Chapter 9: “Infected”
The scene changed and I found myself once more in white nothingness. I could hardly understand anything I had seen. A million questions were swimming in my mind.
The older Johnathan appeared before me.
“I know this is hard for you but it’s crucial that you know the truth,” he said, “That baby was you.”
Johnathan paused, looking in my direction but I knew he couldn’t see me.
“13th July 2083. Kreons attacked planet Earth while the millions of babies that were born on that day were killed by the attack…yet only one survived and lived for 16 years,” said Johnathan.
“On the other hand, a scientist couple, Dr. Rose Howard and Dr. Haven Howard were researching on viruses to kill Kreons,” continued Johnathan, “They found one but they were too late…By that time, the Kreons invaded Earth and the virus had to be preserved lest it might be destroyed. Fortunately, the virus did not affect humans and could flourish in human babies and by a stroke of luck, they found a baby and injected the virus in to her…”
“Their plan was to one day find a way to get the virus out of that baby and eliminate Kreons forever but before that, the Kreons found out about the project and murdered the scientists.”
Johnathan paused once more to recollect his thoughts and continued, “The Kreons dug up their research and learned about the plan to kill them. They raided many human shelters to find the baby. For 14 years, Kreons experimented on humans to see which one carried the virus. Finally, in the year 2097, they found the girl they were looking for…”
“They couldn’t kill her for they were afraid that they might accidentally release the virus. So they isolated her in a simulated virtual world and placed her with other humans to study her. They kept quiet and did research to find out the best way to kill her. They called it ‘Project Trinity’...I hope they’re not successful yet.”
Words could not describe my feelings at that moment. I looked at my hands in disgust, I felt infected. I imagined worms or some other kind of pest crawling in my blood. I suddenly felt like throwing up.
"Angel?"
I looked up at Johnathan, the brother I would never see again. Even he had known his death was near and I wondered how.
“There’s one more thing…Rose and Haven thought that the virus did not affect humans and they were right but…” Johnathan hesitated.
I was afraid of what he would say next.
“What they did not know, is that the virus is deadly in large numbers to any being, be it human or Kreon…..So that means in a matter of months you’ll…..The virus has multiplied in your body and you-”
I could see that he was hesitating to say something and tears were welling up in his eyes. I instantly got the message.
My vision was becoming blurred but it was not because of tears.
“I don’t have much time left. Just remember the words carved in the white angel and keep it with you. It-”
I could not hear Johnathan’s voice anymore, the whiteness around me was turning black.
As darkness descended around me, the last words I heard were:
“Happy Birthday, Angel.”
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I was back to reality; the vision had ended. Alex looked questioningly at me.
“What did you see?” he asked.
“Everything,” I replied.
My mind felt numb with thinking. I had many questions but I didn’t have the heart to ask them. All I could think about was the vision I had seen and the things I had learned, playing them over and over in my head.
I edged away from Alex. What if I infect him with the virus?
“What’s wrong?” he asked when I moved.
I didn’t answer him and got up. Before I left I said, “Johnathan says thanks for finding me and giving me the tablet. You were a good friend to him.”
“Trinity—” Alex called after me
“Please…I need to be alone,” I said
I did not look back and walked away. If I had done so, I would have seen the incredible pain in Alex’s blue eyes.
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I spent the rest of my day in solitude. I was afraid that if I stayed near my friends, they would be infected with the virus, and the last thing I needed was the guilt of getting them infected.
My heart and mind was not at rest. I felt like everyone was watching me, waiting for me to take my last breath in life. Whenever I passed Haley and the others, I felt like they looked at me in disgust, like some disease-carrying pest, but of course, that was my imagination. They would never feel that way about me…would they?
