RESURGENCE

CHAPTER 21 & Conrad's diary

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

At about half past five in the evening, they were back in Franklin. All five of them sat in a conference room at Phoenix Life Center. Plain, long, white curtains shielded the room from the bright sun. They sat around a red oval-shaped wooden table that had ten chairs around it. On the table were two bottles of red wine and five glasses. Michelle had slept most of the day after coming back from Wilcox. Stuart had tried to sleep but his racing mind didn’t let him. Exhaustion dripped from Gordon’s face as he wondered if it would have been better to meet the next day. They all had decided to rest for the afternoon, gather their thoughts, and meet in the evening for a discussion. 

“We’ve had enough time to think about this,” said Gordon as he poured himself a glass. “I think we need to understand this phenomenon by performing more experiments before we even think of comprehending what we are dealing with. What do think, guys?”

“I’m up for experimenting,” said Nick. “How often does one find the key to resurrection? It’s going to be a revolutionary research.”

“I share your excitement young man,” said Robert. “But you need to have a clear idea of what you are trying to achieve. Are you trying to master resurrection? Are you trying to solve the mysteries of universe? Are you seeking divine knowledge?”

“I’m just curious,” said Nick as he smiled.

“Curiosity is natural,” said Robert. “Never in the past has man had access to such knowledge, and this discovery of resurrection could very well reveal the reason behind our existence—or it could be a bridge to visiting other dimensions. The possibilities are many and exciting, and you might end up finding something that is unthinkable. But you need to make sure that you’ll be ethically and morally responsible for this research.”

A moment of silence fell on the room as the gravity of Robert’s words hit them all.

“Now that we’re talking about ethics,” said Stuart breaking the silence. “I have a confession to make. Robert, do you remember when you first came to see us here in Franklin to check if the machine worked on a dead body or not?”

“I do,” said Robert.

“Well, I faked that experiment,” said Stuart. “I programmed the machine incorrectly so that it didn’t go before the time of death of the dead body. The machine took the body back to about an hour after death and not before.”

“Why did you do that?” asked Michelle.

“I didn’t believe in resurrection,” said Stuart, who ran his hand down the back of his neck. “I didn’t want it to be possible. The thought of bringing people back from the dead disgusted me. I didn’t make the machine for doing that. So I tricked everybody into thinking it wasn’t possible. Many a times after that I wondered if it was possible or not and, as it turns out, it is.”  

“I see the logic behind what you did,” said Nick. “You were protecting the research. Imagine if that military scientist had found out that the machine could resurrect people—our research would have been confiscated in a heartbeat. The military would have used it to resurrect dead soldiers and what not. Our company would have been buried before being born.”

“So you never knew it was possible?” Robert asked Stuart.

“No,” said Stuart. “I chose not to know. I never tried to find out.” 

“Weren’t you curious?” asked Robert.

“I didn’t believe in it,” said Stuart flatly.

“Beliefs can often blind the most rational of men,” said Robert.