Chapter 73: Chapter 73: World's Consciousness.
After the two landed, Tony took off his armor and let Jarvis operate freely.
"The story continues after Master Malrick left," Jarvis began. "On the morning of September 29th, following your departure, Miss Jill Valentine and Sheriff Marvin led the local police to sweep Raccoon City for survivors. By nightfall, the city was mostly cleared—over 90% of the zombies had been neutralized."
Jarvis projected holographic footage as he continued.
"As you predicted, Umbrella Corporation detected the anomaly in the city. They responded by airdropping six Tyrants. Fortunately, they were all eliminated using serum bombs. To avoid further escalation, Sheriff Marvin ordered a mass evacuation overnight. More than 10,000 people left Raccoon City, and even the military stationed at checkpoints did not intervene."
"The abandoned city lost all interest from external powers. A few recon teams entered but found nothing noteworthy. Eventually, the city was forgotten. A day later, the survivors temporarily parted ways. Jill, Marvin, and several others were reassigned to the NYPD. Miss Sherry and Mr. Bud departed with Ada Wong. While they were resettled, compensation was inadequate."
"Soon after, Ada was attacked by HCF for withholding the G virus. She fled with Sherry and Bud to rural Canada, where I went online and exposed Umbrella's crimes."
Jarvis played more video, showing leaked documents and footage.
"Although there were setbacks, progress was being made," Malrick said, frowning. "What happened next?"
"On October 1st, a global biochemical crisis began. Though it appeared to start in New York, its origin traced back to Raccoon City. The real trouble began on September 30th. As Marvin and Jill led the evacuation, an Umbrella operative named Hunk infiltrated the underground lab, attempting to recover the G virus. Fortunately, Mr. Bud had destroyed all viral samples."
"While exiting, Hunk was bitten by a rat—one that had visited the lab shortly after you left. This rat carried the prototype S virus. It infected Hunk, who didn't realize the severity. He killed the rat, left Raccoon City, and traveled to New York. By October 1st, he was at Umbrella's New York branch—but already deteriorating."
Jarvis showed surveillance footage. Hunk stumbled into the office building, and within minutes, screams erupted. Explosions followed, and a towering mutant emerged. The creature was impervious to bullets and grew stronger as it mutated. Those contaminated by its blood also mutated.
"The infection spread quickly. Within hours, the Umbrella building was overrun. Despite heavy weapons, they failed to contain it. The mutant, once Hunk, stood amid chaos—scarlet-eyed and nearly indestructible."
"The infection rate exceeded 98%. Survivors who weren't turned fell into comas and were devoured. The crisis swept through New York. Jill and Marvin barely escaped with my remote support."
Jarvis played scenes of burning streets and fallen buildings.
"The military responded with extreme force. But the infected were twice as strong as normal humans. One in a hundred transformed into powerful variants—like Hunk. These could survive tank blasts and continue mutating. Soon, there were thousands. As the situation spiraled, the government deployed nuclear weapons."
"Three warheads hit New York at 7:30 PM, October 1st. The city was obliterated."
Tony's eyes widened. "Nuclear bombs?!"
"Yes," Jarvis confirmed. "But Umbrella had already extracted what they needed. They discovered that one in a hundred infected survived and evolved, gaining immense strength, agility, and mental clarity. A man named Albert Wesker injected himself and survived. His strength reached 20 tons; his speed, 150 meters per second. He seized control of Umbrella."
"They called the evolved virus the Ascension virus. Wesker launched a global human evolution campaign. The virus—now airborne—was released through Umbrella's international branches. By October 8th, it had spread worldwide."
"Cities fell overnight. Governments collapsed. Survivors were few. Only one nation held firm—China—thanks to strict controls and border defense."
"By October 15th, superhumans began appearing in larger numbers, changing the tide slightly. But it was too late for many regions. The U.S. fragmented. Texas declared independence on October 16th. Sixteen more states followed by the 17th."
"Jill and Marvin, trapped in Missouri, were rescued with my help and returned to Raccoon City. Ada sent for Bud and the others. Everyone regrouped."
"October 19th—Ada released data revealing that the Ascension virus was a mutated version of Malrick's original S virus. Jill volunteered to test the pure sample and survived. Her strength soared past 30 tons; her speed, over 200 m/s."
"On October 23rd, Colorado declared independence under Jill's leadership. Other southern states followed. The remaining seven states clung to the crumbling federal government."
"October 27th—an extremist faction, the 'Family,' took over the federal government and nuked Moscow and London under the guise of ending the zombie threat."
"October 28th—Russia retaliated and launched a missile at Washington, which was not intercepted."
"October 29th, early morning—the U.S. government announced it would nuke Russia's temporary capital. Russia vowed to retaliate by bombing the newly independent states."
"In five hours, dozens of nukes will launch."
Jarvis paused. Tony stood frozen.
"Is this... is this your virus?" Tony said, trembling. "You left for twelve hours and nearly destroyed the world?!"
Malrick scowled. "I destroyed the virus. I checked everything—no signs of life, not even a spider. That mouse? That was world consciousness. It screwed up. I'm just the janitor cleaning its mess."
He recalled the emotions shared by the world consciousness:
Leave, evolve, lose control, gift, save!
"They thought I wouldn't return. So, the moment I left, they tried to force evolution. That rat inhaled the remaining S virus strains, then conveniently bit Hunk. You think I planned that?"
Malrick sighed, rubbing his forehead.
"This world consciousness is dangerously reckless. Let's go to Raccoon City. We'll figure things out from there."
_
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