled of gunpowder. Lopez pulled out the clip and checked the number of cartridges remaining.
“One is missing.”
Lopez pushed the body of the mercenary from Kulik and examined the bloody wound on Kulik’s stomach. For some time he examined it, then raised his eyes and put the muzzle of the Beretta to Jack’s head. His face was more serious than ever before:
“Listen, I’m very confused right now. Too many boring days have passed since we boarded this airliner. And honestly, I got bored. Deep inside, I thought that it would be nice if something strange happened. Therefore, after all this time, now that something has happened, I have no idea what’s going on. I need you to help clarify some things. Now the only thing that I clearly understand is that the missing bullet is in the body of my partner. And here I have a question for you. Who shot him?”
Jack felt the barrel pushed with force. But, could not say anything.
“Do not anger me! It’s a simple question. Answer me!” cried Lopez.
With difficulty, Jack barely audible said;
“It wasn’t me...”
Jack’s answer was primarily about the London murder. But these same words were the answer to the question of what happened to Kulik.
New York, at the Grand Central station inside a locker of the left-luggage office, a newborn child was discovered. This child was Jack. An image was posted on the door it was a playing card, of which only the letter “J” was remaining, so the child was named Jack Trump. In the future, the child was treated as if he were a monster, the indifference of people to each other, gave rise to a young man named Ripper in the nooks of the city of the monster. Perhaps that period of time influenced the fact that he felt extreme hatred for enclosed spaces. For the most part, all problems began in precisely such places. Also probably the reason that he had mastered the skill of opening locks. However, in confined spaces, where the difference between fear and security was hardly noticeable, it made most sense. Jack noticed that he was now in just such a place. Not understanding this dream or reality, but in any case he was locked somewhere. And Jack calmly began to think of ways to get out of here.
In the pitch darkness a door began to loom. He tried to open it using his mind.
Trying to match the many doors that he could open, memory returned him to the very last door. It was a room in some cheap apartment, in the bathroom. He himself did not understand why he was there, but he was overcome by a strange impatience. But he could not remember the reason for this feeling. As soon as he intensely strained his brain to remember, some sound was heard from the next bedroom. Jack went to the door and grabbed the handle and was about to open it. As soon as he did this, a sound was heard again. With difficulty, Jack realized what was really the source of the sound. It was a soft female voice. After hesitating, he opened the door and into the resulting gap, looked towards the source of the sound.
On a huge bed, someone was lying on their back. Looking closely, he saw a bloody woman. Also, there was another man in the room – a man, that stood in front of the overturned body of the woman. Jack could see only his back, but he saw perfectly a sharp knife in his hands. There was blood on the blade, the drops fell to the floor. Then the man swung a knife at the laying woman and sharply pitched the knife into her body. A scream filled the room; it was the last sound she made. Leaving the knife stuck in her body, the man removed the leather glove from his hand, in which he had stabbed, he pulled out a handkerchief and wiped blood from his face.
The man turned to the door, intending to leave the room, and Jack saw his face.
The person that Jack was trying to recall undoubtedly belonged to the journalist. In surprise, Jack flopped to the floor and finally woke up.
He was in the bathroom again. However, not in a cheap apartment from his memories, but in reality on Liberty. The dim outline of the door in the darkness was a barely visible door to the cabin. Realizing that the leather straps that held him for a long time were removed, he got up, leaned his body on the door and fell out. Landing hard on the floor, the first thing he saw before his eyes was Kulik’s face. Even he knew that Kulik was already dead. Another shadow hung over Kulik’s body. Jack looked up and saw a young mercenary in full outfit looking in surprise in his direction. The mercenary’s gaze shifted to Jack’s arms. Jack looked there, holding up the long sleeve of a straitjacket, without even realizing it he was holding Kulik’s Glock. The mercenary aimed a rifle at him.
“Drop the weapon!”
Jack hesitated, he did not know what to do. Then, as if the mercenary noticed something, he took a closer look at Jack’s face.
“You, You are Jack the Ripper? I saw you on the news!”
The mercenary looked again, Jack also followed his eyes. First of all, his attention was turned to the Marshal’s ID, fixed on Kulik’s belt. Then on an empty holster, then on the Glock at Jack’s hand.
“Did you kill him?!”
The mercenary pointed the barrel of the rifle at Jack’s face. Jack wanted to say something, straining his thoughts, but the words seemed to be stuck in his throat. Then the soldier looked around and made sure that there were no signs of people around. Fortunately or unfortunately, almost his entire squad moved to the stern after hearing the rumble of an explosion. By accident, he was the only one who discovered the Marshal’s dead body and remained here to guard him. The mercenary swallowed and said to Jack;
“I was enrolled in the squad recently. And have never had to shoot anyone. However, in this situation, I am dealing with Jack the Ripper. So I have no problem about firing, right?”
His voice was trembling and his face was tense, slowly he put his finger on the trigger. Jack closed his eyes.
But instead of the sound of a shot, he heard a dull thud. Opening his eyes, he saw that the young mercenary was lying face down on Kulik’s body. The neck turned red, traces of internal hemorrhage appeared on the skin. It seems that he received a strong blow to the back of the head and lost consciousness.
Jack sank into the muzzle of a Beretta. In place of the mercenary was Lopez.
“You make a wrong move, I will shoot, just like he would. Now, let’s do this by the rules. I order. Throw away your weapon now.”
Jack, did as he was told, he removed his hands from the weapon. Lopez, not taking his eyes off him, picked up the Glock by him, and as soon as he took it in his hands, sniffed at it. The Glock smelled of gunpowder. Lopez pulled out the clip and checked the number of cartridges remaining.
“One is missing.”
Lopez pushed the body of the mercenary from Kulik and examined the bloody wound on Kulik’s stomach. For some time he examined it, then raised his eyes and put the muzzle of the Beretta to Jack’s head. His face was more serious than ever before:
“Listen, I’m very confused right now. Too many boring days have passed since we boarded this airliner. And honestly, I got bored. Deep inside, I thought that it would be nice if something strange happened. Therefore, after all this time, now that something has happened, I have no idea what’s going on. I need you to help clarify some things. Now the only thing that I clearly understand is that the missing bullet is in the body of my partner. And here I have a question for you. Who shot him?”
Jack felt the barrel pushed with force. But, could not say anything.
“Do not anger me! It’s a simple question. Answer me!” cried Lopez.
With difficulty, Jack barely audible said;
“It wasn’t me...”
Jack’s answer was primarily about the London murder. But these same words were the answer to the question of what happened to Kulik.
# 15 What Happened To Kulik
Kulik turned to Lopez and said:
“Go see what’s going on.”
Lopez got up, picked up his jacket and left the cabin.
Following the closing door, Kulik was about to turn away again, but at that moment his gaze fell down and he discovered the handcuffs with which Lieutenant Kah was supposed to be bound. When she fell to the floor, she intentionally dislocated the joint on her shoulder, and overcoming the terrible pain, she waited for a favorable moment. She put her hands in front of her, grabbed and began to strangle Kulik.
Kulik’s face turned red. And he couldn’t even scream. He straightened up and tried to knock Lieutenant Kah from his back, slamming her against the wall. With all his great weight, Kulik smashed the lieutenant several times against the solid wall, but she did not loosen her grip.
Probably due to the hits against the wall, his Glock began to slip out of the holster and eventually fell to the floor. But both did not have the opportunity to notice this.
Suddenly, one shot put an end to the fight. The cabin was filled with the smell of gunpowder, and Kulik was bleeding from the stomach. Not only he was surprised, but so was Lieutenant Kah, who continued to hang on his back. And even watching the ongoing battle, Jack was dumbfounded by the sound of a shot. All three gazed at the smoking gun. In the hands of the journalist.
The lieutenant loosened her grip and Kulik’s body slowly slid to the floor. He hoped that other passengers would come running to the sound of a shot in the cabin, but, unfortunately, the shot was overlapped by the roar of a surfacing submarine, and none of the passengers paid attention to the shot.
Then the journalist made an angry face and turning to Lieutenant Kah, who did not take her eyes off him, said, “Where’s the syringe?”
The lieutenant said nothing.
“The one the marshals confiscated! The syringe with C-virus!”
The lieutenant turned her gaze at these words to the shelf above the bed. The journalist, while continuing to keep her in sight, climbed onto the bed and fumbled with his hand on the shelf. He groped for the suitcase, pulled it down and opened the lid. In it was a plastic bag in which lay the syringe. The journalist smiled.
“It seems all my life, from the very moment of birth, I waited for such a moment.”
The journalist with his teeth tore open the edge of the polyethylene, his hand slipped inside. He took the syringe, turned to the lieutenant and said;
“If you consider this a miracle, then you are the angel who brought it here... no, a goddess. Here, take the key from the marshal and free yourself.”
The journalist pointed a gun at Kulik lying on the floor. The lieutenant, following his words, took the key to the handcuffs from the belt and began to unfasten the handcuffs. Following this, the Englishman took out a bunch of keys from a briefcase and threw them to the freed lieutenant:
“Him too.”
It was a bunch of belt keys for Jack’s straitjacket.
“Well, what are you waiting for? Free Jack the Ripper. Are you not going to do it?”
The muzzle of Glock loomed in front of the lieutenant. But the man holding it was an amateur without much experience.
And if he was aware of this, then understanding a weapon would not help him, the lieutenant thought, but nonetheless did not move. She was more frightened by what was in his other hand – the syringe. Even in the hands of an amateur, he posed a great threat.
Having no other choice, the lieutenant followed the instructions of the journalist. With a dislocated shoulder, her movements were clumsy and it took time to remove all the straps. Soon, Jack’s hands became free, the journalist approached him, first took off his mask, and then rolled up his sleeve in a straitjacket and gave the Glock to him. The lieutenant, busy removing the straps from Jack’s legs, unable to understand the actions of the journalist, was very surprised.
The journalist smiled and whispered softly, “Jack, accept this as my thanks. You can use it as you wish. I watched you for a long time. But not as a journalist, but as, yes, just as a brother. You bear the burden of my sins and it always bothered me. Therefore, I also wanted on this ship. I will become an eyewitness of what awaits you in the end, in other words, the future, which from the very beginning should have been destined for me...”
Jack still did not understand the meaning of the unfinished phrase. The journalist, slowly going around behind Jack, who did not pay attention to him, continued;
“To be honest, I am overwhelmed with unbearable hatred for my weak body. Actually, I wanted to become a superhuman. I thought that there was no miracle that could make me such, so I was distracted, killing women weaker than me. Now everything will change. I did not believe in nonsense miracles, but now I believe. And in fact, God has given me this miracle.”
The straps on Jack’s legs were free. The lieutenant raised her head and when she saw that the journalist was holding a syringe near his neck, she instantly turned pale.
“Jack, now I’m changing my fate.”
He pulled the trigger, the contents of the syringe disappeared for a second. As soon as the journalist began to writhe from the action of the virus, Lieutenant Kah, without waiting for the result of the mutation, slipped to the side of the Englishman and hurried to the door. In a panic she pulled the handle and opened it, and flew out of the cabin.
Jack, too, felt a danger. Something involuntarily appeared from somewhere in the deep layers of his consciousness. All fear until this moment was revived and filled his head. Memories swirl away from the present to the past. And brought to the place of his birth – a locker in the left-luggage office at the station. The first sound he made was not the first cry of a baby who was just born, but crying from the countless fears awaiting him ahead.
Go back to calm darkness.
Such thoughts overwhelmed Jack at that moment.
As if in a blackout, Jack groped and opened the door behind him. It was a bathroom.
Entangled in the hem of a straitjacket, he burst inside. In a panic, he wanted to grab the edge of the door, but did not have time, and when he fell, his hand slipped and slammed the door. Surrounded by darkness, Jack passed out.
Before the eyes of Kulik, who remained in the cabin, the journalist was transformed. Unable to look away, he silently watched the swift change of the Englishman. Soon, the mutation ended, Kulik said something unusual for him:
“Lord...”
With a stammering tongue, Jack told Lopez about what had happened in London and what had happened in the cabin after he had left. After listening to everything,
Lopez exhaled loudly.
“If everything that you told is true, then it turns out that the journalist coiled me around his finger...”
Lopez straightened, exhaled and screamed as if he had been torn to shreds.
“If this is true! What the hell has this sick British dog done to us all!”
Lopez’s face flushed. Soon he took a deep breath, calmed down, and threw the Glock onto the bed, he tucked the clip into a belt on his trousers. With free hands, he took the Beretta, familiar to him, and loading the gun, said;
“I will find the truth. I’ll find the lieutenant and listen to what she says. If she remains silent, then this time I will definitely shoot one of her legs. And if what you told me really happened, then I will kill the journalist who became a monster for the fact that he shot my partner.”
Lopez nodded his head toward the door, showing Jack to go with him. But Jack stood bewildered and did not react.
“What? We are going together! You think I would leave you alone for you to escape at the first chance? Whether you really are guilty or not, it’s not for me to decide. First of all, how do you prove it here and now? Whoever you are, my duty is to deliver you to your destination, and I am going to do just that!” After saying this, Lopez turned his back to Jack and went out into the corridor. Jack straightened up and followed him.
First, they headed towards the stern, from where the explosion thundered. The noise of the liner engines, the noise of the waves being cut, Lopez listened to them – all these sounds were the same as usual. If the journalist, according to Jack, really became a monster, then it would not be surprising if new sounds were mixed with these sounds. But neither the screams of people, frightened by a monster, nor the scattering passengers, nor the sound of shots from the mercenaries – none of this was heard. It was even quieter than when the mercenaries landed on Liberty. There were absolutely no signs of human presence. He had a bad feeling. Lopez looked around and tried to stay calm.
Finally, they turned the corner, and as soon as they found themselves in the stern, Lopez kicked a metal object. Suddenly white smoke erupted from it at Lopez and Jack. Smoke closed the entire view, it was impossible to go further. Lopez immediately realized what was happening. The object he kicked with his foot was a fire extinguisher. He waved at the fumes with his hands and visibility gradually began to return. In the darkness, a fire extinguisher was lying on the floor, in someone’s hands. The hands most likely belonged to one of the sailors, perhaps he was engaged in putting out the fire. However, why was he lying on the floor? Lopez had a bad feeling in his chest. Then the smoke completely cleared. Lopez immediately received a clear answer to his question. It was not the body of a sailor lying on the floor, but only an arm. There was no body nearby. It was a severed arm, lying on the floor. Lopez and Jack looked towards the rear of the deck – dead bodies were dumped in a mountain, which continued to burn.
Jack could not stand it and vomited from what he saw. Lopez glanced at him, approached the corpses and began to examine them. Almost all the bodies belonged to the mercenaries, but among them were sailors. Presumably, everything around appeared to be sliced with a sharp object similar to a large blade. Lopez squatted down and ran a hand over the slices, figuring out their length. However, it was a useless exercise – the shortest significantly exceeded a meter. In addition, it looked like they were made clean, the dissected surface was perfectly smooth. What weapons could leave such traces – among those species that limited the knowledge of Lopez, this did not exist. A trembling swept over him.
And at that moment Lopez noticed another oddity. Near the body, a fresh broad strip was very clearly visible, looking closely, he saw next to another, the width of a human body, the strip was a bloody trail. He raised his head and looked around, numerous lines stretched parallel to each other and sought in one direction. Lopez tracked where they were headed – they all converged on a ramp thrown from the submarine. What was moved to leave such traces? The first thing that drew to his imagination, the mercenaries who survived the attack tried to return to the submarine.
Exactly, the sub. If someone survived, then they would go back to tell about what happened here.
In any case, only one thing was clear – something happened here that Lopez had not yet encountered until today, this is the only fact. And to counter this, he had too little information. Also, if he was to believe Jack, and this was the work of the journalist who became a monster, now they are powerless against him. Fortunately, bloody traces converged to a sub full of trained military men.
I have no idea what’s going on, but with the Beretta alone it’s much safer to hide there than stay on Liberty, such a thought visited Lopez. He got up from his haunches, turned to Jack and told him about his plans:
“Hey, let’s go there!” Lopez pointed to the submarine.
Jack answered with worry on his face. To this, Lopez smiled out of place and said:
“It’s okay. Like you, I’m American. Fortunately, they are also American. They are pros who can fight with a large number of weapons. In other words, a tin can full of weapons created with the taxpayers’ money. And if the journalist really became a monster, then he will not be welcome there. On the boat he will be given a warmer welcome... probably.”
Lopez turned his back on Jack and walked along the bloody streaks to the gangway connecting the submarine and Liberty. Jack, having no other choice, went after him.
Lopez considered his idea a success, but in the meantime a couple of doubts crept into his mind. He mentioned taxpayers, but no doubt criminals followed on the reverse side, and the question was whether or not there was a need to pay taxes on their maintenance. Even if this thought was irrelevant then another question which was much more serious – did the blood marks belong to the wounded mercenaries or not? In fact, it was human blood, but from whose body did its trace stretch? If the wound was serious, then was the person who received the wound be in a bad way? There are too few traces of falling drops of blood. It would be nice if at least one returned to the sub with minor injuries.
Lopez scrolled through these questions in his head, but did not think that it was important, his only thought now was to hurry and get on the sub.
Liberty was silently captured. All personnel, including the captain and mercenaries, except those that were thrown from the bridge, where they were originally located, died on the spot. Only the autopilot and radars remained alive, and among them a weather radar issued a message about an approaching storm.
“Go see what’s going on.”
Lopez got up, picked up his jacket and left the cabin.
Following the closing door, Kulik was about to turn away again, but at that moment his gaze fell down and he discovered the handcuffs with which Lieutenant Kah was supposed to be bound. When she fell to the floor, she intentionally dislocated the joint on her shoulder, and overcoming the terrible pain, she waited for a favorable moment. She put her hands in front of her, grabbed and began to strangle Kulik.
Kulik’s face turned red. And he couldn’t even scream. He straightened up and tried to knock Lieutenant Kah from his back, slamming her against the wall. With all his great weight, Kulik smashed the lieutenant several times against the solid wall, but she did not loosen her grip.
Probably due to the hits against the wall, his Glock began to slip out of the holster and eventually fell to the floor. But both did not have the opportunity to notice this.
Suddenly, one shot put an end to the fight. The cabin was filled with the smell of gunpowder, and Kulik was bleeding from the stomach. Not only he was surprised, but so was Lieutenant Kah, who continued to hang on his back. And even watching the ongoing battle, Jack was dumbfounded by the sound of a shot. All three gazed at the smoking gun. In the hands of the journalist.
The lieutenant loosened her grip and Kulik’s body slowly slid to the floor. He hoped that other passengers would come running to the sound of a shot in the cabin, but, unfortunately, the shot was overlapped by the roar of a surfacing submarine, and none of the passengers paid attention to the shot.
Then the journalist made an angry face and turning to Lieutenant Kah, who did not take her eyes off him, said, “Where’s the syringe?”
The lieutenant said nothing.
“The one the marshals confiscated! The syringe with C-virus!”
The lieutenant turned her gaze at these words to the shelf above the bed. The journalist, while continuing to keep her in sight, climbed onto the bed and fumbled with his hand on the shelf. He groped for the suitcase, pulled it down and opened the lid. In it was a plastic bag in which lay the syringe. The journalist smiled.
“It seems all my life, from the very moment of birth, I waited for such a moment.”
The journalist with his teeth tore open the edge of the polyethylene, his hand slipped inside. He took the syringe, turned to the lieutenant and said;
“If you consider this a miracle, then you are the angel who brought it here... no, a goddess. Here, take the key from the marshal and free yourself.”
The journalist pointed a gun at Kulik lying on the floor. The lieutenant, following his words, took the key to the handcuffs from the belt and began to unfasten the handcuffs. Following this, the Englishman took out a bunch of keys from a briefcase and threw them to the freed lieutenant:
“Him too.”
It was a bunch of belt keys for Jack’s straitjacket.
“Well, what are you waiting for? Free Jack the Ripper. Are you not going to do it?”
The muzzle of Glock loomed in front of the lieutenant. But the man holding it was an amateur without much experience.
And if he was aware of this, then understanding a weapon would not help him, the lieutenant thought, but nonetheless did not move. She was more frightened by what was in his other hand – the syringe. Even in the hands of an amateur, he posed a great threat.
Having no other choice, the lieutenant followed the instructions of the journalist. With a dislocated shoulder, her movements were clumsy and it took time to remove all the straps. Soon, Jack’s hands became free, the journalist approached him, first took off his mask, and then rolled up his sleeve in a straitjacket and gave the Glock to him. The lieutenant, busy removing the straps from Jack’s legs, unable to understand the actions of the journalist, was very surprised.
The journalist smiled and whispered softly, “Jack, accept this as my thanks. You can use it as you wish. I watched you for a long time. But not as a journalist, but as, yes, just as a brother. You bear the burden of my sins and it always bothered me. Therefore, I also wanted on this ship. I will become an eyewitness of what awaits you in the end, in other words, the future, which from the very beginning should have been destined for me...”
Jack still did not understand the meaning of the unfinished phrase. The journalist, slowly going around behind Jack, who did not pay attention to him, continued;
“To be honest, I am overwhelmed with unbearable hatred for my weak body. Actually, I wanted to become a superhuman. I thought that there was no miracle that could make me such, so I was distracted, killing women weaker than me. Now everything will change. I did not believe in nonsense miracles, but now I believe. And in fact, God has given me this miracle.”
The straps on Jack’s legs were free. The lieutenant raised her head and when she saw that the journalist was holding a syringe near his neck, she instantly turned pale.
“Jack, now I’m changing my fate.”
He pulled the trigger, the contents of the syringe disappeared for a second. As soon as the journalist began to writhe from the action of the virus, Lieutenant Kah, without waiting for the result of the mutation, slipped to the side of the Englishman and hurried to the door. In a panic she pulled the handle and opened it, and flew out of the cabin.
Jack, too, felt a danger. Something involuntarily appeared from somewhere in the deep layers of his consciousness. All fear until this moment was revived and filled his head. Memories swirl away from the present to the past. And brought to the place of his birth – a locker in the left-luggage office at the station. The first sound he made was not the first cry of a baby who was just born, but crying from the countless fears awaiting him ahead.
Go back to calm darkness.
Such thoughts overwhelmed Jack at that moment.
As if in a blackout, Jack groped and opened the door behind him. It was a bathroom.
Entangled in the hem of a straitjacket, he burst inside. In a panic, he wanted to grab the edge of the door, but did not have time, and when he fell, his hand slipped and slammed the door. Surrounded by darkness, Jack passed out.
Before the eyes of Kulik, who remained in the cabin, the journalist was transformed. Unable to look away, he silently watched the swift change of the Englishman. Soon, the mutation ended, Kulik said something unusual for him:
“Lord...”
With a stammering tongue, Jack told Lopez about what had happened in London and what had happened in the cabin after he had left. After listening to everything,
Lopez exhaled loudly.
“If everything that you told is true, then it turns out that the journalist coiled me around his finger...”
Lopez straightened, exhaled and screamed as if he had been torn to shreds.
“If this is true! What the hell has this sick British dog done to us all!”
Lopez’s face flushed. Soon he took a deep breath, calmed down, and threw the Glock onto the bed, he tucked the clip into a belt on his trousers. With free hands, he took the Beretta, familiar to him, and loading the gun, said;
“I will find the truth. I’ll find the lieutenant and listen to what she says. If she remains silent, then this time I will definitely shoot one of her legs. And if what you told me really happened, then I will kill the journalist who became a monster for the fact that he shot my partner.”
Lopez nodded his head toward the door, showing Jack to go with him. But Jack stood bewildered and did not react.
“What? We are going together! You think I would leave you alone for you to escape at the first chance? Whether you really are guilty or not, it’s not for me to decide. First of all, how do you prove it here and now? Whoever you are, my duty is to deliver you to your destination, and I am going to do just that!” After saying this, Lopez turned his back to Jack and went out into the corridor. Jack straightened up and followed him.
First, they headed towards the stern, from where the explosion thundered. The noise of the liner engines, the noise of the waves being cut, Lopez listened to them – all these sounds were the same as usual. If the journalist, according to Jack, really became a monster, then it would not be surprising if new sounds were mixed with these sounds. But neither the screams of people, frightened by a monster, nor the scattering passengers, nor the sound of shots from the mercenaries – none of this was heard. It was even quieter than when the mercenaries landed on Liberty. There were absolutely no signs of human presence. He had a bad feeling. Lopez looked around and tried to stay calm.
Finally, they turned the corner, and as soon as they found themselves in the stern, Lopez kicked a metal object. Suddenly white smoke erupted from it at Lopez and Jack. Smoke closed the entire view, it was impossible to go further. Lopez immediately realized what was happening. The object he kicked with his foot was a fire extinguisher. He waved at the fumes with his hands and visibility gradually began to return. In the darkness, a fire extinguisher was lying on the floor, in someone’s hands. The hands most likely belonged to one of the sailors, perhaps he was engaged in putting out the fire. However, why was he lying on the floor? Lopez had a bad feeling in his chest. Then the smoke completely cleared. Lopez immediately received a clear answer to his question. It was not the body of a sailor lying on the floor, but only an arm. There was no body nearby. It was a severed arm, lying on the floor. Lopez and Jack looked towards the rear of the deck – dead bodies were dumped in a mountain, which continued to burn.
Jack could not stand it and vomited from what he saw. Lopez glanced at him, approached the corpses and began to examine them. Almost all the bodies belonged to the mercenaries, but among them were sailors. Presumably, everything around appeared to be sliced with a sharp object similar to a large blade. Lopez squatted down and ran a hand over the slices, figuring out their length. However, it was a useless exercise – the shortest significantly exceeded a meter. In addition, it looked like they were made clean, the dissected surface was perfectly smooth. What weapons could leave such traces – among those species that limited the knowledge of Lopez, this did not exist. A trembling swept over him.
And at that moment Lopez noticed another oddity. Near the body, a fresh broad strip was very clearly visible, looking closely, he saw next to another, the width of a human body, the strip was a bloody trail. He raised his head and looked around, numerous lines stretched parallel to each other and sought in one direction. Lopez tracked where they were headed – they all converged on a ramp thrown from the submarine. What was moved to leave such traces? The first thing that drew to his imagination, the mercenaries who survived the attack tried to return to the submarine.
Exactly, the sub. If someone survived, then they would go back to tell about what happened here.
In any case, only one thing was clear – something happened here that Lopez had not yet encountered until today, this is the only fact. And to counter this, he had too little information. Also, if he was to believe Jack, and this was the work of the journalist who became a monster, now they are powerless against him. Fortunately, bloody traces converged to a sub full of trained military men.
I have no idea what’s going on, but with the Beretta alone it’s much safer to hide there than stay on Liberty, such a thought visited Lopez. He got up from his haunches, turned to Jack and told him about his plans:
“Hey, let’s go there!” Lopez pointed to the submarine.
Jack answered with worry on his face. To this, Lopez smiled out of place and said:
“It’s okay. Like you, I’m American. Fortunately, they are also American. They are pros who can fight with a large number of weapons. In other words, a tin can full of weapons created with the taxpayers’ money. And if the journalist really became a monster, then he will not be welcome there. On the boat he will be given a warmer welcome... probably.”
Lopez turned his back on Jack and walked along the bloody streaks to the gangway connecting the submarine and Liberty. Jack, having no other choice, went after him.
Lopez considered his idea a success, but in the meantime a couple of doubts crept into his mind. He mentioned taxpayers, but no doubt criminals followed on the reverse side, and the question was whether or not there was a need to pay taxes on their maintenance. Even if this thought was irrelevant then another question which was much more serious – did the blood marks belong to the wounded mercenaries or not? In fact, it was human blood, but from whose body did its trace stretch? If the wound was serious, then was the person who received the wound be in a bad way? There are too few traces of falling drops of blood. It would be nice if at least one returned to the sub with minor injuries.
Lopez scrolled through these questions in his head, but did not think that it was important, his only thought now was to hurry and get on the sub.
Liberty was silently captured. All personnel, including the captain and mercenaries, except those that were thrown from the bridge, where they were originally located, died on the spot. Only the autopilot and radars remained alive, and among them a weather radar issued a message about an approaching storm.
# 16 Tin Can
Lopez had no military training experience. Especially in the Navy and so the first thing that worried him was how to get inside the submarine. On the hull itself there were about twelve hatches arranged in two rows, and Lopez first tried to find handles to them. But it turned out to be holes for launching missiles with SLBM nuclear warheads, so the handles of these hatches would not open. While Lopez was tormented, Jack found a pen on the side of the bridge. Whether it was the experience of a code cracker or his innate instinct, which even Lopez himself had no idea about, Jack was influenced, and he entrusted him to go in first, they both headed inside the boat.
At the entrance, they switched and now Lopez was in front. Going forward was a good idea, but the first thing they were met by was the silence. Although there wouldn’t be time for a warm welcome, initially Lopez believed that at least one soldier would come to greet them, but there was nobody. The silence inside the boat was oppressive, there were even no signs of the unit.
Was the boat also attacked by a monster? Even Lopez remembered what fear was, he began to regret that he was at the front, but did not change places with Jack. Behind him, he saw no one but Jack. In front of him, Lopez did not want to look scared.
What words could he use to not show his fear. To break the silence, a result of the fear, Lopez called out, “Hey, somebody!”
In the uninhabited space of the boat, his words echoed. Lopez was about to shout to someone from the military, but his own voice made him feel cold with fear. In
addition, there was no response.
This is bad. Perhaps leaving Liberty for here was a mistake.
He noticed that they had already gone far enough. Right behind them, they found the first room. Apparently it was a dining room, among evenly spaced tables on one of which was a plate with half-eaten donuts. Raspberry jam had leaked onto a plate and the atmosphere of real America showed. Lopez went to the table and took one donut, though they were not covered with jam, but with a lot of human blood. Lopez got even colder.
“Shit!” Lopez uttered a word that he usually would never use, and immediately threw the donut on the floor.
Lopez looked at his watch, dawn was coming soon. Donuts for breakfast – America is truly here. If it were possible, then, him having a badge, he would also like to eat donuts for breakfast. However, their owner left here only traces of teeth and a pool of blood and where he had been.
Now Lopez really regretted that he was in the submarine, he went so far as to return with nothing. Once he had got there, he wanted to return to Liberty – the risk was the same.
But if there are no military men left, then you need to at least stock up on weapons.
Finally formulating a new thought, Lopez told Jack:
“We are looking for a stockroom with weapons.”
Jack, not uttering a word, went to the exit of the dining room after him. Feeling his presence behind him, Lopez turned to him.
“Hey Jack... aren’t you scared?”
Jack remained speechless. At this moment, at the exit from the dining room, Lopez’s gaze stopped at a clipping from a basketball magazine glued to the wall. Without a doubt, it was America’s atmosphere here.
Lopez asked Jack again, “You’re kind of a Knicks fan. Do you know what their results were this season?”
Jack didn’t answer. Lopez abruptly stopped and turned to him with irritation.
“Good talk. Can you start talking? We talked a bit on Liberty before, right? When you saw a mountain of corpses you vomited, right? I became calmer from the fact that I am dealing with a living person. Or have you returned to the image of a complex psycho who does not care about conversations?”
Lopez was not particularly going to have a friendly conversation with him. But there was no other way to resist the mounting fear than to talk here.
Then Jack shook his head to the sides and stammering said, “Most likely... I don’t know, I did not see any games. It has been a long time since I was in New York...”
Suddenly the tone was too calm. It was unclear which of Lopez’s remarks these words were intended for, but in reality they sounded very quickly. Lopez was immediately stupefied. However, he quickly regained himself, exhaled loudly through his nose and laughed. This sound rang out again, only now Lopez was calm. Thanks to Jack, he felt that quite a bit of tension was released.
“You mean you never talked about the Knicks? Well, of course not... I asked about it before. Granted. But you kind of said you went to watch a game with a girl. If I recall, her name was Sylvia?”
An image of his beloved Sylvia surfaced in Jack’s head. Having said her name, Lopez remembered the little Sylvia who remained on Liberty.
“What happened to her? Sylvia...” It is not clear who Lopez’s question was about, but Jack answered about the girl whose image surfaced in his memories.
“I do not know. I can’t remember what happened to her.”
“When we find the weapons, let’s go back to Liberty. Let’s look for Sylvia.” Lopez, on the contrary, spoke, worrying about little Sylvia, and he and Jack again went on.
A little later, both sniffed at the smell coming from around the corner in the corridor. There in the air froze the smell of blood that they had forgotten for a short time. Anxiety returned to Lopez. Turning around the corner, they saw the same visual that they saw on Liberty’s deck. Only this time, nausea also came to Lopez’s throat. By chance there was an armory in front – the goal of their search. Feeling the presence of an incredible monster, all the victims must have had the same idea. But perhaps the monster predicted their actions, it seemed that no one was able to open the armory door.
Lopez and Jack headed toward the armory, carefully walking around the bodies. In pools of blood... walking besides the mess, discomfort passed through them.
Lopez frowned and said, “Damn, my shoes are worth a lot of money. Very good quality. But no matter how much we talk, it won’t become easier.”
Finally, they reached the warehouse door, Lopez grabbed the valve and turned it with effort. After some time, the tight, heavy door opened, releasing air from the inside. Lopez finally calmed down.
This is a safe place to hide. With this sturdy door, like a sealed tin can. Even if the monster reaches here, then most likely it will not be able to open it. Even with a large can opener... with these thoughts, Lopez went inside the armory and immediately turned to Jack, who was still standing in the hallway and with impatience, waved his hand strongly, calling him inside.
“Hey wake up, get inside!”
Jack, with his slow reaction, did not immediately obey. Lopez, making a serious face, made sure that Jack came inside and immediately closed the door behind them.
“Do you even realize how much danger we are in?” saying this, Lopez turned the valve on the door from the inside. “Well, it’s safe here, you can breathe out now. We arm ourselves and then can say goodbye to this place.” Lopez turned and looked around the room.
The next instant, a completely unthinkable image rushed into his eyes.
His heart sank in a second, as if someone had crushed him in a vice. Then his blood with high pressure suppressed his brain cells, causing darkening in the eyes. Instead of losing the ability to function the brain, the motor nerve lifted both Lopez’s arms up and brought the Beretta on alert. In the dim light stood the shadow of a man, naturally not Jack, and certainly not his own.
Suddenly he realized – is it the journalist? ...It turns out that they locked themselves in a tin can with a monster. Damn, this is screwed up! Ever since they left the Liberty, they have had countless choices and now that there is not one left. Lopez regretted coming here.
At that moment, the shadow moved slowly in their direction. Looking closely, he saw that the shadow was moving toward them, equipped like a Navy soldier with a rifle aimed at Lopez and Jack. A surviving Soldier? Lopez strained his eyesight and was finally able to find out who was moving in front of him.
When the silhouette appeared before Lopez’s eyes, he exclaimed: “Louise Kah!”
The lieutenant, learning that Lopez was in front of her, she lowered the barrel of her rifle. Lopez also relaxed a little and exhaled as he too lowered his Beretta. But, suddenly he remembered, he straightened up again and shouted.
“Drop your weapon!”
The lieutenant did not obey and only grinned.
“The lackey of the government, as always, is acting according to instructions. But this is not the time or place. A different enemy has appeared and you are unprepared.”
“So it’s true... where is the journalist?”
“It is no longer a journalist. When I last saw it, it was a huge chunk of meat. Yes, he also killed your partner. If you are comfortable with the fact that he is a monster, you can charge him with murder.”
Lopez slowly lowered the Beretta. Then he put it in a holster, he began to be feel embarrassed that before him this human shadow had led him into inexplicable horrific panic, and, as if justifying himself, muttered:
“That means, when I see him, then everything is clear. Since he is not a man, then I can shoot without hesitation.”
The lieutenant turned her back to Lopez and headed for the large vault, inside the armory. Then she put her hand to the vault door and began to examine it.
“What are you doing here?” Lopez asked, to which the lieutenant’s indifferent reply followed.
“You probably thought the same as me? To protect yourself from it, you need a very powerful weapon. By the way, among us there is no one who would know the code of the storage door.”
Suddenly, Jack came to the door. Pulling the lieutenant away, he, leaning his ear against the door, he began to turn the handle of the lock.
Lopez and the lieutenant silently watched as Jack rotated the handle to the left and to the right. After a few minutes, Jack held out his hand and said;
“Something sharp...”
A piece of wire was lying on the floor. Lopez picked it up and handed it to Jack. He rolled up his sleeves, deftly bent the wire with both hands and inserted it into the keyhole on the side of the limb handle and twisted it. There was a pleasant metallic sound and the door opened.
Lieutenant Kah frowned and asked, “As with my computer... but who is he, isn’t he just a killer?”
“He denies it; I don’t know.”
Lopez approached the entrance to the vault. Having recounted its contents, he discovered that they had enough weapons, including heavy ones. Almost everything was American-made. Only now, Lopez, who constantly complained about taxes, agreed that high taxes had advantages. Finally, he took an M16 rifle equipped with a grenade launcher, different types of hand grenades, then turned to the lieutenant.
“Louise Kah, what will you do? We want to return to Liberty, come with us?”
She hesitated for a second. It was not possible to hide from Lopez.
“As you said yourself, the situation has changed. Not only has the journalist turned into a monster, I’m going to violate my duties and kill him. I’m angry that my partner was killed by this freak, but most of all I don’t like the ease with which he misled me. And right now, your experience would greatly help if you went with us, but... Or do you not want to go against the finally successful experiment?”
Lieutenant Kah thought of Chen. Now that he was no longer there, the obligation to save life in a completed form had lost its meaning. Furthermore, the slaughter was likely to continue. And if so, then her life itself was in jeopardy. There was only one choice.
“Fine, I’m coming with you.” With these words she took the same rifle that Lopez had selected.
“Well, then there is no need to stay any longer. We take as many weapons as we can carry and return to Liberty.”
In the empty bags that were in the armory, they put down their weapons and ammunition. The lieutenant silently continued to fill the bags, Lopez looked at her with side vision and inadvertently said;
“And you know what you are doing, Louise Kah. You really are a good mercenary.”
“I want to say only one thing. From now on, stop calling me by my full name.”
“Then what do you prefer, Miss Kah? I mean, are you married? If so, then excuse my rudeness, Mrs. Kah? Are you married?” Lopez slightly bowed his head and smiled.
“Absolutely not. I just hate my last name.”
“Kah is a Scandinavian surname. With such dark skin. Even if you are European, then your parents are probably from Africa?”
Suddenly the lieutenant waved her hand, but stopped, her sharp gaze burned through Lopez. Noticing this, Lopez stopped and spread his arms.
“What are you mad at? Hey hey, I’m an American from Chicago. And people like you are not uncommon for me, I’m not trying to offend you. I have a Spanish last name and I am a child of immigrants from Puerto Rico. It is from these groups that society is built on. This is a common view in America.”
The lieutenant thought to herself. American conventional wisdom, so what?... She was neither warm nor annoyed from this. She returned her thoughts to the past. Both the name and the color of her skin – she wanted to not discuss it. Because of her parents, whoever they were, abandoned her in her childhood, and Lieutenant Kah was always alone. These aspects were of little interest to the army, it was a suitable place to forget about dissatisfaction with oneself and, having reached adulthood, Kah decided to join the military without any reason of doubt. But fate laughed at her. After serving, she possessed a well-trained body and refined skills, became a mercenary in Umbrella and there she faced even more discrimination. An arrogant employer treated her like an empty vessel and did not recognize her at all.
However, in the midst of all this, fate brought her to Chen. Despite the employer’s hiccups, he treated her well. If she thought about it, for all her life until today, he was the only one who saw a person in her. Most likely, he, being an Asian in the company among self-confident Europeans, had felt the same as her. At least that was how she saw Chen in the eyes of Lieutenant Kah, but he probably didn’t want to show it to others.
The lieutenant remembered Chen again.
She silently looked at Lopez, he said, “I understand. Then Louise. Is that okay?”
Hearing this, the lieutenant remembered how Chen tenderly called her Louise, pretended to grin, threw two bags loaded with weapons over her shoulders and straightened up.
“No. It was better before, only softer intonation.”
Lopez looked after the retreating lieutenant. There was a feeling that there was a change between them. He clicked his tongue, and trying to keep up, he laid down the same amount of weapons as the lieutenant, threw his bags over his shoulders and straightened up. But his strength was inferior to the trained lieutenant and staggered across the floor with his bags.
Meanwhile, Jack was watching them standing idle. The lieutenant noticed this and after a little thought, she was seriously going to give him the rifle with which she had used earlier. But Lopez immediately stopped her with his hand.
The lieutenant looked at Lopez’s face, he shook his head.
“I’m sorry, but we can do without that. Please do not give him a weapon.”
Lopez took the rifle and threw it on the floor. Then he took the bags from the floor in two hands and turned his back to them.
“He and the two of us need to kill it. We will succeed... Louise Kah?”
The lieutenant silently followed Lopez. Jack followed them, about to leave the room. Lopez opened the heavy door in the same way as when they entered, and looked out into the corridor.
There stood a man. Lopez blinked several times, not believing his eyes. Since he was very close, it seemed to Lopez that he was seeing a hallucination. The figure was very different from the monster described by the lieutenant. This was the journalist who looked like a man, he stood in front of Lopez and silently looked in his direction, they were separated by a distance of less than fifty centimeters.
Lieutenant Kah did not believe her eyes. When she saw him for the last time in the hangar on Liberty, he definitely looked different.
The monster, half the size of a small helicopter, definitely became smaller and returned to human form. But the only thing that differed from a living person, the surface of the body was covered with long scales of a white-milky color, through its slits a dull-white translucent skin was exposed, if it could be called that through which the muscles and blood vessels covering them were visible. Only the face was not transparent, which made it possible to recognize the former journalist in its outlines. However, there was absolutely no hair on either the head or body. He became even thinner, but compared with how the journalist looked before, his body became in better shape, without exaggeration, physically perfect, as if everything superfluous had been removed from him. The lieutenant mentally returned to the information she received from Chen.
Unlike the monsters that had been created at Umbrella until now, it could instantly change depending on circumstances and the environment. While remaining its self. This was the main feature of the C-virus, the current form is the final choice made by the carrier. It is he who most closely matches the name “completed form”, which Chen sought.
Lopez froze for several seconds in confusion. Finally, having regained consciousness, he quickly began to close the half-open door. In the blink of an eye, the completed form raised his hand and grabbed the edge of the door with the part of the hand that is usually considered the palm. And with an inconceivable force the journalist pulled the door toward himself.
Lopez quickly took off his bag and grabbed the rifle on his shoulder, about to fire from it. Immediately, the scales on the arm began to move and became something sharp, a shape exactly like a knife blade. Lightning fast, before Lopez could aim the rifle, his hand waved. Sparks rained down, the rifle split into two parts, the front of the barrel fell to the floor.
Lopez’s legs buckled, he fell to the floor and began to crawl back. The completed form began to slowly fill the space surrounding it. When the back appeared, a gap formed in the opening.
Lopez turned to the lieutenant and shouted, “Run! Take Jack with you!”
The lieutenant, without hesitation, grabbed Jack by the long sleeves of his straitjacket and ran, dragging him to the exit.
The eyes of the completed form were tracked by the lieutenant as she ran by, hesitating to touch her or not, then he waved his hand. Immediately the bag and belt of the rifle on her shoulder were cut off and fell to the floor, but there was not even a scratch on the lieutenant’s body. At such a short distance, these same claws just cut the barrel of a rifle. It could have killed her with ease. Realizing the actions were strange, she looked into his face, the corners of his mouth rose and showed a smile. Lieutenant Kah could not believe it. If it really was a smile, then other parts of not only the main body continue to exist but also the brain, perhaps they voluntarily perform these actions. Now they are forced to become weapons, they specifically want to be left alive... Then to enjoy the massacre.
At that moment, Lopez’s voice came between the lieutenant and the form.
“Hey you British Dog!”
The form turned its head back toward Lopez. A previously selected rifle from the lieutenant’s bag was aimed at him.
“This is for you, I am an American and this thing is American-made.”
Flames burst out of the aimed muzzle instantly. The form put both hands in front of its face, frozen, not even trying to dodge. The lieutenant flew out through the opening. Jack, was pulled out into the corridor, he could only see the door of the armory depot being removed. Finally, the flashes of light from the door, visible in the darkness of the corridor, ceased, along with the shots of a rifle the silence filled the submarine.
At the entrance, they switched and now Lopez was in front. Going forward was a good idea, but the first thing they were met by was the silence. Although there wouldn’t be time for a warm welcome, initially Lopez believed that at least one soldier would come to greet them, but there was nobody. The silence inside the boat was oppressive, there were even no signs of the unit.
Was the boat also attacked by a monster? Even Lopez remembered what fear was, he began to regret that he was at the front, but did not change places with Jack. Behind him, he saw no one but Jack. In front of him, Lopez did not want to look scared.
What words could he use to not show his fear. To break the silence, a result of the fear, Lopez called out, “Hey, somebody!”
In the uninhabited space of the boat, his words echoed. Lopez was about to shout to someone from the military, but his own voice made him feel cold with fear. In
addition, there was no response.
This is bad. Perhaps leaving Liberty for here was a mistake.
He noticed that they had already gone far enough. Right behind them, they found the first room. Apparently it was a dining room, among evenly spaced tables on one of which was a plate with half-eaten donuts. Raspberry jam had leaked onto a plate and the atmosphere of real America showed. Lopez went to the table and took one donut, though they were not covered with jam, but with a lot of human blood. Lopez got even colder.
“Shit!” Lopez uttered a word that he usually would never use, and immediately threw the donut on the floor.
Lopez looked at his watch, dawn was coming soon. Donuts for breakfast – America is truly here. If it were possible, then, him having a badge, he would also like to eat donuts for breakfast. However, their owner left here only traces of teeth and a pool of blood and where he had been.
Now Lopez really regretted that he was in the submarine, he went so far as to return with nothing. Once he had got there, he wanted to return to Liberty – the risk was the same.
But if there are no military men left, then you need to at least stock up on weapons.
Finally formulating a new thought, Lopez told Jack:
“We are looking for a stockroom with weapons.”
Jack, not uttering a word, went to the exit of the dining room after him. Feeling his presence behind him, Lopez turned to him.
“Hey Jack... aren’t you scared?”
Jack remained speechless. At this moment, at the exit from the dining room, Lopez’s gaze stopped at a clipping from a basketball magazine glued to the wall. Without a doubt, it was America’s atmosphere here.
Lopez asked Jack again, “You’re kind of a Knicks fan. Do you know what their results were this season?”
Jack didn’t answer. Lopez abruptly stopped and turned to him with irritation.
“Good talk. Can you start talking? We talked a bit on Liberty before, right? When you saw a mountain of corpses you vomited, right? I became calmer from the fact that I am dealing with a living person. Or have you returned to the image of a complex psycho who does not care about conversations?”
Lopez was not particularly going to have a friendly conversation with him. But there was no other way to resist the mounting fear than to talk here.
Then Jack shook his head to the sides and stammering said, “Most likely... I don’t know, I did not see any games. It has been a long time since I was in New York...”
Suddenly the tone was too calm. It was unclear which of Lopez’s remarks these words were intended for, but in reality they sounded very quickly. Lopez was immediately stupefied. However, he quickly regained himself, exhaled loudly through his nose and laughed. This sound rang out again, only now Lopez was calm. Thanks to Jack, he felt that quite a bit of tension was released.
“You mean you never talked about the Knicks? Well, of course not... I asked about it before. Granted. But you kind of said you went to watch a game with a girl. If I recall, her name was Sylvia?”
An image of his beloved Sylvia surfaced in Jack’s head. Having said her name, Lopez remembered the little Sylvia who remained on Liberty.
“What happened to her? Sylvia...” It is not clear who Lopez’s question was about, but Jack answered about the girl whose image surfaced in his memories.
“I do not know. I can’t remember what happened to her.”
“When we find the weapons, let’s go back to Liberty. Let’s look for Sylvia.” Lopez, on the contrary, spoke, worrying about little Sylvia, and he and Jack again went on.
A little later, both sniffed at the smell coming from around the corner in the corridor. There in the air froze the smell of blood that they had forgotten for a short time. Anxiety returned to Lopez. Turning around the corner, they saw the same visual that they saw on Liberty’s deck. Only this time, nausea also came to Lopez’s throat. By chance there was an armory in front – the goal of their search. Feeling the presence of an incredible monster, all the victims must have had the same idea. But perhaps the monster predicted their actions, it seemed that no one was able to open the armory door.
Lopez and Jack headed toward the armory, carefully walking around the bodies. In pools of blood... walking besides the mess, discomfort passed through them.
Lopez frowned and said, “Damn, my shoes are worth a lot of money. Very good quality. But no matter how much we talk, it won’t become easier.”
Finally, they reached the warehouse door, Lopez grabbed the valve and turned it with effort. After some time, the tight, heavy door opened, releasing air from the inside. Lopez finally calmed down.
This is a safe place to hide. With this sturdy door, like a sealed tin can. Even if the monster reaches here, then most likely it will not be able to open it. Even with a large can opener... with these thoughts, Lopez went inside the armory and immediately turned to Jack, who was still standing in the hallway and with impatience, waved his hand strongly, calling him inside.
“Hey wake up, get inside!”
Jack, with his slow reaction, did not immediately obey. Lopez, making a serious face, made sure that Jack came inside and immediately closed the door behind them.
“Do you even realize how much danger we are in?” saying this, Lopez turned the valve on the door from the inside. “Well, it’s safe here, you can breathe out now. We arm ourselves and then can say goodbye to this place.” Lopez turned and looked around the room.
The next instant, a completely unthinkable image rushed into his eyes.
His heart sank in a second, as if someone had crushed him in a vice. Then his blood with high pressure suppressed his brain cells, causing darkening in the eyes. Instead of losing the ability to function the brain, the motor nerve lifted both Lopez’s arms up and brought the Beretta on alert. In the dim light stood the shadow of a man, naturally not Jack, and certainly not his own.
Suddenly he realized – is it the journalist? ...It turns out that they locked themselves in a tin can with a monster. Damn, this is screwed up! Ever since they left the Liberty, they have had countless choices and now that there is not one left. Lopez regretted coming here.
At that moment, the shadow moved slowly in their direction. Looking closely, he saw that the shadow was moving toward them, equipped like a Navy soldier with a rifle aimed at Lopez and Jack. A surviving Soldier? Lopez strained his eyesight and was finally able to find out who was moving in front of him.
When the silhouette appeared before Lopez’s eyes, he exclaimed: “Louise Kah!”
The lieutenant, learning that Lopez was in front of her, she lowered the barrel of her rifle. Lopez also relaxed a little and exhaled as he too lowered his Beretta. But, suddenly he remembered, he straightened up again and shouted.
“Drop your weapon!”
The lieutenant did not obey and only grinned.
“The lackey of the government, as always, is acting according to instructions. But this is not the time or place. A different enemy has appeared and you are unprepared.”
“So it’s true... where is the journalist?”
“It is no longer a journalist. When I last saw it, it was a huge chunk of meat. Yes, he also killed your partner. If you are comfortable with the fact that he is a monster, you can charge him with murder.”
Lopez slowly lowered the Beretta. Then he put it in a holster, he began to be feel embarrassed that before him this human shadow had led him into inexplicable horrific panic, and, as if justifying himself, muttered:
“That means, when I see him, then everything is clear. Since he is not a man, then I can shoot without hesitation.”
The lieutenant turned her back to Lopez and headed for the large vault, inside the armory. Then she put her hand to the vault door and began to examine it.
“What are you doing here?” Lopez asked, to which the lieutenant’s indifferent reply followed.
“You probably thought the same as me? To protect yourself from it, you need a very powerful weapon. By the way, among us there is no one who would know the code of the storage door.”
Suddenly, Jack came to the door. Pulling the lieutenant away, he, leaning his ear against the door, he began to turn the handle of the lock.
Lopez and the lieutenant silently watched as Jack rotated the handle to the left and to the right. After a few minutes, Jack held out his hand and said;
“Something sharp...”
A piece of wire was lying on the floor. Lopez picked it up and handed it to Jack. He rolled up his sleeves, deftly bent the wire with both hands and inserted it into the keyhole on the side of the limb handle and twisted it. There was a pleasant metallic sound and the door opened.
Lieutenant Kah frowned and asked, “As with my computer... but who is he, isn’t he just a killer?”
“He denies it; I don’t know.”
Lopez approached the entrance to the vault. Having recounted its contents, he discovered that they had enough weapons, including heavy ones. Almost everything was American-made. Only now, Lopez, who constantly complained about taxes, agreed that high taxes had advantages. Finally, he took an M16 rifle equipped with a grenade launcher, different types of hand grenades, then turned to the lieutenant.
“Louise Kah, what will you do? We want to return to Liberty, come with us?”
She hesitated for a second. It was not possible to hide from Lopez.
“As you said yourself, the situation has changed. Not only has the journalist turned into a monster, I’m going to violate my duties and kill him. I’m angry that my partner was killed by this freak, but most of all I don’t like the ease with which he misled me. And right now, your experience would greatly help if you went with us, but... Or do you not want to go against the finally successful experiment?”
Lieutenant Kah thought of Chen. Now that he was no longer there, the obligation to save life in a completed form had lost its meaning. Furthermore, the slaughter was likely to continue. And if so, then her life itself was in jeopardy. There was only one choice.
“Fine, I’m coming with you.” With these words she took the same rifle that Lopez had selected.
“Well, then there is no need to stay any longer. We take as many weapons as we can carry and return to Liberty.”
In the empty bags that were in the armory, they put down their weapons and ammunition. The lieutenant silently continued to fill the bags, Lopez looked at her with side vision and inadvertently said;
“And you know what you are doing, Louise Kah. You really are a good mercenary.”
“I want to say only one thing. From now on, stop calling me by my full name.”
“Then what do you prefer, Miss Kah? I mean, are you married? If so, then excuse my rudeness, Mrs. Kah? Are you married?” Lopez slightly bowed his head and smiled.
“Absolutely not. I just hate my last name.”
“Kah is a Scandinavian surname. With such dark skin. Even if you are European, then your parents are probably from Africa?”
Suddenly the lieutenant waved her hand, but stopped, her sharp gaze burned through Lopez. Noticing this, Lopez stopped and spread his arms.
“What are you mad at? Hey hey, I’m an American from Chicago. And people like you are not uncommon for me, I’m not trying to offend you. I have a Spanish last name and I am a child of immigrants from Puerto Rico. It is from these groups that society is built on. This is a common view in America.”
The lieutenant thought to herself. American conventional wisdom, so what?... She was neither warm nor annoyed from this. She returned her thoughts to the past. Both the name and the color of her skin – she wanted to not discuss it. Because of her parents, whoever they were, abandoned her in her childhood, and Lieutenant Kah was always alone. These aspects were of little interest to the army, it was a suitable place to forget about dissatisfaction with oneself and, having reached adulthood, Kah decided to join the military without any reason of doubt. But fate laughed at her. After serving, she possessed a well-trained body and refined skills, became a mercenary in Umbrella and there she faced even more discrimination. An arrogant employer treated her like an empty vessel and did not recognize her at all.
However, in the midst of all this, fate brought her to Chen. Despite the employer’s hiccups, he treated her well. If she thought about it, for all her life until today, he was the only one who saw a person in her. Most likely, he, being an Asian in the company among self-confident Europeans, had felt the same as her. At least that was how she saw Chen in the eyes of Lieutenant Kah, but he probably didn’t want to show it to others.
The lieutenant remembered Chen again.
She silently looked at Lopez, he said, “I understand. Then Louise. Is that okay?”
Hearing this, the lieutenant remembered how Chen tenderly called her Louise, pretended to grin, threw two bags loaded with weapons over her shoulders and straightened up.
“No. It was better before, only softer intonation.”
Lopez looked after the retreating lieutenant. There was a feeling that there was a change between them. He clicked his tongue, and trying to keep up, he laid down the same amount of weapons as the lieutenant, threw his bags over his shoulders and straightened up. But his strength was inferior to the trained lieutenant and staggered across the floor with his bags.
Meanwhile, Jack was watching them standing idle. The lieutenant noticed this and after a little thought, she was seriously going to give him the rifle with which she had used earlier. But Lopez immediately stopped her with his hand.
The lieutenant looked at Lopez’s face, he shook his head.
“I’m sorry, but we can do without that. Please do not give him a weapon.”
Lopez took the rifle and threw it on the floor. Then he took the bags from the floor in two hands and turned his back to them.
“He and the two of us need to kill it. We will succeed... Louise Kah?”
The lieutenant silently followed Lopez. Jack followed them, about to leave the room. Lopez opened the heavy door in the same way as when they entered, and looked out into the corridor.
There stood a man. Lopez blinked several times, not believing his eyes. Since he was very close, it seemed to Lopez that he was seeing a hallucination. The figure was very different from the monster described by the lieutenant. This was the journalist who looked like a man, he stood in front of Lopez and silently looked in his direction, they were separated by a distance of less than fifty centimeters.
Lieutenant Kah did not believe her eyes. When she saw him for the last time in the hangar on Liberty, he definitely looked different.
The monster, half the size of a small helicopter, definitely became smaller and returned to human form. But the only thing that differed from a living person, the surface of the body was covered with long scales of a white-milky color, through its slits a dull-white translucent skin was exposed, if it could be called that through which the muscles and blood vessels covering them were visible. Only the face was not transparent, which made it possible to recognize the former journalist in its outlines. However, there was absolutely no hair on either the head or body. He became even thinner, but compared with how the journalist looked before, his body became in better shape, without exaggeration, physically perfect, as if everything superfluous had been removed from him. The lieutenant mentally returned to the information she received from Chen.
Unlike the monsters that had been created at Umbrella until now, it could instantly change depending on circumstances and the environment. While remaining its self. This was the main feature of the C-virus, the current form is the final choice made by the carrier. It is he who most closely matches the name “completed form”, which Chen sought.
Lopez froze for several seconds in confusion. Finally, having regained consciousness, he quickly began to close the half-open door. In the blink of an eye, the completed form raised his hand and grabbed the edge of the door with the part of the hand that is usually considered the palm. And with an inconceivable force the journalist pulled the door toward himself.
Lopez quickly took off his bag and grabbed the rifle on his shoulder, about to fire from it. Immediately, the scales on the arm began to move and became something sharp, a shape exactly like a knife blade. Lightning fast, before Lopez could aim the rifle, his hand waved. Sparks rained down, the rifle split into two parts, the front of the barrel fell to the floor.
Lopez’s legs buckled, he fell to the floor and began to crawl back. The completed form began to slowly fill the space surrounding it. When the back appeared, a gap formed in the opening.
Lopez turned to the lieutenant and shouted, “Run! Take Jack with you!”
The lieutenant, without hesitation, grabbed Jack by the long sleeves of his straitjacket and ran, dragging him to the exit.
The eyes of the completed form were tracked by the lieutenant as she ran by, hesitating to touch her or not, then he waved his hand. Immediately the bag and belt of the rifle on her shoulder were cut off and fell to the floor, but there was not even a scratch on the lieutenant’s body. At such a short distance, these same claws just cut the barrel of a rifle. It could have killed her with ease. Realizing the actions were strange, she looked into his face, the corners of his mouth rose and showed a smile. Lieutenant Kah could not believe it. If it really was a smile, then other parts of not only the main body continue to exist but also the brain, perhaps they voluntarily perform these actions. Now they are forced to become weapons, they specifically want to be left alive... Then to enjoy the massacre.
At that moment, Lopez’s voice came between the lieutenant and the form.
“Hey you British Dog!”
The form turned its head back toward Lopez. A previously selected rifle from the lieutenant’s bag was aimed at him.
“This is for you, I am an American and this thing is American-made.”
Flames burst out of the aimed muzzle instantly. The form put both hands in front of its face, frozen, not even trying to dodge. The lieutenant flew out through the opening. Jack, was pulled out into the corridor, he could only see the door of the armory depot being removed. Finally, the flashes of light from the door, visible in the darkness of the corridor, ceased, along with the shots of a rifle the silence filled the submarine.
# 17 Silence
He pulled the trigger several times, but the cartridge was empty. Surrounded by a veil of smoke with the smell of gunpowder, Lopez narrowed his eyes. In front of him stood the faint silhouette of the completed Form. The entire clip was emptied. No matter how strong a monster he was, he had to have been hurt. If everything worked out, then maybe he was even defeated by such an attack. Then one problem would be solved, all that remained was to find Jack and return him as his duty. Lopez slowly stood up and waited for the annoying smoke to dissipate.
Suddenly the smoke split horizontally. Lopez immediately bounced back, the bottom of his expensive tie disappeared. Through the dispersed smoke, Lopez clearly saw that the Form was standing, holding his hand in a swing motion. The hull of the boat was riddled with bullets, but Lopez’s efforts to pierce the hard scales were in vain, and the water flowing from the walls did not even penetrate under it. From such hopelessness, the rifle slipped out of his hands and fell to the floor.
Unable to catch his breath, the Form moved towards Lopez, waving his hand to the sides. On every stroke, to avoid meeting with a very sharp limb, Lopez, dodged, jumped back. Like in a basketball game. It’s good that basketball was his passion at the time of study in the university. Cleverly dodging the attacks from the Form, Lopez remembered this. Having looked closely, he noticed that the attacks singular and slow were not even strong attacks. Did this observation open up any possibilities, an idea came to his mind and he decided to utilize it. He took one grenade from his belt and laid his finger on the pin.
He pulled out the pin and was about to throw it at the monster in front of him, but instead he made a fake throw and slipped sideways to the exit. And in fact it was simple. He successfully made this basic movement several times. And Lopez’s eyes were already shining with near victory. Meanwhile, the grenade in Lopez’s hands disappeared, as if by magic. Pain ran through his fingers, he jerked his hand reflexively and brought them to his eyes. And then I saw an unfamiliar object on them. On two fingers was a large ring. Instead of a gem, a short thin rod dangled and swayed on it. Lopez raised his eyes, the monster in front of him examined a short cylindrical object. Lopez looked again at the ring. It was without a doubt the grenade pin already pulled out. Realizing this, Lopez slipped into the exit to the side of the monster, absorbed in examining the grenade. Immediately, along with the sense of a huge push on his back, his body was carried out into the corridor. The sound of the explosion burst into his ears and in an instant Lopez lost all his hearing, he landed with all his might on the floor, fortunately, having remained conscious. He wanted to get up and see what was in the armory, but as soon as he tried to move, his muscles were filled with severe pain and his body refused to move.
At that moment, a ray of light slipped through his hair, an object of his pride, and disappeared into the depths of the corridor. Then one more and another... Lopez immediately understood what was happening.
The grenade explosion provoked the detonation of the ammunition remaining in the armory. Feeling that it was very dangerous to stay here, Lopez, crawling on his hands and knees, which was the only way he could move, he began to crawl away. There were no other options. Because there were a lot of weapons with explosive power much larger than ammunition in the armory. He looked around, now nearby was the pile of military bodies that he had seen at the entrance. Lopez thought about what position he was in and what was about to happen. And then writhing in pain with a vengeance he felt in his arms and legs. Perhaps his efforts had been enough, having reached a turn in the corridor, he was finally able to stand up and lean against the wall. Then the wall vibrated, the corridor creaked. With a paralyzed sense of hearing, Lopez naturally did not hear the creak, but it was already clear that explosives had caught fire in the armory.
Without pausing to rest, Lopez gathered all his strength and left this place.
It felt like several hours passed to him... but, in reality, not even ten minutes passed, but this time seemed to him an eternity. He walked and walked, but the landscape before his eyes did not change. How long could he go on? From the moment Lopez last checked the time, the clock hand moved far enough. He gripped the Beretta tightly – the only weapon he had left he was wandering around the submarine, not understanding where the exit was.
There was silence around. The contrast striking with the roar of the explosion, which ended the battle with the Form. Because of this sound, Lopez ears continued to ring.
Even now, over time, his body in several places gave terrible pain including his head. Fortunately, the grenade that Lopez blew detonated was not fragmentation, but incendiary. If he had used a frag and a splinter from a bursting grenade hit him, then it would not have ended with just aches and pains. However, the pain continued to be felt. The pain from an old injury woke up on his right leg, but his back hurt especially badly, Lopez stopped, turned his head and tried to examine what was wrong with it. Finally making sure that his jacket was not badly damaged by the flame, he turned his head back and sighed loudly.
“How many dollars do you think... no how many pounds did this cost?! This is no Armani, which every hillbilly boasts about! This is Savile Row! This is an individually tailored suit, sewn in a short time there is only one of its kind. A unique souvenir from London! You are an Englishman and despite the fact that you turned into a monster, have you really forgotten about the value of such things?”
After he stopped shaking from indignation, and he calmed down a bit, Lopez took out a comb and began to comb his pretty tousled hair – an object of his pride. Despite the fact that the submarine was strong enough and could not sink so easily, but it looks like the explosion at the armory was too strong, in some places the
pipes were damaged and water poured onto the floor. Lopez continued to make his way through the flooded corridor.
“Just like in the movies. In the cinema, in the end, the most powerful enemy re-appears, which was never anticipated, no matter how cliché... This is especially true in video games. Still, in reality, everything is much more severe.”
Finally, Lopez got to some spacious room. It was a nuclear missile hangar. There were 24 pillars in the center; each one had a number written on it. Lopez went inside and looked around its base. The cover of the control panel was removed, under it he found two thick wires, they were stretched and connected to a box on the table.
The box was small, with a small radio. A short rod antenna was attached to it.
Probably it was either a radio receiver, or its simplified modification. There was a sticker on the case, judging by it this thing did not belong to the Navy, because the logo on the sticker looked just like Lieutenant Kah’s tattoo. Considering that before getting to the armory, the lieutenant came here. The box itself – most likely there was a device for launching an explosion, or it was an explosive device. To some extent, Lopez imagined what was in front of him. Without touching the box, he walked away from it.
“What did you do, Louise Kah?”
Lopez returned to the corridor. Judging by the time that the watch showed, the sun had already risen. He needed to return to Liberty as soon as possible and ask the lieutenant about this box. It was unlikely that the monster could survive after such a strong explosion. In this case, it was necessary to ask the lieutenant to neutralize the box as soon as possible, otherwise there would be trouble.
Well, yes, if the monster is dead, then you can return to your duties again. Securing Jack... But isn’t Sylvia much more important? Thinking about all this, Lopez continued to walk along the corridor.
Perhaps his prayers were answered because Lopez soon discovered a protruding staircase. Looking at the ceiling, he saw something like a hatch. He climbed up the stairs and having spent a lot of time, opened the hatch and leaned out of it. Outside, sunlight will meet him and envelop him with its warmth – this was what Lopez expected. But it was dark around and he was almost blown away by a strong wind mixed with large drops of rain. He was at the stern. Looking around, part of the hull was beginning to sink into the water under great waves and heavy rain. There was a storm, and the submarine dragged Liberty directly to him.
Lopez got out, closed the hatch and headed towards the bow of the boat, resisting the wind with all his might. His black hair was suddenly disheveled, but he was not
able to do it again. If he wasn’t careful, moving forward, he would easily slip into the water.
If he were to fall overboard in such a storm, then he would certainly not make it back out. And was there anyone left alive who could pull him out? This occurred to Lopez.
Soon, he saw a ramp linking the boat and Liberty. Get to it and you can get on the liner. Having put his last strength into his legs, Lopez finally reached the bow of the boat. A strong wind rocked the gangway to the sides, but it did not seem that it was possible it could fall into the water. Thinking that the worst was over, Lopez put his foot on the gangway. At that moment a very loud sound came from behind. He turned and saw flame from head to toe.
The sound he heard came from the bridge – it was a crash from the landing of the Form on the steel floor. From impact and strong winds, the charred scales tore off and fell, and an updated one was peeking out from under it. The form survived the explosion. Only one word surfaced in Lopez’s head.
“Hopelessness”.
Suddenly the smoke split horizontally. Lopez immediately bounced back, the bottom of his expensive tie disappeared. Through the dispersed smoke, Lopez clearly saw that the Form was standing, holding his hand in a swing motion. The hull of the boat was riddled with bullets, but Lopez’s efforts to pierce the hard scales were in vain, and the water flowing from the walls did not even penetrate under it. From such hopelessness, the rifle slipped out of his hands and fell to the floor.
Unable to catch his breath, the Form moved towards Lopez, waving his hand to the sides. On every stroke, to avoid meeting with a very sharp limb, Lopez, dodged, jumped back. Like in a basketball game. It’s good that basketball was his passion at the time of study in the university. Cleverly dodging the attacks from the Form, Lopez remembered this. Having looked closely, he noticed that the attacks singular and slow were not even strong attacks. Did this observation open up any possibilities, an idea came to his mind and he decided to utilize it. He took one grenade from his belt and laid his finger on the pin.
He pulled out the pin and was about to throw it at the monster in front of him, but instead he made a fake throw and slipped sideways to the exit. And in fact it was simple. He successfully made this basic movement several times. And Lopez’s eyes were already shining with near victory. Meanwhile, the grenade in Lopez’s hands disappeared, as if by magic. Pain ran through his fingers, he jerked his hand reflexively and brought them to his eyes. And then I saw an unfamiliar object on them. On two fingers was a large ring. Instead of a gem, a short thin rod dangled and swayed on it. Lopez raised his eyes, the monster in front of him examined a short cylindrical object. Lopez looked again at the ring. It was without a doubt the grenade pin already pulled out. Realizing this, Lopez slipped into the exit to the side of the monster, absorbed in examining the grenade. Immediately, along with the sense of a huge push on his back, his body was carried out into the corridor. The sound of the explosion burst into his ears and in an instant Lopez lost all his hearing, he landed with all his might on the floor, fortunately, having remained conscious. He wanted to get up and see what was in the armory, but as soon as he tried to move, his muscles were filled with severe pain and his body refused to move.
At that moment, a ray of light slipped through his hair, an object of his pride, and disappeared into the depths of the corridor. Then one more and another... Lopez immediately understood what was happening.
The grenade explosion provoked the detonation of the ammunition remaining in the armory. Feeling that it was very dangerous to stay here, Lopez, crawling on his hands and knees, which was the only way he could move, he began to crawl away. There were no other options. Because there were a lot of weapons with explosive power much larger than ammunition in the armory. He looked around, now nearby was the pile of military bodies that he had seen at the entrance. Lopez thought about what position he was in and what was about to happen. And then writhing in pain with a vengeance he felt in his arms and legs. Perhaps his efforts had been enough, having reached a turn in the corridor, he was finally able to stand up and lean against the wall. Then the wall vibrated, the corridor creaked. With a paralyzed sense of hearing, Lopez naturally did not hear the creak, but it was already clear that explosives had caught fire in the armory.
Without pausing to rest, Lopez gathered all his strength and left this place.
It felt like several hours passed to him... but, in reality, not even ten minutes passed, but this time seemed to him an eternity. He walked and walked, but the landscape before his eyes did not change. How long could he go on? From the moment Lopez last checked the time, the clock hand moved far enough. He gripped the Beretta tightly – the only weapon he had left he was wandering around the submarine, not understanding where the exit was.
There was silence around. The contrast striking with the roar of the explosion, which ended the battle with the Form. Because of this sound, Lopez ears continued to ring.
Even now, over time, his body in several places gave terrible pain including his head. Fortunately, the grenade that Lopez blew detonated was not fragmentation, but incendiary. If he had used a frag and a splinter from a bursting grenade hit him, then it would not have ended with just aches and pains. However, the pain continued to be felt. The pain from an old injury woke up on his right leg, but his back hurt especially badly, Lopez stopped, turned his head and tried to examine what was wrong with it. Finally making sure that his jacket was not badly damaged by the flame, he turned his head back and sighed loudly.
“How many dollars do you think... no how many pounds did this cost?! This is no Armani, which every hillbilly boasts about! This is Savile Row! This is an individually tailored suit, sewn in a short time there is only one of its kind. A unique souvenir from London! You are an Englishman and despite the fact that you turned into a monster, have you really forgotten about the value of such things?”
After he stopped shaking from indignation, and he calmed down a bit, Lopez took out a comb and began to comb his pretty tousled hair – an object of his pride. Despite the fact that the submarine was strong enough and could not sink so easily, but it looks like the explosion at the armory was too strong, in some places the
pipes were damaged and water poured onto the floor. Lopez continued to make his way through the flooded corridor.
“Just like in the movies. In the cinema, in the end, the most powerful enemy re-appears, which was never anticipated, no matter how cliché... This is especially true in video games. Still, in reality, everything is much more severe.”
Finally, Lopez got to some spacious room. It was a nuclear missile hangar. There were 24 pillars in the center; each one had a number written on it. Lopez went inside and looked around its base. The cover of the control panel was removed, under it he found two thick wires, they were stretched and connected to a box on the table.
The box was small, with a small radio. A short rod antenna was attached to it.
Probably it was either a radio receiver, or its simplified modification. There was a sticker on the case, judging by it this thing did not belong to the Navy, because the logo on the sticker looked just like Lieutenant Kah’s tattoo. Considering that before getting to the armory, the lieutenant came here. The box itself – most likely there was a device for launching an explosion, or it was an explosive device. To some extent, Lopez imagined what was in front of him. Without touching the box, he walked away from it.
“What did you do, Louise Kah?”
Lopez returned to the corridor. Judging by the time that the watch showed, the sun had already risen. He needed to return to Liberty as soon as possible and ask the lieutenant about this box. It was unlikely that the monster could survive after such a strong explosion. In this case, it was necessary to ask the lieutenant to neutralize the box as soon as possible, otherwise there would be trouble.
Well, yes, if the monster is dead, then you can return to your duties again. Securing Jack... But isn’t Sylvia much more important? Thinking about all this, Lopez continued to walk along the corridor.
Perhaps his prayers were answered because Lopez soon discovered a protruding staircase. Looking at the ceiling, he saw something like a hatch. He climbed up the stairs and having spent a lot of time, opened the hatch and leaned out of it. Outside, sunlight will meet him and envelop him with its warmth – this was what Lopez expected. But it was dark around and he was almost blown away by a strong wind mixed with large drops of rain. He was at the stern. Looking around, part of the hull was beginning to sink into the water under great waves and heavy rain. There was a storm, and the submarine dragged Liberty directly to him.
Lopez got out, closed the hatch and headed towards the bow of the boat, resisting the wind with all his might. His black hair was suddenly disheveled, but he was not
able to do it again. If he wasn’t careful, moving forward, he would easily slip into the water.
If he were to fall overboard in such a storm, then he would certainly not make it back out. And was there anyone left alive who could pull him out? This occurred to Lopez.
Soon, he saw a ramp linking the boat and Liberty. Get to it and you can get on the liner. Having put his last strength into his legs, Lopez finally reached the bow of the boat. A strong wind rocked the gangway to the sides, but it did not seem that it was possible it could fall into the water. Thinking that the worst was over, Lopez put his foot on the gangway. At that moment a very loud sound came from behind. He turned and saw flame from head to toe.
The sound he heard came from the bridge – it was a crash from the landing of the Form on the steel floor. From impact and strong winds, the charred scales tore off and fell, and an updated one was peeking out from under it. The form survived the explosion. Only one word surfaced in Lopez’s head.
“Hopelessness”.
In a brief moment, the Form shortened the distance to Lopez. Lopez slowly backed up the ramp. The Form immediately raised his arm and pointed a sharp claw toward the Liberty. Not understanding this movement, Lopez looked at the Form, their eyes crossed and the corners of the Form’s mouth stretched up. Then he crouched and cut one of the supports of the ladder. He averted his other hand and showed five fingers. And then it came for Lopez. It was a game. It looked like the monster had invented his own game and wanted Lopez to take part in it. He will bend his fingers one by one, and having folded into a fist, the last two legs of the ladder would be cut off and fall into the water. If Lopez gets to Liberty faster, then he has won – everything was really simple and clear. If it was possible, Lopez would gladly refuse to participate in this terrible game, but he absolutely had no choice. The Form realized that Lopez understood, nodded and began to bend his thumb.
Lopez immediately turned to Liberty and quickly ran onto a gangway hanging under a large slope and began to climb it. Only five fingers. With what speed the monster flexed its fingers – there was no way to turn around to find out – but there was no doubt that it most likely did it very quickly.
Since an injury determined his future at the university, he had never run at full speed in training, but now Lopez put all his strength into his legs and fled, not paying attention to the pain of an old injury. He represented the wind blowing at his feet as the defense of the opposing team. The same game came to life in his memory. To score a basket which was not scored then. If it did not work out, then there was only one prospect – an eternity out in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, raging underfoot. Since he almost drowned in Lake Michigan during his childhood, not far from his native Chicago, Lopez did not know how to swim. But Lopez did not want to die.
Finally, the Form bent his little finger and the resulting fist transformed into a huge sharp claw in the same instant as on the other hand, then he waved them and cut off both supports of the ladder. Immediately Lopez pushed off the ladder and jumped. From the blood mixed with adrenaline he hit the floor with a swing as time slowed down. Lopez, went flying up into the sky, felt the ladder slowly leave from under his feet and fall into the water.
To the edge of the deck is still quite a distance, jump! He screamed to himself, but suddenly his speed began to decline. An outstretched hand fell off the edge of the deck and his body began to fall freely. He looked down – the waves heaving over and over again, they just called to him. Never again, never see the matches of the Blues, the basketball team of his hometown. Thinking only about this, Lopez fell.
Already fully resigned to the inevitable death, Lopez suddenly felt grip in his hands. Feeling the tension within his hands, Lopez’s body bounced backwards, as he hit the mount of the ladder on the Liberty’s side.
Stronger than the pain and everything else, he wondered how he was hanging in the air. Lopez raised his head and realized how. Both arms with the sleeves of a straitjacket held Lopez’s hand. Jack hung from the deck.
Coughing several times, Lopez cried out, “What are you doing here?! Where is Louise Kah?!”
“She left to look for a way to escape from here. I saw you fall and I reacted...”
Lopez turned and looked at the submarine. The Form looked in their direction. Then he raised his hand and, pointing his claws toward Liberty, began to slowly lower them. It accelerated, about to jump toward them. Realising this, Lopez quickly turned to Jack.
“Hey Jack! Get out of here! Hide somewhere!”
“Wait, I’ll pull you up...”
Jack strained his hands. But his sleeves were soaked through and did not allow him to grip at all. Lopez’s grip slid down a few centimeters.
“He’s coming this way! Let go of my hands!”
Jack did not answer and gritted his teeth as hard as he could to pull Lopez up.
“Are you stupid?! If you save me, then the death penalty awaits you. If you stay to save me it will get you! It is my duty! For you, the difference is death from the clutches of a monster.”
“It was not me!”
“I told you! This is none of my business!”
The time was up. Lopez’s grip slipped out of Jack’s hands. Even the Form froze, watching what was happening. The distance between Jack and the falling Marshal was increasing rapidly, Lopez looked at Jack and screamed. But the strong wind erased all sounds and his voice never reached Jack’s ears. Jack, not looking up, stared at Lopez and read what was said on the lips. Finally, Lopez shrank to the size of a dot and quickly disappeared into the waves.
Jack did not look at the water for long, trying to find Lopez, but it was impossible to see him on the surface of a raging ocean. Resigned to this, Jack turned his eyes to the submarine. Just at that moment, the Form was calmly staring at Jack, his mouth wide in a wry smile. Apart from a smile, Jack had no other associations.
Feeling incredible fear, at that moment Jack ran away from the deck in a panic. Through the wet straitjacket and thundering shackles on his legs his movements were heavy, but without paying attention to it, not remembering himself, he moved his legs. When he came to his senses, he was already leaving from the opposite side of the corridor.
Jack finally stopped, while catching his breath he looked at the dark ocean. Unlike the opposite side illuminated by the projectors, there was absolute darkness here, he could only hear the noise of the rising waves. And nothing more. Exactly the way he saw himself now. Nowhere to go. He froze in confusion. At that moment, he felt a strong shove in the back. Who or what pushed him? Jack’s body flew over the railing into the darkness of the ocean.
Lopez immediately turned to Liberty and quickly ran onto a gangway hanging under a large slope and began to climb it. Only five fingers. With what speed the monster flexed its fingers – there was no way to turn around to find out – but there was no doubt that it most likely did it very quickly.
Since an injury determined his future at the university, he had never run at full speed in training, but now Lopez put all his strength into his legs and fled, not paying attention to the pain of an old injury. He represented the wind blowing at his feet as the defense of the opposing team. The same game came to life in his memory. To score a basket which was not scored then. If it did not work out, then there was only one prospect – an eternity out in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, raging underfoot. Since he almost drowned in Lake Michigan during his childhood, not far from his native Chicago, Lopez did not know how to swim. But Lopez did not want to die.
Finally, the Form bent his little finger and the resulting fist transformed into a huge sharp claw in the same instant as on the other hand, then he waved them and cut off both supports of the ladder. Immediately Lopez pushed off the ladder and jumped. From the blood mixed with adrenaline he hit the floor with a swing as time slowed down. Lopez, went flying up into the sky, felt the ladder slowly leave from under his feet and fall into the water.
To the edge of the deck is still quite a distance, jump! He screamed to himself, but suddenly his speed began to decline. An outstretched hand fell off the edge of the deck and his body began to fall freely. He looked down – the waves heaving over and over again, they just called to him. Never again, never see the matches of the Blues, the basketball team of his hometown. Thinking only about this, Lopez fell.
Already fully resigned to the inevitable death, Lopez suddenly felt grip in his hands. Feeling the tension within his hands, Lopez’s body bounced backwards, as he hit the mount of the ladder on the Liberty’s side.
Stronger than the pain and everything else, he wondered how he was hanging in the air. Lopez raised his head and realized how. Both arms with the sleeves of a straitjacket held Lopez’s hand. Jack hung from the deck.
Coughing several times, Lopez cried out, “What are you doing here?! Where is Louise Kah?!”
“She left to look for a way to escape from here. I saw you fall and I reacted...”
Lopez turned and looked at the submarine. The Form looked in their direction. Then he raised his hand and, pointing his claws toward Liberty, began to slowly lower them. It accelerated, about to jump toward them. Realising this, Lopez quickly turned to Jack.
“Hey Jack! Get out of here! Hide somewhere!”
“Wait, I’ll pull you up...”
Jack strained his hands. But his sleeves were soaked through and did not allow him to grip at all. Lopez’s grip slid down a few centimeters.
“He’s coming this way! Let go of my hands!”
Jack did not answer and gritted his teeth as hard as he could to pull Lopez up.
“Are you stupid?! If you save me, then the death penalty awaits you. If you stay to save me it will get you! It is my duty! For you, the difference is death from the clutches of a monster.”
“It was not me!”
“I told you! This is none of my business!”
The time was up. Lopez’s grip slipped out of Jack’s hands. Even the Form froze, watching what was happening. The distance between Jack and the falling Marshal was increasing rapidly, Lopez looked at Jack and screamed. But the strong wind erased all sounds and his voice never reached Jack’s ears. Jack, not looking up, stared at Lopez and read what was said on the lips. Finally, Lopez shrank to the size of a dot and quickly disappeared into the waves.
Jack did not look at the water for long, trying to find Lopez, but it was impossible to see him on the surface of a raging ocean. Resigned to this, Jack turned his eyes to the submarine. Just at that moment, the Form was calmly staring at Jack, his mouth wide in a wry smile. Apart from a smile, Jack had no other associations.
Feeling incredible fear, at that moment Jack ran away from the deck in a panic. Through the wet straitjacket and thundering shackles on his legs his movements were heavy, but without paying attention to it, not remembering himself, he moved his legs. When he came to his senses, he was already leaving from the opposite side of the corridor.
Jack finally stopped, while catching his breath he looked at the dark ocean. Unlike the opposite side illuminated by the projectors, there was absolute darkness here, he could only hear the noise of the rising waves. And nothing more. Exactly the way he saw himself now. Nowhere to go. He froze in confusion. At that moment, he felt a strong shove in the back. Who or what pushed him? Jack’s body flew over the railing into the darkness of the ocean.
# 18 Nowhere To Go
Eyes blinded by the bright light of the spotlights. Before the eyes got used to it, ears deafened the people with joyful cries. Jack was at a basketball game. It was Madison Square Garden, where he often went and now he was watching a game with Knicks. His seat was in the very front row behind the bench, from this distance it was possible to reach the ball if he stretched out his arm onto the court. Jack turned his head and tried to understand what was happening. At least it was not the memories that came to life on Liberty over and over again. This Jack immediately understood. He had no memories of watching the game from such good seats.
Then – is this happening at this moment? No, it’s impossible. He was supposed to fall overboard. There is not even the slightest chance that he could escape and stay alive after meeting with the monster. Even if he managed to survive and free himself, it is not possible that he could just come back to watch a game again. Even if he believes his memories that he did not commit crimes, no one else will believe and the real criminal will not be arrested. Because the journalist has already irrevocably become a monster... In the end, as Lopez said, most likely he is expected not to be at a basketball game ever again, but to be in the gas chamber. Then why is he here?
Jack’s thoughts were completely perplexed.
Joyous screams thundered from the basketball court. Jack distracted himself from his thoughts and returned to watching the game.
One more basket, and the situation will turn in favor of the Knicks. It’s almost the end of the game, there is no time left, and only a miracle will help them to score now.
Jack held his breath.
The next moment it happened. An inconspicuous athlete, of average height, received a pass, and having invested all his strength he jumped. The audience held their breath. The ball released from his hands and floated in a beautiful arc as it hit the basket.
The stadium exploded with joyful cries, glee swept the whole arena. Both athletes and spectators hugged each other overflowing with joy.
Even Jack could not resist, got up from his chair and began to applaud the team of his native New York. Following this, the team returned to the bench and one of them, the one who scored the last goal, approached Jack. He stood opposite, and Jack read through his lips the same words that Lopez screamed as he fell into the water.
“Look after Sylvia.”
Finally, Jack realized that what he saw was a figment of his imagination – he had just dreamed everything. Because the athlete’s face in front of him belonged to Lopez and from the next seat he was greeted by an ex-girlfriend. It was Sylvia. Exhaling with difficulty, Jack opened his eyes. He looked around, there was ocean all around. What was strange, he was under a transparent awning, he lay on the waves feeling every single one. He was on a lifeboat. Falling from the Liberty’s deck, he had landed here. It seemed from a blow that he lost consciousness. And while he was unconscious, he had a dream. As he thought about it, from the moment of his arrest in London, every time he closed his eyes, he was immersed in his own memories. This was the first time he had a dream.
He looked around, despite the fact that it was a small boat around there were many different appliances.
It was definitely not clear what kind of devices they were, most likely a GPS navigator, it not only determined the position using satellites, but also connected to the engine, with the possibility of automatic delivery to the destination, it was only necessary to enter the coordinates. Along the edges of the tent were solar panels. Thus, the boat was to some extent provided with energy if the batteries with which it was equipped failed. Unlike the boats that existed to this day, it was possible not only to drift on the sea waiting for help, but also the latest equipment that it was equipped with, allowing you to independently travel a short distance until you pick up a passing ship or plane.
From the moment Jack fell here, a self-propelled survival mode was launched on the boat, because the Liberty silhouette was already visible at a decent distance. But who could help him and launch the boat? Soon the answer appeared itself – a figure under the same tent right in front of Jack.
Lieutenant Kah noticed that he opened his eyes and said, “Sorry, but I had to hurry. Are you hurt?”
Jack nodded in response and asked, “Why did you push me?”
Lieutenant Kah put the box she had taken with her on the floor and began to do something with it.
“I prepared the boat and went to find you when I saw the monster on the submarine. It’s fortunate that you ran away from it just in the right direction. In any case, he is still alive. There was no time to linger.”
“Why did you save me?”
“Because people like you are useful. You are not a real killer, whoever you are, are you something like a safe cracker?”
It seemed that the lieutenant smiled. Jack, without answering the question, changed the topic.
“Where are we now? Do we really know where to go?”
The lieutenant shook her head. “We need to move a little away from Liberty.”
Then she turned on the power in the box and entered numbers on the turned on LCD screen, then she pressed the red button on the side.
“Thirty minutes from now, nuclear missiles on a submarine will fly into the air and destroy the liner.”
On the screen, the timer turned on and the countdown started. Jack’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Before you came to the armory for weapons, I assembled a small device and installed it.” The lieutenant pointed to the screen. “It will reach zero, a signal will be sent from this box, it will launch missiles. And that freak will be finished. A nuclear blast disperses in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. It will be spotted by satellites, and the American military will come here to find out what happened. And most likely they will find our boat. In any case, they will save us.”
Absentmindedly listening to her explanation, the faces of Lopez and Sylvia surfaced in Jack’s head. Lopez’s last words in a dream were repeated in his ears by a hallucination.
Jack screamed, “You can’t! I’m going back to the Liberty!”
The lieutenant jumped.
“Why would you do that?”
“There may still be a survivor on the Liberty! A small child, but if she is alive, then she must be saved!”
“Idiot, no one was left alive. Even if someone survived, then most likely the freak is just killing them now.”
Jack looked around him. He found a box with a flare gun. Quickly grabbed it, opened the lid, pulled out a gun and pointed it at the lieutenant:
“Then let’s check. We return to the Liberty.”
The lieutenant grinned.
“By threatening me, do you think that you intimidate me? Sorry, it won’t work. That is not lethal enough.”
Then Jack aimed the barrel of the gun to the box. The same one that the lieutenant prepared.
“But it will smash your equipment?”
Their eyes crossed. Jack looked at the lieutenant with a searching look. She could not stand it and looked away.
The lieutenant clicked her tongue, turned to the box and entered some numbers.
“One hour. In an hour there will be an explosion. Until then, you can check whether any survivors remain and even if we do not find anyone, we will return here again.”
Jack nodded quietly.
The boat turned and over the raging ocean, maneuvering between high waves, they headed towards Liberty.
Just at that moment, changes occurred on the captain’s bridge of the Liberty. On the monitor with the silhouette of a submarine, warning screens began to appear one by one. Then the image of the submarine went in waves and began to gallop. The orange grid that covered the boat was out of sync with the movement of the picture, then changing the color to red, the grid gradually began to disappear. A new warning has appeared on the monitor.
“The grid has been deleted. Auto towing device is disabled. Returning to the original course. “
Then the warning disappeared and a text with a map of the East Coast of America was displayed on the monitor.
“Restoration of the initial course. Destination New York, Manhattan.”
The submarine unlocked, moving away from Liberty.
Then – is this happening at this moment? No, it’s impossible. He was supposed to fall overboard. There is not even the slightest chance that he could escape and stay alive after meeting with the monster. Even if he managed to survive and free himself, it is not possible that he could just come back to watch a game again. Even if he believes his memories that he did not commit crimes, no one else will believe and the real criminal will not be arrested. Because the journalist has already irrevocably become a monster... In the end, as Lopez said, most likely he is expected not to be at a basketball game ever again, but to be in the gas chamber. Then why is he here?
Jack’s thoughts were completely perplexed.
Joyous screams thundered from the basketball court. Jack distracted himself from his thoughts and returned to watching the game.
One more basket, and the situation will turn in favor of the Knicks. It’s almost the end of the game, there is no time left, and only a miracle will help them to score now.
Jack held his breath.
The next moment it happened. An inconspicuous athlete, of average height, received a pass, and having invested all his strength he jumped. The audience held their breath. The ball released from his hands and floated in a beautiful arc as it hit the basket.
The stadium exploded with joyful cries, glee swept the whole arena. Both athletes and spectators hugged each other overflowing with joy.
Even Jack could not resist, got up from his chair and began to applaud the team of his native New York. Following this, the team returned to the bench and one of them, the one who scored the last goal, approached Jack. He stood opposite, and Jack read through his lips the same words that Lopez screamed as he fell into the water.
“Look after Sylvia.”
Finally, Jack realized that what he saw was a figment of his imagination – he had just dreamed everything. Because the athlete’s face in front of him belonged to Lopez and from the next seat he was greeted by an ex-girlfriend. It was Sylvia. Exhaling with difficulty, Jack opened his eyes. He looked around, there was ocean all around. What was strange, he was under a transparent awning, he lay on the waves feeling every single one. He was on a lifeboat. Falling from the Liberty’s deck, he had landed here. It seemed from a blow that he lost consciousness. And while he was unconscious, he had a dream. As he thought about it, from the moment of his arrest in London, every time he closed his eyes, he was immersed in his own memories. This was the first time he had a dream.
He looked around, despite the fact that it was a small boat around there were many different appliances.
It was definitely not clear what kind of devices they were, most likely a GPS navigator, it not only determined the position using satellites, but also connected to the engine, with the possibility of automatic delivery to the destination, it was only necessary to enter the coordinates. Along the edges of the tent were solar panels. Thus, the boat was to some extent provided with energy if the batteries with which it was equipped failed. Unlike the boats that existed to this day, it was possible not only to drift on the sea waiting for help, but also the latest equipment that it was equipped with, allowing you to independently travel a short distance until you pick up a passing ship or plane.
From the moment Jack fell here, a self-propelled survival mode was launched on the boat, because the Liberty silhouette was already visible at a decent distance. But who could help him and launch the boat? Soon the answer appeared itself – a figure under the same tent right in front of Jack.
Lieutenant Kah noticed that he opened his eyes and said, “Sorry, but I had to hurry. Are you hurt?”
Jack nodded in response and asked, “Why did you push me?”
Lieutenant Kah put the box she had taken with her on the floor and began to do something with it.
“I prepared the boat and went to find you when I saw the monster on the submarine. It’s fortunate that you ran away from it just in the right direction. In any case, he is still alive. There was no time to linger.”
“Why did you save me?”
“Because people like you are useful. You are not a real killer, whoever you are, are you something like a safe cracker?”
It seemed that the lieutenant smiled. Jack, without answering the question, changed the topic.
“Where are we now? Do we really know where to go?”
The lieutenant shook her head. “We need to move a little away from Liberty.”
Then she turned on the power in the box and entered numbers on the turned on LCD screen, then she pressed the red button on the side.
“Thirty minutes from now, nuclear missiles on a submarine will fly into the air and destroy the liner.”
On the screen, the timer turned on and the countdown started. Jack’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Before you came to the armory for weapons, I assembled a small device and installed it.” The lieutenant pointed to the screen. “It will reach zero, a signal will be sent from this box, it will launch missiles. And that freak will be finished. A nuclear blast disperses in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. It will be spotted by satellites, and the American military will come here to find out what happened. And most likely they will find our boat. In any case, they will save us.”
Absentmindedly listening to her explanation, the faces of Lopez and Sylvia surfaced in Jack’s head. Lopez’s last words in a dream were repeated in his ears by a hallucination.
Jack screamed, “You can’t! I’m going back to the Liberty!”
The lieutenant jumped.
“Why would you do that?”
“There may still be a survivor on the Liberty! A small child, but if she is alive, then she must be saved!”
“Idiot, no one was left alive. Even if someone survived, then most likely the freak is just killing them now.”
Jack looked around him. He found a box with a flare gun. Quickly grabbed it, opened the lid, pulled out a gun and pointed it at the lieutenant:
“Then let’s check. We return to the Liberty.”
The lieutenant grinned.
“By threatening me, do you think that you intimidate me? Sorry, it won’t work. That is not lethal enough.”
Then Jack aimed the barrel of the gun to the box. The same one that the lieutenant prepared.
“But it will smash your equipment?”
Their eyes crossed. Jack looked at the lieutenant with a searching look. She could not stand it and looked away.
The lieutenant clicked her tongue, turned to the box and entered some numbers.
“One hour. In an hour there will be an explosion. Until then, you can check whether any survivors remain and even if we do not find anyone, we will return here again.”
Jack nodded quietly.
The boat turned and over the raging ocean, maneuvering between high waves, they headed towards Liberty.
Just at that moment, changes occurred on the captain’s bridge of the Liberty. On the monitor with the silhouette of a submarine, warning screens began to appear one by one. Then the image of the submarine went in waves and began to gallop. The orange grid that covered the boat was out of sync with the movement of the picture, then changing the color to red, the grid gradually began to disappear. A new warning has appeared on the monitor.
“The grid has been deleted. Auto towing device is disabled. Returning to the original course. “
Then the warning disappeared and a text with a map of the East Coast of America was displayed on the monitor.
“Restoration of the initial course. Destination New York, Manhattan.”
The submarine unlocked, moving away from Liberty.
# 19 Destruction
She has been a loner all her life. Raised by her mother, whose face she does not even remember, Sylvia’s soft toy was her only friend. Because of the illness that she had since birth, even to play, she had to be separate from her peers. Her father, in search of treatment, worked hard, and thereby also left her alone. However, here at sea was the first chance she had to have fun. And dad was nearby every day and outside the cabin there were kind staff, in addition to all of this, she played with the funny uncle Jose. Sylvia now felt the happiest.
However, she sat quite enough in loneliness that had not visited her for a long time. There was not a soul in the cabin; Sylvia looked around. Father was not around either, since it had already been half a day since he left. When the submarine arrived, he was no exception and jumped out of the cabin to find out what happened:
“I’ll be back soon, so be a good girl and wait for me here.”
As father asked, Sylvia sat all this time and waited in the cabin, but it was already unbearable. And she made up her mind.
She went to the door and heard the sound of a strong wind. She returned to the bed on which she was sitting, took Lily with her, and opened the door. The corridor was completely deserted, but she was not at all afraid – after all, since Lily was with her, there was nothing to fear, having convinced herself of this, she left the cabin.
So along the way you could meet either one of the staff or the Uncle Lopez. But most of all I would like to meet dad.
Naturally, she could not know about the tragedy that happened while she was sitting in the cabin, and that no one from the staff, nor Lopez, nor father was already gone.
Finally she went on deck and saw a storm overboard. Never before had she seen a raging ocean, and Sylvia stood fixated and looked at the waves.
At that moment, a shadow of an incomprehensible form approached her back. Sylvia did not notice this and continued to silently look at the ocean, as something wet touched her shoulder. She screamed in surprise and began to run away.
“S... Sylvia, wait. Wait!”
It was an unfamiliar voice to her. It was definitely a human, male voice. Sylvia stopped, turned around and saw that Jack was standing behind. He was back on the Liberty.
Water was dripping from the long sleeves of his straitjacket, on which were supposed to be fetters.
Sylvia asked him, “Uncle, who are you? We have not met.”
“No, we met once.”
Jack remembered that during the first meeting, a mask covered his face.
“The Marshal... uh, I was behind him...”
“Ah, you are Uncle Jose’s friend!” Sylvia remembered. “Have you recovered now?”
She pointed to Jack’s face. She seemed to think that the mask on him was due to some kind of illness. Putting another meaning to her words, Jack replied, “Yes, completely cured.”
“And is Uncle Jose with you?”
Jack immediately remembered Lopez falling into the water.
“In fact, Uncle Jose asked me to take you with me. Well, Sylvia, let’s go.”
“But dad...”
“Dad’s with Uncle Jose.”
“Really?”
“Yes really. I swear.”
Of course it was a lie. However, Jack was seized by a strange feeling, not from the fact that he had lied, but from the fact that at least his words about the oath had come out. Prior to this, convinced that he was a murderer, a man who put an end to his own life. If his position gave at least some hope for the future, but for those around him, he still remained a murderer. Even taking an oath, it will all end with the fact that it will be washed away by a lethal injection on a special chair. It made no sense. Jack began to think about it, but realized that now there was no time for reflection, and switched to the primary task: to escape from here.
He rolled up his sleeve and held out his hand to Sylvia.
“Well, let’s go, Sylvia. Everyone is waiting.”
Sylvia put her little hand in Jack’s palm. He was immediately swept over by a wave of the memory of the one with whom he had last held his hand, and realized that her name was also Sylvia.
They started walking and Sylvia asked Jack, “Uncle, what is your name?”
“Jack... Jack Trump.”
“Then, Uncle Jack. Nice to meet you, Uncle Jack. And this is Lily.”
“Nice to meet you Lily.”
Jack looked at Lily, and Sylvia tilted her head as if Lily bowed slightly.
Finally, the lieutenant appeared in front of them. As soon as Jack noticed her, he immediately called out, “Hey, I found her! Going back to the boat!”
The lieutenant did not answer, she continued to stand, peering into the water. Jack went up to her and looked in the same direction as she did. There was nothing on the water to the horizon. Only surging waves of a uniform grey color.
“The submarine... has disappeared,” said Lieutenant Kah. “You did not see the monster along your way?”
Jack shook his head silently at her question.
“We have to be careful, maybe he moved here. No, most likely it has.”
“That’s... right,” a voice suddenly sounded. The lieutenant looked around, then looked at Jack.
“Did you say something?”
Jack shook his head. At that moment, he noticed that the wall behind the lieutenant’s back was deformed.
The surface of the deck lining trembled, its wooden pattern gradually began to distort. Jack in a panic shouted to the lieutenant:
“Behind!”
Before she could look back, a thick branch grew from a wooden lining and stuck into her body. Of course, this was not a branch, but a huge sharp claw, gradually turning into the milky color of the Form. Then the branch also found its natural color, and the Form appeared before them.
“Not a monster... the Ripper, in its true form.”
Words sounded from the Form’s mouth. Surprise appeared on the lieutenant’s face, distorted in pain. Before them stood a living creature, with a fully preserved human brain. It would be even more correct to say that the human brain completely controlled the cellular structure.
Here and now there was a confirmation of this achievement, which Umbrella had not managed to achieve until today.
Damaged internal organs were filled with blood and a bloody cough escaped from the lieutenant’s mouth. Then, in a weak voice, she said to Jack, “Run... the...”
Watching what was happening, the Form sniffed from what could be called a nose, an inappropriate smile appeared on his face:
“The smell of blood from a woman. I have not sensed it for a long time, but still there is nothing better. Jack, do you know? Female blood is different from male blood. The smell of blood that does not contain Y chromosomes is the most pleasant... trust me, I would know.”
The words spoken were conceived as a joke, but there was no one who would find it funny. Jack grabbed the trembling Sylvia, his knees shaking too.
“I... said run.”
Then she (lieutenant Kah) bent her knee, pulled out a small knife, hidden nearby in a boot and, having gathered all her strength, thrust it into the Form’s shoulder. Noticing this, he looked at the knife. Despite the sudden blow, he was not that not surprised, did not even show signs that he was hurt.
“And this is your knife?” He lifted the claw on which the lieutenant hung. Looking up from the floor, she jerked her legs, it made the Form laugh, and he said, “This is my knife.”
The scales on the body stood on end and became sharp. The Form grabbed the lieutenant and bent her in half it began to squeeze her body as if wrapping it with its scales. The lieutenant screamed and blood rushed out of her mouth. The Form listened to her screams with pleasure, as if it were music.
In the end, the lieutenant with tarnished eyes uttered her last words:
“Robert...”
Jack, without waiting for her to give up her last breath, continuing to hug Silvia they left the deck.
The Form did not pursue them, it moved its legs as if in a dance with the already dead body of the lieutenant, with a saddened expression on her face.
However, she sat quite enough in loneliness that had not visited her for a long time. There was not a soul in the cabin; Sylvia looked around. Father was not around either, since it had already been half a day since he left. When the submarine arrived, he was no exception and jumped out of the cabin to find out what happened:
“I’ll be back soon, so be a good girl and wait for me here.”
As father asked, Sylvia sat all this time and waited in the cabin, but it was already unbearable. And she made up her mind.
She went to the door and heard the sound of a strong wind. She returned to the bed on which she was sitting, took Lily with her, and opened the door. The corridor was completely deserted, but she was not at all afraid – after all, since Lily was with her, there was nothing to fear, having convinced herself of this, she left the cabin.
So along the way you could meet either one of the staff or the Uncle Lopez. But most of all I would like to meet dad.
Naturally, she could not know about the tragedy that happened while she was sitting in the cabin, and that no one from the staff, nor Lopez, nor father was already gone.
Finally she went on deck and saw a storm overboard. Never before had she seen a raging ocean, and Sylvia stood fixated and looked at the waves.
At that moment, a shadow of an incomprehensible form approached her back. Sylvia did not notice this and continued to silently look at the ocean, as something wet touched her shoulder. She screamed in surprise and began to run away.
“S... Sylvia, wait. Wait!”
It was an unfamiliar voice to her. It was definitely a human, male voice. Sylvia stopped, turned around and saw that Jack was standing behind. He was back on the Liberty.
Water was dripping from the long sleeves of his straitjacket, on which were supposed to be fetters.
Sylvia asked him, “Uncle, who are you? We have not met.”
“No, we met once.”
Jack remembered that during the first meeting, a mask covered his face.
“The Marshal... uh, I was behind him...”
“Ah, you are Uncle Jose’s friend!” Sylvia remembered. “Have you recovered now?”
She pointed to Jack’s face. She seemed to think that the mask on him was due to some kind of illness. Putting another meaning to her words, Jack replied, “Yes, completely cured.”
“And is Uncle Jose with you?”
Jack immediately remembered Lopez falling into the water.
“In fact, Uncle Jose asked me to take you with me. Well, Sylvia, let’s go.”
“But dad...”
“Dad’s with Uncle Jose.”
“Really?”
“Yes really. I swear.”
Of course it was a lie. However, Jack was seized by a strange feeling, not from the fact that he had lied, but from the fact that at least his words about the oath had come out. Prior to this, convinced that he was a murderer, a man who put an end to his own life. If his position gave at least some hope for the future, but for those around him, he still remained a murderer. Even taking an oath, it will all end with the fact that it will be washed away by a lethal injection on a special chair. It made no sense. Jack began to think about it, but realized that now there was no time for reflection, and switched to the primary task: to escape from here.
He rolled up his sleeve and held out his hand to Sylvia.
“Well, let’s go, Sylvia. Everyone is waiting.”
Sylvia put her little hand in Jack’s palm. He was immediately swept over by a wave of the memory of the one with whom he had last held his hand, and realized that her name was also Sylvia.
They started walking and Sylvia asked Jack, “Uncle, what is your name?”
“Jack... Jack Trump.”
“Then, Uncle Jack. Nice to meet you, Uncle Jack. And this is Lily.”
“Nice to meet you Lily.”
Jack looked at Lily, and Sylvia tilted her head as if Lily bowed slightly.
Finally, the lieutenant appeared in front of them. As soon as Jack noticed her, he immediately called out, “Hey, I found her! Going back to the boat!”
The lieutenant did not answer, she continued to stand, peering into the water. Jack went up to her and looked in the same direction as she did. There was nothing on the water to the horizon. Only surging waves of a uniform grey color.
“The submarine... has disappeared,” said Lieutenant Kah. “You did not see the monster along your way?”
Jack shook his head silently at her question.
“We have to be careful, maybe he moved here. No, most likely it has.”
“That’s... right,” a voice suddenly sounded. The lieutenant looked around, then looked at Jack.
“Did you say something?”
Jack shook his head. At that moment, he noticed that the wall behind the lieutenant’s back was deformed.
The surface of the deck lining trembled, its wooden pattern gradually began to distort. Jack in a panic shouted to the lieutenant:
“Behind!”
Before she could look back, a thick branch grew from a wooden lining and stuck into her body. Of course, this was not a branch, but a huge sharp claw, gradually turning into the milky color of the Form. Then the branch also found its natural color, and the Form appeared before them.
“Not a monster... the Ripper, in its true form.”
Words sounded from the Form’s mouth. Surprise appeared on the lieutenant’s face, distorted in pain. Before them stood a living creature, with a fully preserved human brain. It would be even more correct to say that the human brain completely controlled the cellular structure.
Here and now there was a confirmation of this achievement, which Umbrella had not managed to achieve until today.
Damaged internal organs were filled with blood and a bloody cough escaped from the lieutenant’s mouth. Then, in a weak voice, she said to Jack, “Run... the...”
Watching what was happening, the Form sniffed from what could be called a nose, an inappropriate smile appeared on his face:
“The smell of blood from a woman. I have not sensed it for a long time, but still there is nothing better. Jack, do you know? Female blood is different from male blood. The smell of blood that does not contain Y chromosomes is the most pleasant... trust me, I would know.”
The words spoken were conceived as a joke, but there was no one who would find it funny. Jack grabbed the trembling Sylvia, his knees shaking too.
“I... said run.”
Then she (lieutenant Kah) bent her knee, pulled out a small knife, hidden nearby in a boot and, having gathered all her strength, thrust it into the Form’s shoulder. Noticing this, he looked at the knife. Despite the sudden blow, he was not that not surprised, did not even show signs that he was hurt.
“And this is your knife?” He lifted the claw on which the lieutenant hung. Looking up from the floor, she jerked her legs, it made the Form laugh, and he said, “This is my knife.”
The scales on the body stood on end and became sharp. The Form grabbed the lieutenant and bent her in half it began to squeeze her body as if wrapping it with its scales. The lieutenant screamed and blood rushed out of her mouth. The Form listened to her screams with pleasure, as if it were music.
In the end, the lieutenant with tarnished eyes uttered her last words:
“Robert...”
Jack, without waiting for her to give up her last breath, continuing to hug Silvia they left the deck.
The Form did not pursue them, it moved its legs as if in a dance with the already dead body of the lieutenant, with a saddened expression on her face.
# 20 Last Words
How far did they have to run? Jack found that he and Sylvia had come to the cabin, where he had been in the very beginning of the journey. A clear head began to overflow with fear and confused thoughts. What now what to do, how to do, he could not even think of anything. There are no weapons at all. Even if there were, only Lieutenant Kah could shoot them, and she was already dead. And how now how could he defeat the monster?
Jack could not find a single answer to his questions.
Calming himself, he examined the cabin. Kulik’s body also lay on the floor. And since Jack left the cabin the mess remained the same.
The only difference was that the mercenary that Lopez knocked out had disappeared.
He probably came to his senses, got out of the cabin and went where the barrel of the rifle pointed. It is unknown, either in search of them, or to escape, most likely he is already dead. Why such conclusions – even in this cabin it is not going to lead to safety.
At that moment, Jack glanced at the Glock Kulik left lying on the bed. He held out his hand, took it, and found that it was missing a clip. And Jack immediately remembered how Lopez took the Glock from him and pulled the clip out. Now this clip along with Lopez drowned in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. To calm his soul, he let the Glock go in his hands.
“Has this man died?”
Jack turned and saw that Sylvia, sitting on another bed, pointing to Kulik. Immersed in his own thoughts, Jack found that Sylvia was completely left unattended, and worried that maybe now she was very scared, he replied:
“No, he lost consciousness due to a wound.”
Sylvia immediately said, “Not true. I understand. And I’m not afraid, so you can not lie. After all, I, too, will die soon.”
Jack looked at her in surprise.
“You mean that monster will kill you?”
Sylvia shook her head. “I’m sick. Dad said that I will recover, but I understand that this is also not true. But if you talk about this to dad, then tell him that it’s OK, because he is trying so hard to cure the disease.”
Jack listened carefully to what she was saying.
“The woman that the monster attacked has also died? You said that dad and uncle Jose are waiting for us, but most likely the monster attacked dad too, and he probably died. What about Uncle Jose?”
Jack silently averted his eyes.
“See. It’s not true... don’t tell lies anymore. Because I’m not afraid that I will die.”
Before him was a small child, but in his time already waiting for death. Jack pondered her words. If you think about it, he forgot that he himself was in the same position. Despite the fact that he considered himself innocent, he was still awaiting the death sentence. The irony was that even if they did not die on this ship, they, the last two survivors, had been destined to die.
In this case, it makes no sense to be afraid of the monster at all? The only important thing is when death comes – sooner or later. But at the moment when Jack formulated conclusions in his head, Sylvia said:
“Only...”
Jack raised his head and looked at her.
“Only what?
“I am against death at the hands of that monster!”
It was like an electric shock. In an instant, all thoughts disappeared from Jack’s head. He asked Sylvia, “Why... why are you against it? After all, you said you were not afraid to die, right?”
Sylvia shook her head even more.
“My mother died from the same disease. Dad said that this disease was given to her by God, so there was no choice but to accept it. But, dad wanted me to think that she said so. He said that these were her last words. I don’t like the fact that she left us here, and the first one to go to paradise... Still, I think that my mother did not want to die. Actually, I don’t want to die either. But the will of God cannot be changed, then mother after death went to paradise. I believe that if I die from an illness, then I will definitely go to heaven and meet my mother there. So God decided. Therefore, I am not afraid to die. That monster was not sent by God. I am against being killed by a monster. I want to live until the last day that God planned for me. Only in this way and in no other way!”
All Jack’s thoughts about this need to reconcile with the current situation, immediately eroded. Then inside him, something stirred and poured into motion. He himself could not understand why he did so, but Jack unconsciously pulled the Glock in his hands. Then he noticed something fell out of the chamber – a shiny object that glowed with the color of copper. A cartridge with an unscathed bullet was looking at Jack. Only one cartridge for only one shot. Despite the fact that Lopez, when he pulled out the clip and counted its contents, and although it was usually easy to notice, being so emotional, he could miss the remaining cartridge. On automatic clips, it happens when an already charged cartridge remains inside. It was a gift from Lopez, Jack thought. No, a person trained like Lopez could not have made such a mistake. If miracles exist, then this only cartridge is exactly that, and it encouraged Jack. He perfectly understood that to defeat the Form, only this was not enough, but something inexplicable overwhelmed him and prompted him to action. He straightened up and called to Sylvia.
“Sylvia, let’s go. We are leaving here.”
She asked in surprise, “Where are we going?”
“Let’s go do as you said. Survive until the day determined by God.”
Jack could not find a single answer to his questions.
Calming himself, he examined the cabin. Kulik’s body also lay on the floor. And since Jack left the cabin the mess remained the same.
The only difference was that the mercenary that Lopez knocked out had disappeared.
He probably came to his senses, got out of the cabin and went where the barrel of the rifle pointed. It is unknown, either in search of them, or to escape, most likely he is already dead. Why such conclusions – even in this cabin it is not going to lead to safety.
At that moment, Jack glanced at the Glock Kulik left lying on the bed. He held out his hand, took it, and found that it was missing a clip. And Jack immediately remembered how Lopez took the Glock from him and pulled the clip out. Now this clip along with Lopez drowned in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. To calm his soul, he let the Glock go in his hands.
“Has this man died?”
Jack turned and saw that Sylvia, sitting on another bed, pointing to Kulik. Immersed in his own thoughts, Jack found that Sylvia was completely left unattended, and worried that maybe now she was very scared, he replied:
“No, he lost consciousness due to a wound.”
Sylvia immediately said, “Not true. I understand. And I’m not afraid, so you can not lie. After all, I, too, will die soon.”
Jack looked at her in surprise.
“You mean that monster will kill you?”
Sylvia shook her head. “I’m sick. Dad said that I will recover, but I understand that this is also not true. But if you talk about this to dad, then tell him that it’s OK, because he is trying so hard to cure the disease.”
Jack listened carefully to what she was saying.
“The woman that the monster attacked has also died? You said that dad and uncle Jose are waiting for us, but most likely the monster attacked dad too, and he probably died. What about Uncle Jose?”
Jack silently averted his eyes.
“See. It’s not true... don’t tell lies anymore. Because I’m not afraid that I will die.”
Before him was a small child, but in his time already waiting for death. Jack pondered her words. If you think about it, he forgot that he himself was in the same position. Despite the fact that he considered himself innocent, he was still awaiting the death sentence. The irony was that even if they did not die on this ship, they, the last two survivors, had been destined to die.
In this case, it makes no sense to be afraid of the monster at all? The only important thing is when death comes – sooner or later. But at the moment when Jack formulated conclusions in his head, Sylvia said:
“Only...”
Jack raised his head and looked at her.
“Only what?
“I am against death at the hands of that monster!”
It was like an electric shock. In an instant, all thoughts disappeared from Jack’s head. He asked Sylvia, “Why... why are you against it? After all, you said you were not afraid to die, right?”
Sylvia shook her head even more.
“My mother died from the same disease. Dad said that this disease was given to her by God, so there was no choice but to accept it. But, dad wanted me to think that she said so. He said that these were her last words. I don’t like the fact that she left us here, and the first one to go to paradise... Still, I think that my mother did not want to die. Actually, I don’t want to die either. But the will of God cannot be changed, then mother after death went to paradise. I believe that if I die from an illness, then I will definitely go to heaven and meet my mother there. So God decided. Therefore, I am not afraid to die. That monster was not sent by God. I am against being killed by a monster. I want to live until the last day that God planned for me. Only in this way and in no other way!”
All Jack’s thoughts about this need to reconcile with the current situation, immediately eroded. Then inside him, something stirred and poured into motion. He himself could not understand why he did so, but Jack unconsciously pulled the Glock in his hands. Then he noticed something fell out of the chamber – a shiny object that glowed with the color of copper. A cartridge with an unscathed bullet was looking at Jack. Only one cartridge for only one shot. Despite the fact that Lopez, when he pulled out the clip and counted its contents, and although it was usually easy to notice, being so emotional, he could miss the remaining cartridge. On automatic clips, it happens when an already charged cartridge remains inside. It was a gift from Lopez, Jack thought. No, a person trained like Lopez could not have made such a mistake. If miracles exist, then this only cartridge is exactly that, and it encouraged Jack. He perfectly understood that to defeat the Form, only this was not enough, but something inexplicable overwhelmed him and prompted him to action. He straightened up and called to Sylvia.
“Sylvia, let’s go. We are leaving here.”
She asked in surprise, “Where are we going?”
“Let’s go do as you said. Survive until the day determined by God.”
# 21 Day Ordained By God
Jack first put Sylvia in the boat prepared by the lieutenant. Then he entered the coordinates in the GPS-navigator, as far as possible from Liberty, then released the boat into the desert ocean. The distress area was very small, but it was better than keeping Sylvia here. He collected provisions from all the others on this boat, if he was lucky, then a passing ship or plane could detect her.
It was a desperate bet counting on luck, but even with this situation, it was in every way better than her staying on the Liberty.
During this, Sylvia did not utter a word, perhaps Jack’s determination influenced her, she silently followed his instructions. However, she constantly looked at him as if she had guessed already. With the boat moving away from the Liberty, she continued to look at Jack, who remained on the deck, until he disappeared from her sight.
He also continued to look at her and the boat without taking his eyes off them. Most likely this was the last time he would see Sylvia. The chance to be picked up on a small boat in the vast Atlantic Ocean was equated with a miracle, but most of all he wanted only her to be saved. Jack himself did not realize how he asked for a miracle from God. If you think about it, then Sylvia became Jack’s motivation, locked in his own world, a kind of goddess who endowed him with courage. Naturally, now he, the one who was supposed to be the villain, was going to act like a real person. From now on, he would seize the opportunity given by the two Sylvia's that changed his life. The first time he missed the opportunity, but now everything was different. From now on, he wanted to become an ordinary person as much as possible. Why did he want this – perhaps it was today that God had determined. He tightened his grip on the Glock.
Then Jack returned to the cabin, and took the laptop left by Lieutenant Kah. He needed another plan, to go after the Form with one bullet – he was not so stupid. Before returning to the cabin, he tried to find some other weapon, but the mercenary rifles lying on the floor were all cut in half during the Form’s attack. However, this was not a problem. Calculating Lieutenant Kah, had to think of some other way besides missiles in a submarine. There was absolutely no guarantee, even if Jack could detect it – it would be a miracle, but for some reason Jack was overwhelmed with confidence and did not lose it. He went out into the hallway with the laptop under his arm, in search of something suitable, and for this purpose he headed for the bridge, where the control of the liner was set.
It was strange that until this moment, including the corridor to the bridge, he had not met with the Form. And in this, too, he felt a wonderful luck. Luck turned to face him, so thought Jack. Finally reaching the bridge, he went inside and examined the panels with various devices, opened the laptop and turned on the power.
A lock appeared on the monitor, but Jack easily cracked it and now in front of him was a system startup screen. On the bridge on the floor lay a pile of bodies dismembered by the Form. Either the sight had become familiar, or it was not enough to worry him, but Jack’s attention was focused on the computer.
Soon his gaze settled on one file. The name read “Chen Industries Development Department, weapons for military use.” He carefully opened the file. The file contained all of Chen’s existing military weapons and equipment developments. Fortunately, he could view the file with administrator rights, its contents included information from small anti-personnel mines and small arms to tanks, military bases and rocket launchers, but most likely there was nothing listed on Liberty to use. However, Jack continued to browse and one thing caught his attention.
It just may be an option. Not even that, it will be more than enough to destroy the monster. Still, it was a miracle. His heart was beating loudly. The code for this weapon was the name “Robert” – mysteriously coincided with the last word of Lieutenant Kah.
Whether she intended to utter this word, you won’t know now, but he believed that in the end she also understood that there was no other way but to launch this weapon. After thinking about its features, Jack proceeded to the next step.
He carefully examined the panel with the devices, having found the necessary connector, took the cable lying on the floor and connected the laptop to it. He hovered over the command line and started typing on the keyboard.
The familiar rows of characters reappeared on the screen. Again appeared another lock, he entered the characters in the same way as before. Then the rows changed and lined up again in a different order. Jack frowned. Not surprisingly, one system was reliably protected by another. Nevertheless, he calmly and silently began to stare at the screen. His mouth began to open and close like a fish thrown into a barrel from a lack of oxygen. It seemed that he was calculating something. For the average person, it was impossible to decrypt the code by doing calculations in the mind. But this was precisely the connection with his nickname “code cracker.” There was no lock that he could not break. This was made possible thanks to his phenomenal concentration and ability to compute. When he released these abilities, Jack always presented himself in the gloom of the cell of the camera at the moment after the very birth of storage. Turning to the side from which the light should appear, he continued to swim in a sea of darkness. Soon a ray of light came into his head, Jack closed his mouth, exhaled and gently pressed a few keys.
Jack expertly hacked the program. And spent only a few minutes on it.
“Robert. Access is being performed” was displayed on the screen, a signal with the image of a satellite antenna connected to the dashboard was read out and then the antenna on the roof of the bridge began to turn. Then Jack’s ears caught the pleasant sound of a working drive. Having finished the difficult task, Jack exhaled and smiled weakly. It was the first smile since landing on the Liberty.
It was a desperate bet counting on luck, but even with this situation, it was in every way better than her staying on the Liberty.
During this, Sylvia did not utter a word, perhaps Jack’s determination influenced her, she silently followed his instructions. However, she constantly looked at him as if she had guessed already. With the boat moving away from the Liberty, she continued to look at Jack, who remained on the deck, until he disappeared from her sight.
He also continued to look at her and the boat without taking his eyes off them. Most likely this was the last time he would see Sylvia. The chance to be picked up on a small boat in the vast Atlantic Ocean was equated with a miracle, but most of all he wanted only her to be saved. Jack himself did not realize how he asked for a miracle from God. If you think about it, then Sylvia became Jack’s motivation, locked in his own world, a kind of goddess who endowed him with courage. Naturally, now he, the one who was supposed to be the villain, was going to act like a real person. From now on, he would seize the opportunity given by the two Sylvia's that changed his life. The first time he missed the opportunity, but now everything was different. From now on, he wanted to become an ordinary person as much as possible. Why did he want this – perhaps it was today that God had determined. He tightened his grip on the Glock.
Then Jack returned to the cabin, and took the laptop left by Lieutenant Kah. He needed another plan, to go after the Form with one bullet – he was not so stupid. Before returning to the cabin, he tried to find some other weapon, but the mercenary rifles lying on the floor were all cut in half during the Form’s attack. However, this was not a problem. Calculating Lieutenant Kah, had to think of some other way besides missiles in a submarine. There was absolutely no guarantee, even if Jack could detect it – it would be a miracle, but for some reason Jack was overwhelmed with confidence and did not lose it. He went out into the hallway with the laptop under his arm, in search of something suitable, and for this purpose he headed for the bridge, where the control of the liner was set.
It was strange that until this moment, including the corridor to the bridge, he had not met with the Form. And in this, too, he felt a wonderful luck. Luck turned to face him, so thought Jack. Finally reaching the bridge, he went inside and examined the panels with various devices, opened the laptop and turned on the power.
A lock appeared on the monitor, but Jack easily cracked it and now in front of him was a system startup screen. On the bridge on the floor lay a pile of bodies dismembered by the Form. Either the sight had become familiar, or it was not enough to worry him, but Jack’s attention was focused on the computer.
Soon his gaze settled on one file. The name read “Chen Industries Development Department, weapons for military use.” He carefully opened the file. The file contained all of Chen’s existing military weapons and equipment developments. Fortunately, he could view the file with administrator rights, its contents included information from small anti-personnel mines and small arms to tanks, military bases and rocket launchers, but most likely there was nothing listed on Liberty to use. However, Jack continued to browse and one thing caught his attention.
It just may be an option. Not even that, it will be more than enough to destroy the monster. Still, it was a miracle. His heart was beating loudly. The code for this weapon was the name “Robert” – mysteriously coincided with the last word of Lieutenant Kah.
Whether she intended to utter this word, you won’t know now, but he believed that in the end she also understood that there was no other way but to launch this weapon. After thinking about its features, Jack proceeded to the next step.
He carefully examined the panel with the devices, having found the necessary connector, took the cable lying on the floor and connected the laptop to it. He hovered over the command line and started typing on the keyboard.
The familiar rows of characters reappeared on the screen. Again appeared another lock, he entered the characters in the same way as before. Then the rows changed and lined up again in a different order. Jack frowned. Not surprisingly, one system was reliably protected by another. Nevertheless, he calmly and silently began to stare at the screen. His mouth began to open and close like a fish thrown into a barrel from a lack of oxygen. It seemed that he was calculating something. For the average person, it was impossible to decrypt the code by doing calculations in the mind. But this was precisely the connection with his nickname “code cracker.” There was no lock that he could not break. This was made possible thanks to his phenomenal concentration and ability to compute. When he released these abilities, Jack always presented himself in the gloom of the cell of the camera at the moment after the very birth of storage. Turning to the side from which the light should appear, he continued to swim in a sea of darkness. Soon a ray of light came into his head, Jack closed his mouth, exhaled and gently pressed a few keys.
Jack expertly hacked the program. And spent only a few minutes on it.
“Robert. Access is being performed” was displayed on the screen, a signal with the image of a satellite antenna connected to the dashboard was read out and then the antenna on the roof of the bridge began to turn. Then Jack’s ears caught the pleasant sound of a working drive. Having finished the difficult task, Jack exhaled and smiled weakly. It was the first smile since landing on the Liberty.
# 22 Robert
“Robert” was designed by Chen Industries experts and was created in the 80s, during the Cold War. Having received the name of the previously born son of the president of the company, immediately after its creation it was installed into missiles and still worked today. The full name for this modification was “Robert II Atlantic”, the area of responsibility is the territory of the Atlantic Ocean. It also had several friends: controlling the Pacific, the territory of the former Soviet Union – the famous Eurasia, modified to Robert IV.
The armament of each was very diverse: highly sensitive security cameras, missile defense, missiles with nuclear warheads. In general, a large abundance. At the Atlantic, the tip of the cone was inlaid with a small artificial ruby. And if the whole world plunged into sorrow, it would have dropped a tear in the form of ultrahigh light on enemy submarines hiding in the depths of the ocean. That was the plan, but there was no reason for tears. All the “Roberts” had different owners, and only once did they quarrel among themselves.
However, times have changed. Countries that could not afford the colossal costs of maintenance, one by one abandoned them, which were not dangerous, were disposed of as they were, there were those who transferred the rights of use to other countries. The Atlantic was bought by the US Navy, but soon it passed into the hands of the Ministry of Defense, as expected a wave of arms reduction swept over and he returned to his native Chen Industries, then with the purchase of the company became the property of Umbrella Corporation.
The anti-submarine laser satellite “Robert II Atlantic” soared in orbit, contemplating the ultramarine Atlantic Ocean in silent solitude. And it was thought that this would go on forever, when suddenly the native activation code of Chen Industries came to its ears. Hearing, it immediately answered and immediately launching all his systems, it began to wait for the following instructions. Finally freed from loneliness, Robert triumphantly directed his ruby red glowing red light at the tip of the cone to one point on the Atlantic Ocean.
The armament of each was very diverse: highly sensitive security cameras, missile defense, missiles with nuclear warheads. In general, a large abundance. At the Atlantic, the tip of the cone was inlaid with a small artificial ruby. And if the whole world plunged into sorrow, it would have dropped a tear in the form of ultrahigh light on enemy submarines hiding in the depths of the ocean. That was the plan, but there was no reason for tears. All the “Roberts” had different owners, and only once did they quarrel among themselves.
However, times have changed. Countries that could not afford the colossal costs of maintenance, one by one abandoned them, which were not dangerous, were disposed of as they were, there were those who transferred the rights of use to other countries. The Atlantic was bought by the US Navy, but soon it passed into the hands of the Ministry of Defense, as expected a wave of arms reduction swept over and he returned to his native Chen Industries, then with the purchase of the company became the property of Umbrella Corporation.
The anti-submarine laser satellite “Robert II Atlantic” soared in orbit, contemplating the ultramarine Atlantic Ocean in silent solitude. And it was thought that this would go on forever, when suddenly the native activation code of Chen Industries came to its ears. Hearing, it immediately answered and immediately launching all his systems, it began to wait for the following instructions. Finally freed from loneliness, Robert triumphantly directed his ruby red glowing red light at the tip of the cone to one point on the Atlantic Ocean.
# 23 At One Point
Communication established. So you can control Robert from this computer.
Jack started pounding the keys again. Judging by the instructions attached to the file, it was enough to enter the command then the configuration would happen automatically. So even Jack, who did not have special knowledge, quickly figured it out. But despite the fact that everything seemed to work out, at the very last moment the problem appeared. Robert was equipped with high-precision temperature sensors, capable of detecting a submarine at low depth by weak outgoing heat. Once capturing a target, it would automatically track it until it was completely destroyed. However, no matter how severe the conditions in space the way it was designed, for many years it did not receive maintenance and the neglected state of its sensors was worse than one could imagine. So the sensors could not capture the submarine at great depths, but even things on the surface of the ocean like the Liberty. One of the reasons was the thick layer of clouds that appeared due to the storm. No matter how many times Jack dialled a command, only “The target is not captured” was displayed on the monitor.
Having no other choice, Jack decided to enter the fixed coordinates of one point on the surface of the Atlantic Ocean. Thus, when the laser beam is released, Liberty must pass through the indicated location. Judging by the instructions for changing the attack mode, it was necessary to mark the point, for this Jack looked up from the computer and looked around to check the course of Liberty.
And then he caught the eye of a computer monitor, responsible for controlling the course of Liberty. And this moment Jack first learned that the ship could be controlled by autopilot. If you think about it, not only the bridge, but the entire liner was now deserted.
Who was controlling the Liberty? Only at this moment did it even occur to Jack.
On the monitor, a map of the East Coast was displayed and the destination was “New York, Manhattan.” He immediately remembered the streets of the city. The place where he was born and lived until his departure for London. The vast amount of emotions experienced to this day had been concentrated on these streets. Here he met and spent time with his beloved Sylvia.
How is she doing, where is she...
Only the final moments he saw her he did not remember, so Jack could not imagine what was happening to her now. But something else seemed to distract him. Namely, the consequences of what the streets will turn into if the Form was not destroyed and the liner docked safely in New York. He looked around – piles of shapeless human meat lay on the floor. Even the Navy mercenaries were powerless against him. For the Form, whose body was almost immortal against conventional weapons, there was no difference which person was in front of him. What then is left but to destroy Manhattan with a nuclear warhead missile? All that he imagined ended horribly and scrolling through his head.
Jack shook his head and went to the monitor. You can’t think of such a thing. Now it is important to check the course of Liberty. Jack found a pen on the side of the monitor, grabbed it and twisted it. Immediately, the image with the current location of Liberty in the center increased. Clearly, this is good, Jack thought. Near the cursor, detailed information with coordinates was displayed. On the keyboard of the Liberty control panel. Immediately on the line of the route there was a new cursor and also information with coordinates. Jack carefully looked at the coordinates and, how during the hacking of a real Fortune, he began to make calculations in his mind.
For example, if one point is designated in the Atlantic Ocean, then everything becomes meaningless if you do not determine its position on the huge deck of Liberty. And when the time comes for the strike, Liberty should be right under the laser beam, and the Form should be at a specific point. Mentally estranged from reality, he used the eye trained on breaking into safes, remembered his movements on the liner and began to draw conclusions. Soon, for the second time, having discovered a ray of light in pitch darkness, Jack turned to the computer and entered the coordinates. And then simultaneously with the last keystroke, Robert answered.
“The target coordinates are set. Countdown required.”
Jack looked around.
“Something to watch time with...”
He turned and drew his attention to the hand of one of the crew members. He wore a waterproof wristwatch with an electronic dial. Jack approached him, took off his watch, and fastened it on his arm over long sleeves. Stopwatch, timer – all this was ideally suited for his purposes. All that Jack could keep in mind, was the watch appeared to be Japanese-made, trustworthy. He set the countdown to an hour, and entered the same time on the computer. Then he simultaneously pressed a button on the watch and keyboard.
Time was running out, the countdown had begun.
An hour remained. In exactly one hour, everything would be over.
He had already imagined the future if he couldn’t succeed in destroying the Form, but if everything went well and he survived, he would be immediately arrested upon arrival in New York and at the end he would be killed with lethal injection, Jack was well aware of this. The irony was that Jack is actually innocent, now fighting to save the New Yorkers who consider him a murderer.
Just think, it’s getting ridiculous.
In fact, Jack just smiled slightly at the thought. But he himself did not understand why, did not want to abandon the last battle with the Form. Standing in front of the computer, Jack gripped the Glock firmly with both hands, raised it and smashed down with all his might. With a firm grip, and one blow, he smashed the keyboard into smithereens.
Now no one else can work on the computer. Good. Thus, someone else... although there is no one else besides the Form, will not be able to change Robert’s settings. And Jack himself will not be able to retreat. Good. Is it really good? Jack took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, he left the bridge, heading for his last battle.
Suppose, if he wins, it will be a battle for which he will under no circumstances be rewarded...
However, this did not stop Jack. Like a martyr from the Bible, he stepped into the abode of demons. Surprisingly, he never imagined that, being a petty criminal from New York, he could die as a martyr.
A terrible silence fell on the bridge behind him, on the LCD monitor above the broken keyboard, a message from Robert was displayed:
“...Minutes before the strike remains...”
One second, another second – the countdown accurately measured the time bringing it closer to zero. At that moment, something began to move on the bridge, then he looked into the monitor. The movement became a shadow, the shadow was transformed into a human and in the end took on a real look. It had become a Form.
Using the ability to disguise himself, he hid for some time and continuously watched Jack’s actions. The fact that Jack did not meet him on the way here – luck had nothing to do with it.
The Form looked at the time running on Robert’s countdown and his mouth twisted into a smile and laughed triumphantly.
“Jack, you’re the best. I’m really glad that I met you, now, I say this from a pure heart.”
At this time, Jack walked along the liner. He had to avoid the Form for an hour and lure him to a point on the deck calculated in his head.
Jack started pounding the keys again. Judging by the instructions attached to the file, it was enough to enter the command then the configuration would happen automatically. So even Jack, who did not have special knowledge, quickly figured it out. But despite the fact that everything seemed to work out, at the very last moment the problem appeared. Robert was equipped with high-precision temperature sensors, capable of detecting a submarine at low depth by weak outgoing heat. Once capturing a target, it would automatically track it until it was completely destroyed. However, no matter how severe the conditions in space the way it was designed, for many years it did not receive maintenance and the neglected state of its sensors was worse than one could imagine. So the sensors could not capture the submarine at great depths, but even things on the surface of the ocean like the Liberty. One of the reasons was the thick layer of clouds that appeared due to the storm. No matter how many times Jack dialled a command, only “The target is not captured” was displayed on the monitor.
Having no other choice, Jack decided to enter the fixed coordinates of one point on the surface of the Atlantic Ocean. Thus, when the laser beam is released, Liberty must pass through the indicated location. Judging by the instructions for changing the attack mode, it was necessary to mark the point, for this Jack looked up from the computer and looked around to check the course of Liberty.
And then he caught the eye of a computer monitor, responsible for controlling the course of Liberty. And this moment Jack first learned that the ship could be controlled by autopilot. If you think about it, not only the bridge, but the entire liner was now deserted.
Who was controlling the Liberty? Only at this moment did it even occur to Jack.
On the monitor, a map of the East Coast was displayed and the destination was “New York, Manhattan.” He immediately remembered the streets of the city. The place where he was born and lived until his departure for London. The vast amount of emotions experienced to this day had been concentrated on these streets. Here he met and spent time with his beloved Sylvia.
How is she doing, where is she...
Only the final moments he saw her he did not remember, so Jack could not imagine what was happening to her now. But something else seemed to distract him. Namely, the consequences of what the streets will turn into if the Form was not destroyed and the liner docked safely in New York. He looked around – piles of shapeless human meat lay on the floor. Even the Navy mercenaries were powerless against him. For the Form, whose body was almost immortal against conventional weapons, there was no difference which person was in front of him. What then is left but to destroy Manhattan with a nuclear warhead missile? All that he imagined ended horribly and scrolling through his head.
Jack shook his head and went to the monitor. You can’t think of such a thing. Now it is important to check the course of Liberty. Jack found a pen on the side of the monitor, grabbed it and twisted it. Immediately, the image with the current location of Liberty in the center increased. Clearly, this is good, Jack thought. Near the cursor, detailed information with coordinates was displayed. On the keyboard of the Liberty control panel. Immediately on the line of the route there was a new cursor and also information with coordinates. Jack carefully looked at the coordinates and, how during the hacking of a real Fortune, he began to make calculations in his mind.
For example, if one point is designated in the Atlantic Ocean, then everything becomes meaningless if you do not determine its position on the huge deck of Liberty. And when the time comes for the strike, Liberty should be right under the laser beam, and the Form should be at a specific point. Mentally estranged from reality, he used the eye trained on breaking into safes, remembered his movements on the liner and began to draw conclusions. Soon, for the second time, having discovered a ray of light in pitch darkness, Jack turned to the computer and entered the coordinates. And then simultaneously with the last keystroke, Robert answered.
“The target coordinates are set. Countdown required.”
Jack looked around.
“Something to watch time with...”
He turned and drew his attention to the hand of one of the crew members. He wore a waterproof wristwatch with an electronic dial. Jack approached him, took off his watch, and fastened it on his arm over long sleeves. Stopwatch, timer – all this was ideally suited for his purposes. All that Jack could keep in mind, was the watch appeared to be Japanese-made, trustworthy. He set the countdown to an hour, and entered the same time on the computer. Then he simultaneously pressed a button on the watch and keyboard.
Time was running out, the countdown had begun.
An hour remained. In exactly one hour, everything would be over.
He had already imagined the future if he couldn’t succeed in destroying the Form, but if everything went well and he survived, he would be immediately arrested upon arrival in New York and at the end he would be killed with lethal injection, Jack was well aware of this. The irony was that Jack is actually innocent, now fighting to save the New Yorkers who consider him a murderer.
Just think, it’s getting ridiculous.
In fact, Jack just smiled slightly at the thought. But he himself did not understand why, did not want to abandon the last battle with the Form. Standing in front of the computer, Jack gripped the Glock firmly with both hands, raised it and smashed down with all his might. With a firm grip, and one blow, he smashed the keyboard into smithereens.
Now no one else can work on the computer. Good. Thus, someone else... although there is no one else besides the Form, will not be able to change Robert’s settings. And Jack himself will not be able to retreat. Good. Is it really good? Jack took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, he left the bridge, heading for his last battle.
Suppose, if he wins, it will be a battle for which he will under no circumstances be rewarded...
However, this did not stop Jack. Like a martyr from the Bible, he stepped into the abode of demons. Surprisingly, he never imagined that, being a petty criminal from New York, he could die as a martyr.
A terrible silence fell on the bridge behind him, on the LCD monitor above the broken keyboard, a message from Robert was displayed:
“...Minutes before the strike remains...”
One second, another second – the countdown accurately measured the time bringing it closer to zero. At that moment, something began to move on the bridge, then he looked into the monitor. The movement became a shadow, the shadow was transformed into a human and in the end took on a real look. It had become a Form.
Using the ability to disguise himself, he hid for some time and continuously watched Jack’s actions. The fact that Jack did not meet him on the way here – luck had nothing to do with it.
The Form looked at the time running on Robert’s countdown and his mouth twisted into a smile and laughed triumphantly.
“Jack, you’re the best. I’m really glad that I met you, now, I say this from a pure heart.”
At this time, Jack walked along the liner. He had to avoid the Form for an hour and lure him to a point on the deck calculated in his head.
# 24 Martyr
The numbers on the watch told Jack the remaining time. Jack had been walking on Liberty for more than thirty minutes, but had never met the Form. He was nervous.
Maybe the monster is no longer here? Maybe he escaped the liner, and swam to the nearest mainland? The distance from here to any mainland was decent, but for the Form, with its superhuman abilities, to get there by swimming, even if it takes a lot of time, was possible. Jack with this thought immediately looked at the water.
The storm seemed to have ended – the ocean surrounding Liberty looked calm. The wind also stopped. If this continued, then the sun would appear soon and become a little brighter. Will he have time to see the sunlight? After all, in just a few tens of minutes, the fate of Jack will greatly change.
When Jack finally reached the back of the deck, a blurred human shadow appeared in front of his eyes. The form. On the side of the ruined pool stood the Form. In an instant, Jack perked up, but then calmed down and checked his watch. Less than ten minutes were left. If he had discovered the Form elsewhere, then luring him to this point would have been extremely difficult and not enough time. But since he found him here, then everything was in order. Because by coincidence, the Form was just at the point of impact. What else could it be called, if not a miracle? Jack was deeply delighted at heart. It would be nice if he stood there for the remaining ten minutes. If he did not move, then a ray of light descending from heaven would incinerate his body. This would end here. For Jack, the remaining minutes seemed like an eternity.
He continued to stand in the corridor, so that the Form would not notice him, he was impatiently waiting for the time to come to an end.
And then something happened that he did not expect:
“Jack, are you here? Come out, show yourself.”
Jack was surprised, a chill ran down his back. His heart began to beat wildly.
The Form sniffed through what was supposed to be a nose.
“I can smell you. The smell of a straitjacket soaked in sea water. Since I became so, my sense of smell has greatly enhanced. Oh, are you scared? The smell of sweat was added. Cold sweat?”
He could smell a drop of sweat on his cheek. Jack did not know if it was true what the Form was saying or not, but it was clear that his presence was noticed.
“If you don’t give up, I will find you myself.”
This is bad! Jack thought immediately. It is impossible that he noticed me from this point. Jack quickly flew to the back of the deck and appeared to the Form. There was neither time nor opportunity to prepare any new plan.
In any case, you just need to delay.
The Form stayed where he stood. It looked toward Jack: “Look, come out.”
Jack looked at his watch. Just a few minutes, please just freeze and don’t move. He mentally said this to the Form.
He, in turn, noticed the movement of Jack.
“Are you in a hurry to get somewhere?”
Jack did not answer, continuing to stare at the Form.
“Let’s talk a little bit, Jack. As if it were not unpleasant enough. There is nobody left besides you here. Keep me company.”
If this helps to gain time, then you need to take such a great opportunity. Jack nodded silently. The Form smiled. It was a smile that only the human brain could give out.
“In fact, I’m suffering. I got this beautiful perfect body, but my brain remained the same as when I was a man. Is it a good thing or bad? Thanks to this, I can conduct human conversations with you, but... I became who I wanted. How about you, Jack? Who would you rather be? A hero? Or a martyr?”
Significant words aroused concern, but besides this Jack felt an aversion to when the Form said “human.” Appearance by itself, but the perfect actions before turning into a monster at the time when he was the Ripper, could not be called “human”. Jack tightly pressed his lips together and did not answer the question. He had a desire to conduct a “human” conversation with the monster standing in front of him.
Immediately, as if wanting to get Jack to express an opinion, the Form took one step in his direction.
“Answer, do not be silent.”
Jack panicked. Thinking only about how to stop the Form, he said in confusion, “Just to become a normal person, ordinary, just like everyone else! I wanted this from birth.”
And these were sincere words. When he met his girlfriend Sylvia, then the little Sylvia, he got a chance to change his present life and the future that awaited him. The words spoken at that moment were an expression of this important desire. The Form mocked him.
“You have an outstanding mind, right? With such a brain, nothing is impossible. Now there is no need to want to be ordinary. “Code cracker”... wasn’t it? No, that was impressive. I was amazed when I saw it with my own eyes. You not only hacked into a satellite, but also calculated minutes before the coordinate to tenths. I just could not understand what point you indicated on the Liberty deck as a result.”
Jack was confused.
He heard right? He tried to catch the answers to the questions, but failed.
Jack, without realizing it, looked at his watch. Immediately, the Form quietly added:
“Are you in a hurry? Take your time, the hour will soon expire. I finally realized by your behavior...”
The Form widely spread its arms to the sky:
“So it’s here?” I need to stand right here?”
The face was deathly pale. A sensation rolled through his body that there was not a drop of blood left in him. In fact, the blood froze in shock, Jack froze in place. The body was stiff, The Form with his face turned to the sun turned only his eyes to Jack and meeting his eyes laughed ominously. Finally, Jack realized that Form had known his plans.
Jack turned his back on the Form and ran away. The Form followed him slowly.
There was a white noise in his head. He fled, realizing how dangerous the situation was. And he did not notice how from the back of the deck he was on the side of the liner.
There were still several lifeboats. He rushed to the control panel of the winch with the chain that fixed the boat. He turned on the power and the “stop” light came on immediately. Seeing this, Jack began to feverishly press the second button – green with the word “start”. Soon a green light came on, and the winch began to slowly unwind the chain, lowering the boat into the water. It takes time before the boat reaches the surface of the water. Entrusting the mechanism to do its job, Jack struggled to gather his thoughts, assessed the situation, and thought: What am I doing? Am I going to run away?
At this moment, the signal rang on the wristwatch. It reported that the time was up. He turned toward the back of the deck and saw that something amazing was actually happening on it. Unlike how he imagined, cutting through a cloudy sky, a wall of light came down and illuminated the entire deck for several seconds. Incredibly beautiful and quiet, but to Jack these few seconds seemed very long. Like the northern lights on the surface of the water. Ironically, the waves of rays of already burned light were the most beautiful creation by man that Jack had ever seen. However, with it came ugliness. Illuminated from the back in a trembling air, a huge shadow was visible – the Form was approaching. And sounds began. When the rays of light went out, a crash of a crumbling deck followed. The stern of the deck fell into two parts and began to go under water.
He began to roll slowly. In order not to slip, Jack grabbed the first pole that came across.
“Jack!” called the Form.
Jack looked toward the leaning deck. On it, as if nothing had happened, the Form was approaching, instead of soles, it had grown suction cups and clung tightly to them on the floor.
“You’re a dangerous man! Were you going to fry me with such a terrible thing?”
Smiling, the Form headed for the place where Jack was.
“Now it’s my turn.” Having said this, the Form raised his hand and threw it towards Jack. The limb sharpened, bent and took the form of a sickle. Jack held his breath.
Despair swept over Jack. Suddenly the sound of a winch lowering the boat changed and a red light came on in the control panel. Jack looked at the winch in a panic. Having lost tension, the target became confused. The winch stopped, and the boat, no longer descending into the water, hovered in the air.
Jack suddenly lost his escape route. And it didn’t seem like a miracle could happen. These are just illusions – a bitter thought hit Jack. In fact, fate cannot be changed, and without exception, people should live life following this.
Criminals live as criminals, and die as criminals. And this time he will not be an exception, nothing special.
Jack prepared to die. Then he remembered those moments when he lived as a normal person.
Being a criminal, even for a little bit, he was able to feel like a man, and this happened thanks to Sylvia... surprisingly, he was grateful to these two girls with the same name. And then he recalled in his mind the short time that he spent with them. And suddenly, for no reason, a bright silver light pierced his memories. The pistol bullet, the object that fell out of the chamber – the only cartridge left... And despite the fact that there was no blinding light, Jack clearly saw it. Returning to his current situation, he held on to a pole on an even more inclined deck, so as not to slip down, he quickly fastened a long sleeve to the post, and then rolled up his sleeve on his second hand. He still squeezed the Glock and this was a kind of reunion with the weapon, the existence of which he completely forgot.
Maybe the monster is no longer here? Maybe he escaped the liner, and swam to the nearest mainland? The distance from here to any mainland was decent, but for the Form, with its superhuman abilities, to get there by swimming, even if it takes a lot of time, was possible. Jack with this thought immediately looked at the water.
The storm seemed to have ended – the ocean surrounding Liberty looked calm. The wind also stopped. If this continued, then the sun would appear soon and become a little brighter. Will he have time to see the sunlight? After all, in just a few tens of minutes, the fate of Jack will greatly change.
When Jack finally reached the back of the deck, a blurred human shadow appeared in front of his eyes. The form. On the side of the ruined pool stood the Form. In an instant, Jack perked up, but then calmed down and checked his watch. Less than ten minutes were left. If he had discovered the Form elsewhere, then luring him to this point would have been extremely difficult and not enough time. But since he found him here, then everything was in order. Because by coincidence, the Form was just at the point of impact. What else could it be called, if not a miracle? Jack was deeply delighted at heart. It would be nice if he stood there for the remaining ten minutes. If he did not move, then a ray of light descending from heaven would incinerate his body. This would end here. For Jack, the remaining minutes seemed like an eternity.
He continued to stand in the corridor, so that the Form would not notice him, he was impatiently waiting for the time to come to an end.
And then something happened that he did not expect:
“Jack, are you here? Come out, show yourself.”
Jack was surprised, a chill ran down his back. His heart began to beat wildly.
The Form sniffed through what was supposed to be a nose.
“I can smell you. The smell of a straitjacket soaked in sea water. Since I became so, my sense of smell has greatly enhanced. Oh, are you scared? The smell of sweat was added. Cold sweat?”
He could smell a drop of sweat on his cheek. Jack did not know if it was true what the Form was saying or not, but it was clear that his presence was noticed.
“If you don’t give up, I will find you myself.”
This is bad! Jack thought immediately. It is impossible that he noticed me from this point. Jack quickly flew to the back of the deck and appeared to the Form. There was neither time nor opportunity to prepare any new plan.
In any case, you just need to delay.
The Form stayed where he stood. It looked toward Jack: “Look, come out.”
Jack looked at his watch. Just a few minutes, please just freeze and don’t move. He mentally said this to the Form.
He, in turn, noticed the movement of Jack.
“Are you in a hurry to get somewhere?”
Jack did not answer, continuing to stare at the Form.
“Let’s talk a little bit, Jack. As if it were not unpleasant enough. There is nobody left besides you here. Keep me company.”
If this helps to gain time, then you need to take such a great opportunity. Jack nodded silently. The Form smiled. It was a smile that only the human brain could give out.
“In fact, I’m suffering. I got this beautiful perfect body, but my brain remained the same as when I was a man. Is it a good thing or bad? Thanks to this, I can conduct human conversations with you, but... I became who I wanted. How about you, Jack? Who would you rather be? A hero? Or a martyr?”
Significant words aroused concern, but besides this Jack felt an aversion to when the Form said “human.” Appearance by itself, but the perfect actions before turning into a monster at the time when he was the Ripper, could not be called “human”. Jack tightly pressed his lips together and did not answer the question. He had a desire to conduct a “human” conversation with the monster standing in front of him.
Immediately, as if wanting to get Jack to express an opinion, the Form took one step in his direction.
“Answer, do not be silent.”
Jack panicked. Thinking only about how to stop the Form, he said in confusion, “Just to become a normal person, ordinary, just like everyone else! I wanted this from birth.”
And these were sincere words. When he met his girlfriend Sylvia, then the little Sylvia, he got a chance to change his present life and the future that awaited him. The words spoken at that moment were an expression of this important desire. The Form mocked him.
“You have an outstanding mind, right? With such a brain, nothing is impossible. Now there is no need to want to be ordinary. “Code cracker”... wasn’t it? No, that was impressive. I was amazed when I saw it with my own eyes. You not only hacked into a satellite, but also calculated minutes before the coordinate to tenths. I just could not understand what point you indicated on the Liberty deck as a result.”
Jack was confused.
He heard right? He tried to catch the answers to the questions, but failed.
Jack, without realizing it, looked at his watch. Immediately, the Form quietly added:
“Are you in a hurry? Take your time, the hour will soon expire. I finally realized by your behavior...”
The Form widely spread its arms to the sky:
“So it’s here?” I need to stand right here?”
The face was deathly pale. A sensation rolled through his body that there was not a drop of blood left in him. In fact, the blood froze in shock, Jack froze in place. The body was stiff, The Form with his face turned to the sun turned only his eyes to Jack and meeting his eyes laughed ominously. Finally, Jack realized that Form had known his plans.
Jack turned his back on the Form and ran away. The Form followed him slowly.
There was a white noise in his head. He fled, realizing how dangerous the situation was. And he did not notice how from the back of the deck he was on the side of the liner.
There were still several lifeboats. He rushed to the control panel of the winch with the chain that fixed the boat. He turned on the power and the “stop” light came on immediately. Seeing this, Jack began to feverishly press the second button – green with the word “start”. Soon a green light came on, and the winch began to slowly unwind the chain, lowering the boat into the water. It takes time before the boat reaches the surface of the water. Entrusting the mechanism to do its job, Jack struggled to gather his thoughts, assessed the situation, and thought: What am I doing? Am I going to run away?
At this moment, the signal rang on the wristwatch. It reported that the time was up. He turned toward the back of the deck and saw that something amazing was actually happening on it. Unlike how he imagined, cutting through a cloudy sky, a wall of light came down and illuminated the entire deck for several seconds. Incredibly beautiful and quiet, but to Jack these few seconds seemed very long. Like the northern lights on the surface of the water. Ironically, the waves of rays of already burned light were the most beautiful creation by man that Jack had ever seen. However, with it came ugliness. Illuminated from the back in a trembling air, a huge shadow was visible – the Form was approaching. And sounds began. When the rays of light went out, a crash of a crumbling deck followed. The stern of the deck fell into two parts and began to go under water.
He began to roll slowly. In order not to slip, Jack grabbed the first pole that came across.
“Jack!” called the Form.
Jack looked toward the leaning deck. On it, as if nothing had happened, the Form was approaching, instead of soles, it had grown suction cups and clung tightly to them on the floor.
“You’re a dangerous man! Were you going to fry me with such a terrible thing?”
Smiling, the Form headed for the place where Jack was.
“Now it’s my turn.” Having said this, the Form raised his hand and threw it towards Jack. The limb sharpened, bent and took the form of a sickle. Jack held his breath.
Despair swept over Jack. Suddenly the sound of a winch lowering the boat changed and a red light came on in the control panel. Jack looked at the winch in a panic. Having lost tension, the target became confused. The winch stopped, and the boat, no longer descending into the water, hovered in the air.
Jack suddenly lost his escape route. And it didn’t seem like a miracle could happen. These are just illusions – a bitter thought hit Jack. In fact, fate cannot be changed, and without exception, people should live life following this.
Criminals live as criminals, and die as criminals. And this time he will not be an exception, nothing special.
Jack prepared to die. Then he remembered those moments when he lived as a normal person.
Being a criminal, even for a little bit, he was able to feel like a man, and this happened thanks to Sylvia... surprisingly, he was grateful to these two girls with the same name. And then he recalled in his mind the short time that he spent with them. And suddenly, for no reason, a bright silver light pierced his memories. The pistol bullet, the object that fell out of the chamber – the only cartridge left... And despite the fact that there was no blinding light, Jack clearly saw it. Returning to his current situation, he held on to a pole on an even more inclined deck, so as not to slip down, he quickly fastened a long sleeve to the post, and then rolled up his sleeve on his second hand. He still squeezed the Glock and this was a kind of reunion with the weapon, the existence of which he completely forgot.
# 25 Miracle
Robert had been exhausted.
Initially, the laser radiation was supposed to last only a moment, but continued until all the energy was used up. Instead of a single shot, the Atlantic Ocean burned with a continuous line. Nothing to do about it. The silicon chip directing the laser was broken several years ago. Without a fuse, Robert, under the prolonged action of high temperature as a result of the strike, had heated up and gradually began to crack over the entire area where the heat accumulated. The gyroscope responsible for stabilizing the position was deformed, and the displacement began from orbit. But the biggest problem was the laser power supply. A huge amount of energy was spent firing in order to provide it continuously; a virtually reduced nuclear reactor was installed on Robert. Due to the high temperature, all the coolant dried out at once, bringing the state of the core closer to melting. Inside Robert there was a warning system for such cases, but the system itself could not do anything except to observe and there was no one who could control them.
Finally, Robert displaced from orbit and the core reached a critical state. Emitting light into the soundless space, there was a small nuclear explosion, and Robert disappeared.
Initially, the laser radiation was supposed to last only a moment, but continued until all the energy was used up. Instead of a single shot, the Atlantic Ocean burned with a continuous line. Nothing to do about it. The silicon chip directing the laser was broken several years ago. Without a fuse, Robert, under the prolonged action of high temperature as a result of the strike, had heated up and gradually began to crack over the entire area where the heat accumulated. The gyroscope responsible for stabilizing the position was deformed, and the displacement began from orbit. But the biggest problem was the laser power supply. A huge amount of energy was spent firing in order to provide it continuously; a virtually reduced nuclear reactor was installed on Robert. Due to the high temperature, all the coolant dried out at once, bringing the state of the core closer to melting. Inside Robert there was a warning system for such cases, but the system itself could not do anything except to observe and there was no one who could control them.
Finally, Robert displaced from orbit and the core reached a critical state. Emitting light into the soundless space, there was a small nuclear explosion, and Robert disappeared.
# 26 Miracle
A flash of light illuminated the stormy sky for just a moment. Jack understood what had happened. The body of the liner tilted strongly and even just staying up right was difficult. Jack tied the straitjacket sleeve to the post. Meanwhile, not paying attention to the angle of the deck, the Form was slowly approaching him. Jack raised the Glock and set his sights on the Form. The Form, was curious about Jack’s actions, and shouted:
“Jack! With your brains! I can’t believe it, you don’t think I can be defeated with such a weapon!”
“You gave it to me and said that I can use it as I want! Well I am doing that!” answered Jack.
The Form laughed:
“Jack! You are the best! How wonderful that I met you! Awesome!”
Suddenly, the liner swayed and tilted to an even greater angle. Jack slipped and crashed to the floor. Fortunately, the sleeve tied to the pillar did not let go.
Miraculously, not dropping the Glock, Jack continued to hold it tightly in his hands. The Form, meanwhile, transformed its hands into huge sharp claws, and stuck them into the wooden floor, as he held on to the steep surface. Then he began to move again, alternately sticking his claws into the floor in front of him and pulling himself along.
Jack redirected the gun barrel. Taking aim, he strained his finger lying on the trigger – the last challenge was clear. He no longer relied on a miracle. And he didn’t think he could win, the Form was right. But he did not want to retreat until there was at least no other way. Why was that? There were no witnesses to his position who could understand what drives him. He himself thought that there was no one better to know than himself. What really drove him, he was able to realize only now. It was anger at his former self. Born in a locker room, brought up as a criminal and only so sure that his path will be the same as that of others, Jack continued to go with the flow, but now for the first time he resisted.
Despite the fact that he, having received a chance for correction from his beloved Sylvia, missed his window and came up with an excuse about fate, for the first time he firmly decided not to use excuses. Now he no longer believed in miracles or fate. He believed in only one thing – in completely self-seeing. From birth, he first trusted himself and first decided to act on his own.
Naturally, in such enthusiasm, Jack did not see the wonderful light. And did not notice that the light on the winch control panel was off. And even if he would have noticed, he would hardly have understood that this meant the wonderful light had already descended here. And despite the fact that this was in sight, his eyes were occupied only by the impending Form.
And then the Form stopped.
Looks like it could not pull out a stuck claw.
It shook the sharp part of the claw with all his might, trying to extract it. Suddenly, something strange happened. The Form raised a hand, but the claw still remained stuck in the floor. The Form surprised Jack who continued to watch what was happening with interest. The Form’s arm from the elbow was trapped. At this very moment, he lost his balance and hung on one claw, hanging in the air on the almost vertical surface of the deck. Surprisingly, now his pose was the same as that of Jack.
“Idiot! Hell! Perfect... wonderful body! How could this happen!” unable to resist the Form cursed itself.
Meanwhile, the skin in different places began to twitch, and milk-colored scales began to fall like leaves from trees, exposing muscles, and as a result, the latter, unable to withstand the forces of attraction, began to fall away after the scales.
If the lieutenant was alive and was nearby, perhaps she would have told Jack about this mysterious phenomenon.
The truth was that the release of “electromagnetic radiation” provoked by the nuclear explosion of Robert. Together with a flash of light during the explosion, electromagnetic radiation at light speed filled the area around and engulfed upon Liberty. It was subjected to electronic equipment, including a winch control panel connected to the network. From this, a short circuit occurred in the simple microcircuits and system built into the control panel, and the remote control broke. A gene-sized semiconductor was not an exception – an important DNA control mechanism of Form – Green Light, as well as a Nano processor, radiation affected them too. The processor, having lost the function of sending commands, the viral component – Red Light, which initially performed a physiological function, following it – began to absorb the host organism.
Gradually, the body before him of this undaunted Form changed. It swelled like a balloon to such an extent that as soon as it was pierced with a needle, it would burst.
But despite the changes, the Form turned to Jack and shouted:
“In my hands is a miracle! I will change my fate!”
Jack, on the contrary, was calm, without saying a word he calmly aimed the Glock’s sight between the eyes of the Form. The last words of the Form surfaced in his head when he was still a man. As if answering his remark:
“I will change my fate...”, Jack repeated to the Form, “You are right, your fate will change.”
And he pulled the trigger. The powder charge in a single cartridge ignited, and together with the explosion, the cartridge was divided into two parts. The shutter automatically moved back, releasing the shell, and the bullet, moving at high speed along the bore, flew out. Rotating in flight, under the influence of pressure, it moved straight, dissecting air in front of it, only to plunge into darkness, landing between the eyes of the Form.
The balloon burst. The form exploded, pieces of flesh scattered to the sides. All that remained was a fragment of an arm with a knife-sharp claw that stuck out of the floor.
Jack watched the last minutes of the Form’s life, then turned his gaze to the smoke flowing from the barrel.
There was only one thought in Jack’s head, “It’s over.”
And although he defeated Form, now it was all the same.
If this was a miracle, that most likely it didn’t matter to him. He did not even think about what would happen next. To escape from the liner there was no longer any way or need. In any case, it was over.
Finally he raised his head and looked around, and saw beautiful sunlight breaking through the clouds. The storm suddenly died down.
Continuing to hang on the deck of a sinking liner, Jack admired the sun’s rays, which flooded the surface of the ocean with light. At that moment he saw the obscure face of the girl, whom he had already seen somewhere before. A familiar face, beautiful as a goddess – most likely he met her in New York. It seemed that it belonged to the girl whom Jack saw every day – it was the face of Sylvia. Jack felt how much he missed her.
Then he silently closed his eyes to remember what she really looked like. Without even trying to do anything, surrounded by bright sunlight, he closed his eyes as if he was going to sleep.
After some time, Jack’s body, along with Liberty, disappeared into the waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
“Jack! With your brains! I can’t believe it, you don’t think I can be defeated with such a weapon!”
“You gave it to me and said that I can use it as I want! Well I am doing that!” answered Jack.
The Form laughed:
“Jack! You are the best! How wonderful that I met you! Awesome!”
Suddenly, the liner swayed and tilted to an even greater angle. Jack slipped and crashed to the floor. Fortunately, the sleeve tied to the pillar did not let go.
Miraculously, not dropping the Glock, Jack continued to hold it tightly in his hands. The Form, meanwhile, transformed its hands into huge sharp claws, and stuck them into the wooden floor, as he held on to the steep surface. Then he began to move again, alternately sticking his claws into the floor in front of him and pulling himself along.
Jack redirected the gun barrel. Taking aim, he strained his finger lying on the trigger – the last challenge was clear. He no longer relied on a miracle. And he didn’t think he could win, the Form was right. But he did not want to retreat until there was at least no other way. Why was that? There were no witnesses to his position who could understand what drives him. He himself thought that there was no one better to know than himself. What really drove him, he was able to realize only now. It was anger at his former self. Born in a locker room, brought up as a criminal and only so sure that his path will be the same as that of others, Jack continued to go with the flow, but now for the first time he resisted.
Despite the fact that he, having received a chance for correction from his beloved Sylvia, missed his window and came up with an excuse about fate, for the first time he firmly decided not to use excuses. Now he no longer believed in miracles or fate. He believed in only one thing – in completely self-seeing. From birth, he first trusted himself and first decided to act on his own.
Naturally, in such enthusiasm, Jack did not see the wonderful light. And did not notice that the light on the winch control panel was off. And even if he would have noticed, he would hardly have understood that this meant the wonderful light had already descended here. And despite the fact that this was in sight, his eyes were occupied only by the impending Form.
And then the Form stopped.
Looks like it could not pull out a stuck claw.
It shook the sharp part of the claw with all his might, trying to extract it. Suddenly, something strange happened. The Form raised a hand, but the claw still remained stuck in the floor. The Form surprised Jack who continued to watch what was happening with interest. The Form’s arm from the elbow was trapped. At this very moment, he lost his balance and hung on one claw, hanging in the air on the almost vertical surface of the deck. Surprisingly, now his pose was the same as that of Jack.
“Idiot! Hell! Perfect... wonderful body! How could this happen!” unable to resist the Form cursed itself.
Meanwhile, the skin in different places began to twitch, and milk-colored scales began to fall like leaves from trees, exposing muscles, and as a result, the latter, unable to withstand the forces of attraction, began to fall away after the scales.
If the lieutenant was alive and was nearby, perhaps she would have told Jack about this mysterious phenomenon.
The truth was that the release of “electromagnetic radiation” provoked by the nuclear explosion of Robert. Together with a flash of light during the explosion, electromagnetic radiation at light speed filled the area around and engulfed upon Liberty. It was subjected to electronic equipment, including a winch control panel connected to the network. From this, a short circuit occurred in the simple microcircuits and system built into the control panel, and the remote control broke. A gene-sized semiconductor was not an exception – an important DNA control mechanism of Form – Green Light, as well as a Nano processor, radiation affected them too. The processor, having lost the function of sending commands, the viral component – Red Light, which initially performed a physiological function, following it – began to absorb the host organism.
Gradually, the body before him of this undaunted Form changed. It swelled like a balloon to such an extent that as soon as it was pierced with a needle, it would burst.
But despite the changes, the Form turned to Jack and shouted:
“In my hands is a miracle! I will change my fate!”
Jack, on the contrary, was calm, without saying a word he calmly aimed the Glock’s sight between the eyes of the Form. The last words of the Form surfaced in his head when he was still a man. As if answering his remark:
“I will change my fate...”, Jack repeated to the Form, “You are right, your fate will change.”
And he pulled the trigger. The powder charge in a single cartridge ignited, and together with the explosion, the cartridge was divided into two parts. The shutter automatically moved back, releasing the shell, and the bullet, moving at high speed along the bore, flew out. Rotating in flight, under the influence of pressure, it moved straight, dissecting air in front of it, only to plunge into darkness, landing between the eyes of the Form.
The balloon burst. The form exploded, pieces of flesh scattered to the sides. All that remained was a fragment of an arm with a knife-sharp claw that stuck out of the floor.
Jack watched the last minutes of the Form’s life, then turned his gaze to the smoke flowing from the barrel.
There was only one thought in Jack’s head, “It’s over.”
And although he defeated Form, now it was all the same.
If this was a miracle, that most likely it didn’t matter to him. He did not even think about what would happen next. To escape from the liner there was no longer any way or need. In any case, it was over.
Finally he raised his head and looked around, and saw beautiful sunlight breaking through the clouds. The storm suddenly died down.
Continuing to hang on the deck of a sinking liner, Jack admired the sun’s rays, which flooded the surface of the ocean with light. At that moment he saw the obscure face of the girl, whom he had already seen somewhere before. A familiar face, beautiful as a goddess – most likely he met her in New York. It seemed that it belonged to the girl whom Jack saw every day – it was the face of Sylvia. Jack felt how much he missed her.
Then he silently closed his eyes to remember what she really looked like. Without even trying to do anything, surrounded by bright sunlight, he closed his eyes as if he was going to sleep.
After some time, Jack’s body, along with Liberty, disappeared into the waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
# 27 Goddess
Jack did not know his parents at all. Therefore, he had no idea what a family was. He also believed that in his entire life he would not have the opportunity to experience one. But one fine day the chance suddenly came:
“I think I’m pregnant.”
When Sylvia said these words, they did not reach Jack in the slightest. He expressed neither joy nor disappointment, but only confusion. No matter how deprived Jack was of family experience, even he understood that the birth of a child required money. He was not going to leave Sylvia due to pregnancy, and now he needed money for their lives, including a child. Due to this change, he needed to leave his usual work with a small salary.
We needed a lot of money.
At the very moment when this thought came to him, one of his work colleagues just introduced Jack to a man.
This man was called a book keeper, from one source a request was received to do work for which Jack’s skills were required.
It was a simple job, and Jack thought that he probably would need to open a safe again, but he was only asked for advice on how to fake bank accounts. This bank was probably the place of his (the book keeper’s) work, and he hired Jack through intermediaries of a so-called source to steal cash or securities from the vault. And then following Jack’s advice on the computer. The source said that he was prepared to offer an exceptional reward. The risk was minimal, and there was no need to get your hands dirty, and Jack easily accepted.
But from that moment everything went downhill. The man turned out to be not a bank employee at all, but the US Federal Reserve Bank turned out to be a civil servant. This man took a dozen bars of pure gold, Jack could not even imagine how huge the amount was.
A few days later the falsification of the records was discovered, the man died right before the arrest in an accident, so the location of the ingots remained unknown.
As a result, Jack received no reward from the source, and the persecution from the government, he had to take advantage of the shelter prepared by his long-time colleague. Without saying anything to Sylvia, he boarded a plane to England. At the address in London indicated by a colleague, it turned out to be a cheap apartment in which a woman already lived, for Jack it was not the most comfortable apartment.
With each repeated day all his thoughts were only about Sylvia. He really wanted to tell her that he still loved her. And he continued to wait for the day when the hype
around the robbery settled down. But then Jack got involved in another crime involving a journalist.
“I will wait for you...”
He remembered the last words exchanged with Sylvia. They were uttered at the moment when he told her he was leaving for a short time so as not to cause alarm, but in fact he was leaving his house in New York for the last time. Naturally he would return if he could but not for a long time. Nevertheless, these words were spoken to him. She did not know where they would go from here, but she did know “I will wait for you” – of course, she is still in New York, and is probably still waiting for my return. Since then, much time has passed. Perhaps now my son, no, probably, daughter was already born. Good. Still, I defeated the monster. My family is no longer in danger. For the first time, Jack came to the realization that he had a family and having defeated the Form, he saved the child in whom his blood flowed, he experienced great joy. And finally he opened his eyes for what felt like the first time.
It was the cabin of a ship.
Is this paradise? Or is he going on a ship to heaven, or maybe even to hell? In any case, I’m still on the ship. This thought visited Jack.
A little later, the door to the cabin opened, and a young angel in white clothes with short sleeves entered. An angel, meeting Jack’s eyes, they looked surprised, in a hurry, they closed the door. After a while, an approaching voice rang out through the open door in the corridor:
“He’s awake! The ripper came to his senses!”
“We are already entering the port! Why can’t you handle it yourself!”
“This is Jack the Ripper, who now lies on the bed!”
“He is tied down! Afraid he might bite? You seem to have watched too many movies!”
Jack glanced around at the bed on which he had been laid. Indeed, his body was tied to the bed with several straps. It was not paradise, and the young man who came in just now was clearly not an angel. As soon as Jack understood, the young man returned to the cabin and there was another man with him, it seems he was his boss. This other man was wearing a uniform. Jack looked at the letters embroidered on it.
“U.S. COAST GUARD”(United States Coast Guard)
He was aboard a coast guard boat. And Jack realized that he had managed to survive. On the man’s uniform was a metal badge with the emblem in the form of two snakes wrapping a rod around it. Looks like he was a medic.
The man in uniform turned to the young man and said:
“I’ll deal with it myself. You go to the bridge and tell the commander that the Ripper came to his senses.”
His subordinate with joy immediately left the cabin. The man in uniform sighed gloomily. Then he pulled out a flashlight pen from his breast pocket, went up to Jack, lifted his eyelid and shone the light into his eye. Unable to withstand that bright light, Jack turned away. The man turned off the flashlight and grinned:
“Clearly, you are conscious.”
“How did I survive?” asked Jack. The man grinned again at these words.
“How... you tied the sleeves of his clothes to a broken wooden pole, right? So that you could stay afloat.”
Jack then remembered tying his sleeve to the pillar. So he would not slide down the banked deck, he had to attach himself to a strong steel pole, which serves as a support for deck overlapping. He tried to restore this moment in his memory, then he did everything to remember what happened next but the details were gone.
The man continued:
“It seems that something very serious happened in the ocean, the Navy searched the entire territory. Because of what happened, a reconnaissance plane was sent, which discovered the wreckage of a sunken cruise ship, and with it you, and then a cruiser approached you. As soon as they realized that they had taken the Ripper on board, you were handed over to us, we were patrolling nearby. Our colleagues on the cruiser said that they needed to explore the rest of the territory, and we turned and dragged into the port.”
“The girl...” Jack remembered.
“What?”
“ Did you find a little girl?”
“Girl... ah, are you talking about the one on the lifeboat? She sent a distress signal. The same Navy cruiser picked her up safe and sound, a long time ago. The ship of our colleagues arrived first, it was already sent ashore.”
Jack was relieved. He was grateful for saving Sylvia more than his own life. His gratitude was intended neither to the Navy, nor to the coast guard, and not even to God. If what had happened was a real miracle, then all of it would be known to God only. However, she really deserved those who sacrificed themselves to save Sylvia – Lopez and Lieutenant Kah. Also, the fact that he became a normal person was to their merit. About how to relate to the surviving Jack, it became clear by the way the man called him “Ripper”. Nevertheless, he was seized with a sense of genuine pride in the fact that he acted as a real hero, saved both Sylvia, his child, whom he had never seen, and New York, even if no one knew about it.
If he could not marry Sylvia or see his child, it was enough for him to know that they were not in danger.
“Then stopped patrolling and for your sake we specially returned to the shore. We’ll get to the port soon. Then we will transfer you to the authorities and that’s all. Now you need to prepare, so I’ll leave you. Until the docking is complete, you can lie down here. I urge you not to run away.”
Grinning at his own joke, the man turned to the exit and left the cabin.
Jack asked afterwards:
“On whose shore are we landing?”
“Obviously the United States of America.”
The man pointed to the only porthole in the cabin and left. Looking there, Jack saw a woman’s face turned in his direction – the same one that he had seen before losing consciousness on the Liberty. It became clear that the face of the goddess, who he had dreamed of, did not belong to Sylvia, but to the real goddess. And no doubt it was a familiar face. With that thought, in response to her light smile, Jack smiled with her.
The goddess of freedom, stood in its usual place, and today, as always, she sent her smile to the prosperous three-million New Yorkers.
“I think I’m pregnant.”
When Sylvia said these words, they did not reach Jack in the slightest. He expressed neither joy nor disappointment, but only confusion. No matter how deprived Jack was of family experience, even he understood that the birth of a child required money. He was not going to leave Sylvia due to pregnancy, and now he needed money for their lives, including a child. Due to this change, he needed to leave his usual work with a small salary.
We needed a lot of money.
At the very moment when this thought came to him, one of his work colleagues just introduced Jack to a man.
This man was called a book keeper, from one source a request was received to do work for which Jack’s skills were required.
It was a simple job, and Jack thought that he probably would need to open a safe again, but he was only asked for advice on how to fake bank accounts. This bank was probably the place of his (the book keeper’s) work, and he hired Jack through intermediaries of a so-called source to steal cash or securities from the vault. And then following Jack’s advice on the computer. The source said that he was prepared to offer an exceptional reward. The risk was minimal, and there was no need to get your hands dirty, and Jack easily accepted.
But from that moment everything went downhill. The man turned out to be not a bank employee at all, but the US Federal Reserve Bank turned out to be a civil servant. This man took a dozen bars of pure gold, Jack could not even imagine how huge the amount was.
A few days later the falsification of the records was discovered, the man died right before the arrest in an accident, so the location of the ingots remained unknown.
As a result, Jack received no reward from the source, and the persecution from the government, he had to take advantage of the shelter prepared by his long-time colleague. Without saying anything to Sylvia, he boarded a plane to England. At the address in London indicated by a colleague, it turned out to be a cheap apartment in which a woman already lived, for Jack it was not the most comfortable apartment.
With each repeated day all his thoughts were only about Sylvia. He really wanted to tell her that he still loved her. And he continued to wait for the day when the hype
around the robbery settled down. But then Jack got involved in another crime involving a journalist.
“I will wait for you...”
He remembered the last words exchanged with Sylvia. They were uttered at the moment when he told her he was leaving for a short time so as not to cause alarm, but in fact he was leaving his house in New York for the last time. Naturally he would return if he could but not for a long time. Nevertheless, these words were spoken to him. She did not know where they would go from here, but she did know “I will wait for you” – of course, she is still in New York, and is probably still waiting for my return. Since then, much time has passed. Perhaps now my son, no, probably, daughter was already born. Good. Still, I defeated the monster. My family is no longer in danger. For the first time, Jack came to the realization that he had a family and having defeated the Form, he saved the child in whom his blood flowed, he experienced great joy. And finally he opened his eyes for what felt like the first time.
It was the cabin of a ship.
Is this paradise? Or is he going on a ship to heaven, or maybe even to hell? In any case, I’m still on the ship. This thought visited Jack.
A little later, the door to the cabin opened, and a young angel in white clothes with short sleeves entered. An angel, meeting Jack’s eyes, they looked surprised, in a hurry, they closed the door. After a while, an approaching voice rang out through the open door in the corridor:
“He’s awake! The ripper came to his senses!”
“We are already entering the port! Why can’t you handle it yourself!”
“This is Jack the Ripper, who now lies on the bed!”
“He is tied down! Afraid he might bite? You seem to have watched too many movies!”
Jack glanced around at the bed on which he had been laid. Indeed, his body was tied to the bed with several straps. It was not paradise, and the young man who came in just now was clearly not an angel. As soon as Jack understood, the young man returned to the cabin and there was another man with him, it seems he was his boss. This other man was wearing a uniform. Jack looked at the letters embroidered on it.
“U.S. COAST GUARD”(United States Coast Guard)
He was aboard a coast guard boat. And Jack realized that he had managed to survive. On the man’s uniform was a metal badge with the emblem in the form of two snakes wrapping a rod around it. Looks like he was a medic.
The man in uniform turned to the young man and said:
“I’ll deal with it myself. You go to the bridge and tell the commander that the Ripper came to his senses.”
His subordinate with joy immediately left the cabin. The man in uniform sighed gloomily. Then he pulled out a flashlight pen from his breast pocket, went up to Jack, lifted his eyelid and shone the light into his eye. Unable to withstand that bright light, Jack turned away. The man turned off the flashlight and grinned:
“Clearly, you are conscious.”
“How did I survive?” asked Jack. The man grinned again at these words.
“How... you tied the sleeves of his clothes to a broken wooden pole, right? So that you could stay afloat.”
Jack then remembered tying his sleeve to the pillar. So he would not slide down the banked deck, he had to attach himself to a strong steel pole, which serves as a support for deck overlapping. He tried to restore this moment in his memory, then he did everything to remember what happened next but the details were gone.
The man continued:
“It seems that something very serious happened in the ocean, the Navy searched the entire territory. Because of what happened, a reconnaissance plane was sent, which discovered the wreckage of a sunken cruise ship, and with it you, and then a cruiser approached you. As soon as they realized that they had taken the Ripper on board, you were handed over to us, we were patrolling nearby. Our colleagues on the cruiser said that they needed to explore the rest of the territory, and we turned and dragged into the port.”
“The girl...” Jack remembered.
“What?”
“ Did you find a little girl?”
“Girl... ah, are you talking about the one on the lifeboat? She sent a distress signal. The same Navy cruiser picked her up safe and sound, a long time ago. The ship of our colleagues arrived first, it was already sent ashore.”
Jack was relieved. He was grateful for saving Sylvia more than his own life. His gratitude was intended neither to the Navy, nor to the coast guard, and not even to God. If what had happened was a real miracle, then all of it would be known to God only. However, she really deserved those who sacrificed themselves to save Sylvia – Lopez and Lieutenant Kah. Also, the fact that he became a normal person was to their merit. About how to relate to the surviving Jack, it became clear by the way the man called him “Ripper”. Nevertheless, he was seized with a sense of genuine pride in the fact that he acted as a real hero, saved both Sylvia, his child, whom he had never seen, and New York, even if no one knew about it.
If he could not marry Sylvia or see his child, it was enough for him to know that they were not in danger.
“Then stopped patrolling and for your sake we specially returned to the shore. We’ll get to the port soon. Then we will transfer you to the authorities and that’s all. Now you need to prepare, so I’ll leave you. Until the docking is complete, you can lie down here. I urge you not to run away.”
Grinning at his own joke, the man turned to the exit and left the cabin.
Jack asked afterwards:
“On whose shore are we landing?”
“Obviously the United States of America.”
The man pointed to the only porthole in the cabin and left. Looking there, Jack saw a woman’s face turned in his direction – the same one that he had seen before losing consciousness on the Liberty. It became clear that the face of the goddess, who he had dreamed of, did not belong to Sylvia, but to the real goddess. And no doubt it was a familiar face. With that thought, in response to her light smile, Jack smiled with her.
The goddess of freedom, stood in its usual place, and today, as always, she sent her smile to the prosperous three-million New Yorkers.
# 28 A true miracle
A lot of people gathered at the port.
These were mainly fishermen and their families, a local policeman mixed in with them. People were seething at a fishing boat arriving from a port town in Massachusetts, which fell into a storm while fishing. Fishermen were greeted as heroes. Despite the storm that had fallen when it was impossible to fish, this handful of people was able to catch tuna so much that they clogged the storage for catch up to the eyeballs. When they went ashore, people, rejoicing that the brave fishermen returned unscathed, greeted them with applause and rushed to hug. A policeman from the crowd, found the captain and ran to him:
“Captain, welcome back! You managed to get back!”
“Oh officer. Just a miracle. All thanks to the prayers of our loved ones.”
“By the way, on radio communications, you were talking about some man.”
“Brazilian?”
“Yes him. You accidentally picked him up during a storm, right?”
The captain sighed heavily and shook his head.
“He got caught in the nets, he was caught along with tuna.”
Then the captain pointed to the ship. The policeman looked in that direction and saw a man descending to the shore, who in no way looked like a fisherman. It was Lopez. He survived. But the object of his pride, his black hair was randomly torn, his hands cut with large hooks for tuna fishing were bandaged unevenly, he barely stood on his feet and his face was tired.
The policeman approached Lopez:
“English, understand?”
Lopez looked at him with empty eyes:
“Understand.”
The policeman sighed in relief.
“Good. Now I will contact the immigration service, do not worry. Do not worry. I do not know how you have it there in Brazil, but believe me, America is also a beautiful country.”
Immediately Lopez gathered the rest of his strength and grumbled to the policeman:
“US Marshals Service, Jose Lopez. American. I don’t know anything about Brazil either. Parents are from Puerto Rico. Myself I’m from Chicago, Bulls fan. The fishermen have said the same thing several times already.”
The officer grinned:
“Lying is bad. I was informed about this during a radio connection, so I contacted Washington. Can a civil servant be dressed in such rags? In addition, America does not have a baseball team called the Bulls. If you insist on your words, show your ID.”
A policeman showed Lopez his badge on his chest.
Lopez darkened and answered:
“I dropped it in the ocean.”
At that moment, two black vans, entered the port territory. Broad-shouldered men, unlike fishermen, came out of them. The last to unload the oldest man, heading the group, squeezed among the people and approached Lopez:
“Hey officer, could you take those people away from here?” said the old man, squeezed among the crowd.
“You can’t go through here, what is going on?”
Finally, the man got to Lopez and took a breath. The policeman portrayed with bewilderment on his face staring at the man.
“Who are you?”
The man pulled an ID from his jacket pocket. The same as the one Lopez lost – the ID of the service of the marshals.
Lopez greeted the man:
“Got away unscathed, boss.”
“Did you catch the Ripper?”
“He... And what about Liberty?
“Sank. Two survivors. Among them are Jack Trump. He should have been delivered to New York on a coast guard patrol boat. Another marshal went after him.”
“And one more survivor?”
“A little girl, they found on a lifeboat. She is also safe and sound.”
This is Sylvia. Jack kept his promise. Thinking about this, Lopez smiled with all his strength.
The policeman stared at him, stunned.
“So you’re not a stowaway passenger?”
The man whom Lopez called the boss replied:
“I’m sorry, this is my subordinate.”
Then he turned to Lopez and said:
“In such cases, first show your ID, how many times did I have to ask?”
Lopez frowned again.
The officer released Lopez, and he, surrounded by his colleagues, headed for the van.
“Now I need to put things in order in my head...” muttered Lopez. “Boss, when we get to the car, give me something for styling. I want to fix my hair. None of them had hair gel.” Lopez pointed to the fishermen. “Poor little ship. When I felt sick, they didn’t even have a pill for motion sickness. I asked for a handkerchief, they said wipe it with your sleeve... damn why did Jack get a patrol boat, and I’m on this vessel.”
Lopez pulled a handkerchief from a pocket wrapped in a plastic bag.
“In this bag was a small fish for bait. There was nothing else.”
The man called the boss looked at the handkerchief and said:
“But you have one.”
“I could not use it. This is evidence. We will return to Washington and check.”
It was the handkerchief that Lopez took from a journalist at the beginning of his trip to Liberty. Now Lopez understood why the Englishman was nervous. Lopez noticed that there was a small stain of blood on the handkerchief. If Jack was telling the truth, a DNA test will show that it is the blood of some of the victims. And if so... Lopez mused, looking at the handkerchief in the bag.
Even with a good deal, it is not enough that this one piece of evidence will help prove innocence. And even if Jack was acquitted in England, he still had an accusation of crimes committed here in America. After the removal of the charges, he will be free, but most likely he will be despised for several more years, and possibly for decades. But the evidence in Lopez’s hands was no doubt a little hope for Jack. In a way, it was gratitude that he kept his promise and saved Sylvia. Lopez imagined how in the distant future he would accidentally meet again with Jack somewhere. Perhaps in a basketball stadium. Probably, it will be the decisive match of the Bulls for the championship title... so, wait, his opponent will be the Knicks? Do not say. By far, the Bulls are the strongest, and not the Knicks, no matter how many decades have passed, they will never be able to defeat them.
His thoughts ended with the fact that even in his imagination this is incredible, Lopez returned the bag with the handkerchief to his jacket pocket and wishing to put his hair in order as soon as possible and pulled out a comb, his mood improved as he approached the van.
These were mainly fishermen and their families, a local policeman mixed in with them. People were seething at a fishing boat arriving from a port town in Massachusetts, which fell into a storm while fishing. Fishermen were greeted as heroes. Despite the storm that had fallen when it was impossible to fish, this handful of people was able to catch tuna so much that they clogged the storage for catch up to the eyeballs. When they went ashore, people, rejoicing that the brave fishermen returned unscathed, greeted them with applause and rushed to hug. A policeman from the crowd, found the captain and ran to him:
“Captain, welcome back! You managed to get back!”
“Oh officer. Just a miracle. All thanks to the prayers of our loved ones.”
“By the way, on radio communications, you were talking about some man.”
“Brazilian?”
“Yes him. You accidentally picked him up during a storm, right?”
The captain sighed heavily and shook his head.
“He got caught in the nets, he was caught along with tuna.”
Then the captain pointed to the ship. The policeman looked in that direction and saw a man descending to the shore, who in no way looked like a fisherman. It was Lopez. He survived. But the object of his pride, his black hair was randomly torn, his hands cut with large hooks for tuna fishing were bandaged unevenly, he barely stood on his feet and his face was tired.
The policeman approached Lopez:
“English, understand?”
Lopez looked at him with empty eyes:
“Understand.”
The policeman sighed in relief.
“Good. Now I will contact the immigration service, do not worry. Do not worry. I do not know how you have it there in Brazil, but believe me, America is also a beautiful country.”
Immediately Lopez gathered the rest of his strength and grumbled to the policeman:
“US Marshals Service, Jose Lopez. American. I don’t know anything about Brazil either. Parents are from Puerto Rico. Myself I’m from Chicago, Bulls fan. The fishermen have said the same thing several times already.”
The officer grinned:
“Lying is bad. I was informed about this during a radio connection, so I contacted Washington. Can a civil servant be dressed in such rags? In addition, America does not have a baseball team called the Bulls. If you insist on your words, show your ID.”
A policeman showed Lopez his badge on his chest.
Lopez darkened and answered:
“I dropped it in the ocean.”
At that moment, two black vans, entered the port territory. Broad-shouldered men, unlike fishermen, came out of them. The last to unload the oldest man, heading the group, squeezed among the people and approached Lopez:
“Hey officer, could you take those people away from here?” said the old man, squeezed among the crowd.
“You can’t go through here, what is going on?”
Finally, the man got to Lopez and took a breath. The policeman portrayed with bewilderment on his face staring at the man.
“Who are you?”
The man pulled an ID from his jacket pocket. The same as the one Lopez lost – the ID of the service of the marshals.
Lopez greeted the man:
“Got away unscathed, boss.”
“Did you catch the Ripper?”
“He... And what about Liberty?
“Sank. Two survivors. Among them are Jack Trump. He should have been delivered to New York on a coast guard patrol boat. Another marshal went after him.”
“And one more survivor?”
“A little girl, they found on a lifeboat. She is also safe and sound.”
This is Sylvia. Jack kept his promise. Thinking about this, Lopez smiled with all his strength.
The policeman stared at him, stunned.
“So you’re not a stowaway passenger?”
The man whom Lopez called the boss replied:
“I’m sorry, this is my subordinate.”
Then he turned to Lopez and said:
“In such cases, first show your ID, how many times did I have to ask?”
Lopez frowned again.
The officer released Lopez, and he, surrounded by his colleagues, headed for the van.
“Now I need to put things in order in my head...” muttered Lopez. “Boss, when we get to the car, give me something for styling. I want to fix my hair. None of them had hair gel.” Lopez pointed to the fishermen. “Poor little ship. When I felt sick, they didn’t even have a pill for motion sickness. I asked for a handkerchief, they said wipe it with your sleeve... damn why did Jack get a patrol boat, and I’m on this vessel.”
Lopez pulled a handkerchief from a pocket wrapped in a plastic bag.
“In this bag was a small fish for bait. There was nothing else.”
The man called the boss looked at the handkerchief and said:
“But you have one.”
“I could not use it. This is evidence. We will return to Washington and check.”
It was the handkerchief that Lopez took from a journalist at the beginning of his trip to Liberty. Now Lopez understood why the Englishman was nervous. Lopez noticed that there was a small stain of blood on the handkerchief. If Jack was telling the truth, a DNA test will show that it is the blood of some of the victims. And if so... Lopez mused, looking at the handkerchief in the bag.
Even with a good deal, it is not enough that this one piece of evidence will help prove innocence. And even if Jack was acquitted in England, he still had an accusation of crimes committed here in America. After the removal of the charges, he will be free, but most likely he will be despised for several more years, and possibly for decades. But the evidence in Lopez’s hands was no doubt a little hope for Jack. In a way, it was gratitude that he kept his promise and saved Sylvia. Lopez imagined how in the distant future he would accidentally meet again with Jack somewhere. Perhaps in a basketball stadium. Probably, it will be the decisive match of the Bulls for the championship title... so, wait, his opponent will be the Knicks? Do not say. By far, the Bulls are the strongest, and not the Knicks, no matter how many decades have passed, they will never be able to defeat them.
His thoughts ended with the fact that even in his imagination this is incredible, Lopez returned the bag with the handkerchief to his jacket pocket and wishing to put his hair in order as soon as possible and pulled out a comb, his mood improved as he approached the van.
# 29 After decades
Decades later after what had happened.
What happened next to Jack or Lopez is not exactly known. But if you look in old newspapers or in archives, you can find out how their life turned out in the future. What is worth mentioning – a few months later, only in the case of the Reserve Bank, Jack seems to have had his charges dropped. “It seems” – that’s what was written, but the details were not confirmed anywhere. Judging by the newspapers, everything turned out so that there was no such robbery at all in a bank under state control. Probably because this case affected political interests and the image of the state.
It is not known whether the government or anyone else took advantage of Jack’s abilities to return to the United States, but if Jack will remain silent about this all his life, then there’s nothing to raise this topic.
Naturally, these were far from the miracles – that were intended.
In the end, everyone had to lead a normal life as much as one could imagine. A miracle that can change one’s life is a rare occurrence. Again, having received such an extreme experience, it was probably ordinary life that became their highest happiness.
However, little Sylvia is a different case. In the end, her condition improved, and she lived a few more decades until today. The reason is not clear, but it is likely that she will live a few more decades. Is this a miracle? No, this is impossible to say. Why? Almost all the events that they encountered from the very beginning of this story, their impressions of what they saw with their own eyes, are the result generated by human actions in those circumstances, therefore there was no need for divine intervention.
Then the miracle is still an illusion?
Decades ago, on the Liberty, Lopez said:
“My opinion is a little different, I think God exists. Only he does not have free time. And he works miracles very rarely. To tell you the truth, it never happened to me. First of all, if miracles are done often, they will lose their value. To preserve his dignity, God rarely performs miracles.”
What happened next to Jack or Lopez is not exactly known. But if you look in old newspapers or in archives, you can find out how their life turned out in the future. What is worth mentioning – a few months later, only in the case of the Reserve Bank, Jack seems to have had his charges dropped. “It seems” – that’s what was written, but the details were not confirmed anywhere. Judging by the newspapers, everything turned out so that there was no such robbery at all in a bank under state control. Probably because this case affected political interests and the image of the state.
It is not known whether the government or anyone else took advantage of Jack’s abilities to return to the United States, but if Jack will remain silent about this all his life, then there’s nothing to raise this topic.
Naturally, these were far from the miracles – that were intended.
In the end, everyone had to lead a normal life as much as one could imagine. A miracle that can change one’s life is a rare occurrence. Again, having received such an extreme experience, it was probably ordinary life that became their highest happiness.
However, little Sylvia is a different case. In the end, her condition improved, and she lived a few more decades until today. The reason is not clear, but it is likely that she will live a few more decades. Is this a miracle? No, this is impossible to say. Why? Almost all the events that they encountered from the very beginning of this story, their impressions of what they saw with their own eyes, are the result generated by human actions in those circumstances, therefore there was no need for divine intervention.
Then the miracle is still an illusion?
Decades ago, on the Liberty, Lopez said:
“My opinion is a little different, I think God exists. Only he does not have free time. And he works miracles very rarely. To tell you the truth, it never happened to me. First of all, if miracles are done often, they will lose their value. To preserve his dignity, God rarely performs miracles.”
# 30 At the beginning of this story
The hype around Liberty has subsided. In New York, in Manhattan, a man was standing in the pouring rain with a bright umbrella of white and red colors. In front of him was a building with the logo exactly like his umbrella, it belonged to the New York branch of the Umbrella Corporation.
A few minutes later, a woman dressed in a white overcoat appeared at the door of the main entrance. She dragged a heavy suitcase on wheels, the guard, who was on the side of the entrance, helped to overcome the heavy revolving door and finally the woman went outside. Approaching the man with an umbrella, she stopped and leaned forward, catching her breath. A badge of an employee of the Umbrella Corporation fell out of the breast pocket of her coat. The man took a plastic card from his jacket pocket and inserted it into the card reader attached to the lid of the suitcase. The color of the lock indicator has changed from red to green.
“Green Light...”
The woman raised her head, from the difference in body temperature and air temperature, her glasses were fogged up, but not paying attention to it, she looked intently into the man’s face and smiled.
“Finally, I met you, doctor!”
“Don’t call me doctor, you can just call me Robert.”
The man was the passenger of a private plane shot down over the Atlantic Ocean by an unknown fighter and considered dead – Robert Chen. His plane really was attacked, but Chen from the very beginning did not plan to fly in it.
The lid of the suitcase opened and Chen looked under it. Inside were ten-plus bars of gold stamped by the US Federal Reserve Bank. Having finished checking the contents of the suitcase, he closed the lid and said to the woman:
“Thanks for the work. It was probably a big expense?”
“No, the bookkeeper died in an accident. Before the payment of remuneration. I took a secretly developed medicine...”
“A dangerous woman. But this is what attracts me to you...” Chen smiled.
“It was planned from the very beginning, so we had nothing to do with it. Even if there is an investigation, there is no reason to worry. But I have to say that I have questions about one moment...”
“What exactly, is that.”
“It is not known where the man who helped the accountant went. It seems he gave advice on how to fake records, in his circle is known as a “code cracker”...”
“You haven’t met him? In this case, it is impossible to track his communication with us. Neither now nor later. It’s a little thing, never mind. We have the money.”
Chen patted the suitcase.
“Yes you are right.” The woman smiled. “But, doctor, what will you spend such a huge amount on?”
“Not doctor – Robert. With this amount, I can easily make Green Light without using Umbrella’s equipment. Because it is my development. And, of course, all the basic information is collected here.” Chen pointed to his head. “Together we will make huge profits by launching the C-virus on the market before launching mass production.” This will be the rebirth of Chen Industries. And if everything goes smoothly, maybe we will buy Umbrella?” – He nodded at the corporation logo.
The woman smiled. But then, as if remembering something important, she became serious again and asked Chen uneasily in her voice:
“But what about Red Light? All samples sent to the head office. We cannot develop it. Excuse me, but you can’t even make a virus, doctor, can you?”
Suddenly, the woman caught Chen’s piercing gaze. Her body trembled with fright. A couple of moments later, a slight smile returned to Chen’s face, he gently touched her face and said:
“Robert.”
The woman stopped trembling.
“Do not worry. It is here.” Robert removed his hands and pointed to his body infected with Red Light.
“Never mind. In any case, half of the work has already been done.”
Speaking of business, Chen naturally did not mean Liberty. He was here to finally fulfill the remaining second half of his plan.
It was just the beginning...
A few minutes later, a woman dressed in a white overcoat appeared at the door of the main entrance. She dragged a heavy suitcase on wheels, the guard, who was on the side of the entrance, helped to overcome the heavy revolving door and finally the woman went outside. Approaching the man with an umbrella, she stopped and leaned forward, catching her breath. A badge of an employee of the Umbrella Corporation fell out of the breast pocket of her coat. The man took a plastic card from his jacket pocket and inserted it into the card reader attached to the lid of the suitcase. The color of the lock indicator has changed from red to green.
“Green Light...”
The woman raised her head, from the difference in body temperature and air temperature, her glasses were fogged up, but not paying attention to it, she looked intently into the man’s face and smiled.
“Finally, I met you, doctor!”
“Don’t call me doctor, you can just call me Robert.”
The man was the passenger of a private plane shot down over the Atlantic Ocean by an unknown fighter and considered dead – Robert Chen. His plane really was attacked, but Chen from the very beginning did not plan to fly in it.
The lid of the suitcase opened and Chen looked under it. Inside were ten-plus bars of gold stamped by the US Federal Reserve Bank. Having finished checking the contents of the suitcase, he closed the lid and said to the woman:
“Thanks for the work. It was probably a big expense?”
“No, the bookkeeper died in an accident. Before the payment of remuneration. I took a secretly developed medicine...”
“A dangerous woman. But this is what attracts me to you...” Chen smiled.
“It was planned from the very beginning, so we had nothing to do with it. Even if there is an investigation, there is no reason to worry. But I have to say that I have questions about one moment...”
“What exactly, is that.”
“It is not known where the man who helped the accountant went. It seems he gave advice on how to fake records, in his circle is known as a “code cracker”...”
“You haven’t met him? In this case, it is impossible to track his communication with us. Neither now nor later. It’s a little thing, never mind. We have the money.”
Chen patted the suitcase.
“Yes you are right.” The woman smiled. “But, doctor, what will you spend such a huge amount on?”
“Not doctor – Robert. With this amount, I can easily make Green Light without using Umbrella’s equipment. Because it is my development. And, of course, all the basic information is collected here.” Chen pointed to his head. “Together we will make huge profits by launching the C-virus on the market before launching mass production.” This will be the rebirth of Chen Industries. And if everything goes smoothly, maybe we will buy Umbrella?” – He nodded at the corporation logo.
The woman smiled. But then, as if remembering something important, she became serious again and asked Chen uneasily in her voice:
“But what about Red Light? All samples sent to the head office. We cannot develop it. Excuse me, but you can’t even make a virus, doctor, can you?”
Suddenly, the woman caught Chen’s piercing gaze. Her body trembled with fright. A couple of moments later, a slight smile returned to Chen’s face, he gently touched her face and said:
“Robert.”
The woman stopped trembling.
“Do not worry. It is here.” Robert removed his hands and pointed to his body infected with Red Light.
“Never mind. In any case, half of the work has already been done.”
Speaking of business, Chen naturally did not mean Liberty. He was here to finally fulfill the remaining second half of his plan.
It was just the beginning...
THE END
# Explanations by Yukio Sekiguchi
I think that regular readers of Dengeki Bunko magazine have long been aware that the magazine has been working on the Dengeki Game Grand Prize in three categories since 1993 * and this has contributed to the discovery of new talents. Among the categories of the prize, every time general attention is paid to the “Grand Prize for the short story of the game” and, as everyone knows, the geography of the activities of each subsequent participant in the competition is gradually expanding.
A distinctive feature of this award is the creation of a new entertainment literature that goes beyond the established framework, in which the atmosphere of the game is the key. But at the same time, the complexity of going beyond the existing framework is also not easy to describe in words. And everyone will agree with me: not only beginners planning to become writers, but also already debuting as professionals, as well as editors and readers, who are the target audience of our magazine. And this is an indisputable fact. An extreme argument may be that the novel at the time of its inception in the form of prose was a novelty in demand. By the way, what does “new” mean in this case? Like this? When it comes to a specific format... the situation is such that there is no single answer to this question.
________________________________________________
* - comic, illustration, short story
For example, perhaps there is a problem of determining the genre. Or perhaps it is the novelty of the text and literary style. Also recently, novels in the so-called mixed media format that go beyond the accepted categories are often published on the Internet.
In any case, efforts to challenge the new, going beyond the established framework in some form, have led to a result. As part of this trend, the Video Game Novel Grand Price is also a project conceived as one experiment, but this time, the Biohazard Grand Prix Novel Grand Price is an extended award format organized by Dengeki Game Bunko.
To some extent, the set of works was aimed at updating the Biohazard series of games. Novelization of popular manga, series and films is not a rare occurrence. The same goes for games. However, the award dedicated to only one video game is extremely rare. Moreover, in the presented works, the story should not just be overseen, but it should be an original free and lively narrative preserving the feeling of the world of the game series, using the characters that appear in it.
Thus, in the selected works, despite the fact that the submission period was only six months, the total number of short and long stories actually approached five hundred. This is only why we were able to make sure that the stories about the Biohazard game are popular, but, besides this, we were surprised by the high quality of the submitted works. Despite the familiar names such as Raccoon City, Umbrella Corporation, T-virus ... and others, each work was a completely new story (I forgot to say, this time I happened to participate in the selection of works for the second prize) One and the same materials, and the plot component developed into worlds so unlike each other, surprising with their freshness, from each work we experienced unlike sensations. In addition, they combine qualities: they are good as a story, carefully following the atmosphere of the game in a good way - they do not let you get bored and keep the reader’s interest to the end.
Among the works nominated for the Grand Price, this novel “Biohazard to the Liberty” (when awarded the title was “Biohazard Statue of Liberty”), the success of which overshadowed the rest of the work, is especially notable.
The story begins in London from the time that Jack the Ripper, who was arrested on charges of the serial murder of women, was put on a Liberty airliner equipped with the latest technology to be sent to America. Responsible for escorting Jack - Lopez and Kulik from the Marshals of the United States of America. There are other passengers on the liner besides them, but this should not have become a problem. Because Jack was wearing a straitjacket and his movements were limited. In fact, since leaving London, Lopez and the others spent every day dying of boredom. At this time, a new young member of the board of directors at Umbrella Corporation presents his development - a new type of virus. Controlling the primary structure of the virus, a semiconductor the size of a DNA molecule, depending on the conditions laid down in the carrier, can quickly change shape and was a technical breakthrough - in simple terms, you can imagine something similar to the Terminator from the second part of the same film . A creature that can transform arms or legs into weapons, up to changing facial expressions.
However, the board of directors did not recognize this outstanding development completed and was going to abandon it. And then the virus developer, a young member of the board of directors, learning that there is a suitable candidate for testing on the Liberty, where they will secretly transport virus samples, and instructs his faithful subordinate to make an injection. This candidate was Jack the Ripper.
From this moment, an incredible story unfolds in an unexpected way. I myself plunged headlong into this story. In the limited space of the liner, the plot changed unpredictably several times. On top of that, striking, dynamic scenes went on, one after another. Surprisingly, I have not seen an interesting novel so rich in plot twists that is fascinating as a whole. I’ll reveal a secret, it seems that the same author was awarded the prize for the best screenplay dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the release of “Golgo 13” (in 1993). It’s clear where this splendor of the imagination comes from, probably from there? Be that as it may, I want to sincerely rejoice in the fact that the entertainment industry has again generated a strong novice writer. No, a truly amazing work, this short story.
February 2002
A distinctive feature of this award is the creation of a new entertainment literature that goes beyond the established framework, in which the atmosphere of the game is the key. But at the same time, the complexity of going beyond the existing framework is also not easy to describe in words. And everyone will agree with me: not only beginners planning to become writers, but also already debuting as professionals, as well as editors and readers, who are the target audience of our magazine. And this is an indisputable fact. An extreme argument may be that the novel at the time of its inception in the form of prose was a novelty in demand. By the way, what does “new” mean in this case? Like this? When it comes to a specific format... the situation is such that there is no single answer to this question.
________________________________________________
* - comic, illustration, short story
For example, perhaps there is a problem of determining the genre. Or perhaps it is the novelty of the text and literary style. Also recently, novels in the so-called mixed media format that go beyond the accepted categories are often published on the Internet.
In any case, efforts to challenge the new, going beyond the established framework in some form, have led to a result. As part of this trend, the Video Game Novel Grand Price is also a project conceived as one experiment, but this time, the Biohazard Grand Prix Novel Grand Price is an extended award format organized by Dengeki Game Bunko.
To some extent, the set of works was aimed at updating the Biohazard series of games. Novelization of popular manga, series and films is not a rare occurrence. The same goes for games. However, the award dedicated to only one video game is extremely rare. Moreover, in the presented works, the story should not just be overseen, but it should be an original free and lively narrative preserving the feeling of the world of the game series, using the characters that appear in it.
Thus, in the selected works, despite the fact that the submission period was only six months, the total number of short and long stories actually approached five hundred. This is only why we were able to make sure that the stories about the Biohazard game are popular, but, besides this, we were surprised by the high quality of the submitted works. Despite the familiar names such as Raccoon City, Umbrella Corporation, T-virus ... and others, each work was a completely new story (I forgot to say, this time I happened to participate in the selection of works for the second prize) One and the same materials, and the plot component developed into worlds so unlike each other, surprising with their freshness, from each work we experienced unlike sensations. In addition, they combine qualities: they are good as a story, carefully following the atmosphere of the game in a good way - they do not let you get bored and keep the reader’s interest to the end.
Among the works nominated for the Grand Price, this novel “Biohazard to the Liberty” (when awarded the title was “Biohazard Statue of Liberty”), the success of which overshadowed the rest of the work, is especially notable.
The story begins in London from the time that Jack the Ripper, who was arrested on charges of the serial murder of women, was put on a Liberty airliner equipped with the latest technology to be sent to America. Responsible for escorting Jack - Lopez and Kulik from the Marshals of the United States of America. There are other passengers on the liner besides them, but this should not have become a problem. Because Jack was wearing a straitjacket and his movements were limited. In fact, since leaving London, Lopez and the others spent every day dying of boredom. At this time, a new young member of the board of directors at Umbrella Corporation presents his development - a new type of virus. Controlling the primary structure of the virus, a semiconductor the size of a DNA molecule, depending on the conditions laid down in the carrier, can quickly change shape and was a technical breakthrough - in simple terms, you can imagine something similar to the Terminator from the second part of the same film . A creature that can transform arms or legs into weapons, up to changing facial expressions.
However, the board of directors did not recognize this outstanding development completed and was going to abandon it. And then the virus developer, a young member of the board of directors, learning that there is a suitable candidate for testing on the Liberty, where they will secretly transport virus samples, and instructs his faithful subordinate to make an injection. This candidate was Jack the Ripper.
From this moment, an incredible story unfolds in an unexpected way. I myself plunged headlong into this story. In the limited space of the liner, the plot changed unpredictably several times. On top of that, striking, dynamic scenes went on, one after another. Surprisingly, I have not seen an interesting novel so rich in plot twists that is fascinating as a whole. I’ll reveal a secret, it seems that the same author was awarded the prize for the best screenplay dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the release of “Golgo 13” (in 1993). It’s clear where this splendor of the imagination comes from, probably from there? Be that as it may, I want to sincerely rejoice in the fact that the entertainment industry has again generated a strong novice writer. No, a truly amazing work, this short story.
February 2002
Translation: Relive Team from Japanese to Russian
BSAArklay from Russian to English
Residentevillive.ru 2018-2019 year. BSAArklay 2020 (Translated) 2021 (Checked).
Special Thanks: ReenHearst for contributions as a Copy-editor.
BSAArklay from Russian to English
Residentevillive.ru 2018-2019 year. BSAArklay 2020 (Translated) 2021 (Checked).
Special Thanks: ReenHearst for contributions as a Copy-editor.