The Extinction Trials(12)

She pressed the red and blue button on the sweater, pants, and boots. The girl’s shaking subsided to shivering and then heavy breathing.

“What’s your name?” Maya asked.

“Blair.”

“You’re going to be okay, Blair. I’m going to get you out of here. Just hold onto me.”

The young girl extended her arms, eyes still closed, feeling for Maya, who scooped her up, testing the weight on her still weak legs. She took a step, then another, growing more confident with each movement.

Blair nuzzled her face into Maya’s neck. The child’s skin was cold and, at first, so was her breath, but it grew warmer with each exhale.

At the doorway, Maya paused to let Bryce and Owen pass. Both held people in their arms, eyes closed, hanging limp.

When Maya reached the observation room, she found three people lying on the blankets: a woman about her age with dark hair, a middle-aged man with thinning hair, and a young man who looked about the same age as Bryce. All were dressed in the heated clothes but still shivering. They stared out through squinted eyes, no doubt trying to overcome the pain and sluggishness.

Gently, Maya set Blair down and held a hand to her head, a feeble attempt to put the girl at ease.

She opened her eyes slightly, grimacing. “What’s your name?”

“My name’s Maya. Just rest. I’ll be right back.”

As she rose to leave, Owen entered the room again, carrying an older man. He was bald, skinny, and tall. To Maya’s surprise, he was fighting to get free of Owen’s grip.

“Let me go!”

“Relax,” Owen said, struggling to hold the man.

At the blankets, Owen set the man down, who immediately drew back, crashing into the young man who now had his eyes open.

“Hey, watch it.”

“Who are you?” the older man snapped.

Maya stepped toward the door, but Owen caught her arm. “That’s everybody.”

Bryce rushed inside the room and thumbed the panel, closing the door. He tapped several buttons on the panel, and the red strobing light stopped, and the alarm fell silent.

Through the small glass window in the door, Maya could still see the red light blinking in the hallway, but the sound was gone. Soon, she heard air flowing into the room. Heat, she thought.

Bryce turned to the group. “I’m sorry you all were awoken like that. There was no other way.”

The older man staggered to his feet, eyes barely open. “What’s going on here?”

“Where are we?” Owen asked.

Several others joined in, lobbing questions until Maya couldn’t make out anything.

“Please. Please,” Bryce pleaded. “You must be quiet. I’ll explain everything. At least… what I can. First of all, you should know that this station is failing. The power plant is critical—”

A new barrage of questions filled the room. Bryce held his hands up. “Quiet. Please. We don’t have much time.”

“Where are we?” Owen asked.

“I don’t know,” Bryce said.

“What do you mean, you don’t know?” The older man asked. “How can you not know where we are?”

“Because, like you, I was unconscious when I was brought here. What I do know is that the world you remember is gone.”

“What?” Owen said. “How?”

“The coastlines have changed. The cities you knew no longer exist. Same for the states and nations and corporations and everything else. The world. Is gone.”

“What are we doing here? What is this place?” Maya asked. “A hospital?”

“Of sorts,” Bryce replied. “This is a facility created by my employer, ARC Technologies. We are in Station 17.”

“What kind of station?” Owen asked.

“It’s a bunker that’s part of a network of trial locations.”

“What kind of trials?” Maya asked.

“The Extinction Trials.”

The room fell silent.

Bryce took a step closer. “It’s an experiment to restart the human race after a catastrophic global event. That event has occurred. We call the event The Change. Our goal here is to find a cohort that can survive in the world after The Change. That is the key to saving what’s left of the human race.”





Chapter Eleven





For a moment, the group looked around at each other.

Owen was still trying to wrap his head around what Bryce had said.

The Extinction Trials.

An experiment to restart the human race.

The older man who had struggled to get free of Owen’s grasp spoke first.

“I never consented to this.”

“Nor did I,” the middle-aged man said.

Maya held a hand up. “Does it matter how we got here?”

The older man eyed her. “It matters a great deal. But I think what matters even more is what they intend to do with us.” He turned his gaze to Bryce, who merely cocked his head.

From the corner of the room, the other adult woman spoke. “There’s a more pressing issue.”

All eyes turned to her.

“Our health. First, we should assess everyone and treat any injuries.”

“Are you a doctor?” Owen asked.