For several long minutes no one
spoke.
The only sounds inside the house
were the slow rotation of the ceiling fan and the controlled breathing of the
injured young woman.
Outside, the world continued to die.
Somewhere beyond the boarded
windows, a scream rose into the afternoon before fading into silence once more.
Trudy rested against the arm of the
sofa, her injured shoulder wrapped tightly in fresh bandages. Though the
bleeding had slowed, faint crimson continued to seep through the white cloth
and her breathing had eased considerably.
Dinah remained beside her, refusing
to leave even for a moment.
Near the window, Icarus watched the
empty street through the narrowest opening in the curtain.
Jon remained on one of the couches,
resting both forearms across his knees, staring at them intently. After a while,
his eyes wandered briefly toward Trudy.
Dinah noticed the look and lowered
her head.
"...Thank you." Her voice
was quiet.
Jon looked away and said nothing.
He had just saved the sister of the
girl who had shot the old professor.
Was it murder?
Or self-defense?
Even now… Jon couldn't answer.
Dinah noticed his conflicted gaze. No,
she had noticed it since the two entered the house.
"You knew him?" She asked.
Another silence settled over them.
Finally Jon broke it.
"I only recognize him... but I
don't know him."
"…Then?" Dinah tilted her head. Confusion
flashed across her face. Why was Jon reacting this way if he didn't even know
the old man?
"I…I killed his wife."
Dinah's eyes widened.
"So, that's why the house was in
such state when we entered." She murmured. Then rose her head to him.
"…Was she infected?"
Jon nodded in silence.
Dinah continued, "We thought...maybe it was gas." She gave a hollow
laugh that held no humor, "Or even terrorists, just something that felt normal
and reasonable."
She shook her head.
No ordinary explanations could describe what was currently occurring.
Everything had happened too suddenly for anyone to understand.
Dinah looked toward the front door.
"When we arrived the gate was
already open."
Jon looked down, listening.
Of course it was. They had left in a
hurry to dispose the body and return before anything happened. Neither of them—Jon
and Icarus— had thought about locking it behind them.
"We thought the house had been
abandoned. The front door was open. We searched downstairs and there wasn't
anyone."
She paused, shifted her gaze toward
the hallway.
"...Then he came."
The Professor. Jon didn't need to
ask.
"He came running from upstairs,
shouting."
"What did he say?" Jon
asked quietly.
Dinah closed her eyes for a moment. "He
wanted to know where his wife was."
Jon's stomach tightened.
She continued.
"He saw the traces of blood
spilled around and assumed that we'd killed her."
Jon understood from the Professor's
perspective. He would have believed exactly the same thing.
Dinah swallowed.
"I tried explaining, telling
him that we just arrived and didn't know anything about it, but he wouldn't
listen. He kept asking where she was."
Her voice grew softer.
"He grabbed the kitchen knife…
…and before I could react…
He stabbed Trudy."
Jon looked toward the bloodstain
still visible beneath the coffee table and toward the bandage around Trudy's
shoulder.
"I told him to stop. He didn't."
Her breathing grew uneven.
"I didn't know what to
do."
Her eyes drifted toward the pistol
resting quietly on the table.
"So..."
"...I shot him."
The room fell silent once more.
Jon's gaze settled on the handgun.
Until now, he hadn't gotten the chance to ask about it. Then he did.
"Where did you get the
pistol?"
Dinah followed his eyes. "...We
found it."
"Found it?"
She nodded.
"There was a security guard
near the engineering block who was already dead."
The words hung heavily inside the
room.
Jon frowned.
A security guard with a gun…and it
still hadn't been enough.
"I didn't even know whether it
worked."
She looked down at her trembling
hands.
"I just thought...If someone
attacked us...maybe..."
Trudy shifted slightly against the
sofa. The movement pulled at the bandage, making her wince.
Dinah immediately steadied her.
"I'm okay." Trudy muttered.
"I know." Dinah responded with a
faint smile.
Trudy turned her head and looked
toward Jon.
"...Thank you."
Jon eventually gave a small nod.
Trudy hesitated before speaking.
"...I'm Trudy."
She gently squeezed her sister's
hand.
"And she's my sister, Dinah."
"You're not from Palfic?"
Jon asked.
Dinah shook her head.
"No. We're from Roosell."
Jon nodded slowly.
One of the other universities.
The tri-university athletics meet
had brought all three campuses together. Students, lecturers, and officials
alike.
Just yesterday the stadium had been
overflowing with life.
Now he couldn't bear to imagine what
remained.
"I'm Jon."
He looked toward Icarus.
"And he is Icarus."
The young man near the window gave a
small nod without taking his eyes from the curtain.
Another silence settled over the
house.
…
"Do you think anyone's coming?"
Trudy asked.
Jon understood what she meant.
The police, military, emergency
services or just anyone.
Before he could answer...
Icarus spoke quietly.
"No."
Everyone turned toward him. He
didn't look away from the window.
"If the university looks like
this, the city will be worse."
His voice remained calm, almost too
calm.
"And if the city is worse...then
help won't reach us."
No one argued because deep inside, they
had all begun realizing the same thing. The rescue they were waiting for might
never come.
They were strangers.
Yet in that silent room, grief
sounded the same in every heart.
Outside...
Another scream echoed across the
neighborhood. This one lasted longer then stopped abruptly.
Following a long silence.
Jon slowly leaned his head back
against the couch.
"We've all seen different
things."
He looked around the room and three pairs of eyes turned toward him.
"But they're connected. Everyone felt the same pain from that silver
light." He frowned. "There has to be
something tying all of it together. There has to be something connecting all of
this. A clue.
Something we've overlooked."
For the first time since sitting
down, Icarus turned away from the window.
His eyes drifted toward the small silver
book resting beside Jon. Then toward the identical books lying near Dinah and
Trudy.
Finally at the one tucked beneath
his own arm.
His expression became thoughtful.
"...There is."
Jon followed his gaze.
"The book?"
Icarus nodded slowly.
"Yes…"
He looked down at it.
"That isn't just a book."
His voice became quieter.
"It's a Record."
The room fell completely silent.