The Sixth Extinction & The First Three Weeks & The Squads First Three Weeks Omnibus [Books 1-10]
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The virus strain – now they could see it in its entirety – completely absorbed the host’s DNA. Unlike every other known virus, rather than simply piggybacking on the DNA, it absorbed the hosts genotype, changing the DNA double helix down on a subtonic level – the virus actually added a new addition of nucleotides to the existing DNA chain, creating a new, unknown genetic species.
If the situation was different, and the host wasn’t the human race, then the find would have changed the science community in a good way, leading to all kinds of new theories and branch fields of research.
The new information was packaged and sent to every research facility on their extensive email list.
There was access to the Internet, so they could see what was happening to the world outside. Luckily, their Internet server was government run, so even when civilian servers started going down, one by one, theirs continued working regardless.
In the rare moments when she had a spare few minutes, she would check to see what was happening outside their barricades.
There was all out fighting in the streets of all major cities. Supermarkets and shops were empty, so mobs were attacking food preparation factories, anywhere where there could be food.
Cows and sheep were being slaughtered in the farmer’s fields by people who used to squirm if their burger was undercooked.
Hunger changed people.
Petrol stations were empty. Abandoned vehicles blocked roads.
The smaller towns and villages looked deserted in the news feeds. Litter filled the streets, blowing around in the January winds, and turned to mush by freezing rain. Shops were destroyed, many burnt to the ground.
It was complete chaos.
She was amazed that so much could change in such a short period of time.
What would happen if this continued for a year, or two, because no cure could be found? What would the population resort to, to find food and water?
It was shocking to think that people she chatted with only weeks before – neighbours and friends – would now be fighting each other over scraps of food.
Melanie hoped her parents were okay? She had no way of getting in contact with them.
The university servers now only worked on certain, approved sites. Every email went via the military before it was sent. There was a list of websites that their computers could join with, but no web browser. They were being completely regulated.
There were a few computer geniuses within the assistant student ranks, but even their tweaking, and skills couldn’t crack the military firewalls.
It was like being in a concentration camp, except they were getting fed. Some of the scientists even met in quiet areas, discussing possible breakout strategies. They were desperate to get home to check on their families.
A group even tried to get over to the gym, to speak with the general in command. They were herded back to their building by armed soldiers. Since then, they have been banned from even leaving the building. All lifts were switched off, and the stairwells guarded.
Yesterday, thirty-two-year-old Doctor Lim killed himself by jumping from a top-floor window.
The other scientists needed someone to blame. Because she was the supposed liaison between them and the army, she got the brunt of the backlash.
Whenever she went to check on results, everyone in the room stopped talking. People started ignoring her. If she stopped to chat with someone, or ask a question, they would simply walk away. She heard them whispering and calling her childish names. Bitch was the most popular.
It was all completely irrational, but for some reason, it all seemed to make sense to them.
Melanie now sat working in a small room on her own.
She had become an outcast in a building where everyone was locked in together.
In a time when she needed her friends the most, they had all turned their backs on her.
17
Wednesday 3rd January 2013
Day 19
Last night, at about 3 AM, while finishing up his night shift, Doctor Lewandowski went berserk. Without any warning he started attacking the other five scientists who were in the same room.
He killed three of them with his bare hands. Another one was so badly injured the military doctor doesn’t think she will last the day. The only one who escaped alive was the scientist closest to the door, who escaped with only a broken arm and contusion to his face.
Doctor Russo, who escaped, ran screaming down the corridor, cradling his broken arm.
Everyone poured out into the hallways, wondering what the noise was all about.
Lewandowski then ran out into the hallway and attacked a group of assistants who had just exited the Computer Room. He was covered in his victim’s blood, and his face was a mask of madness. He snapped the neck of a young woman who didn’t flee in time.
A group of five men tried to subdue him, because even though he was insane, he carried no weapon.
He broke the jaw of one, fractured the eye socket of another, and bit another’s bottom lip clean off his face.
In the screaming and confusion, Doctor Lewandowski forced open the lift door and jumped to his death down the shaft.
The army swarmed into the building and removed the bodies, leaving the scientists to mop up the blood and gore.
The events unsettled everyone. They all started becoming paranoid that whoever was sat next to them might go the same way as Lewandowski.
It made a bad situation even worse.
It didn’t help that some of the blood stained the floor and walls, and was a constant reminder of what happened.
Today, the building was eerily quiet. No one chatted unnecessarily. People ambled about, doing their jobs in a sullen, tense mood.
Some people were letting themselves go physically; they didn’t wash or change. Some refused to even work, they simply lay on their cots, moping.
The whole place was becoming a powder keg.
Melanie collected everything she needed to lock herself away in her small research room. She had bottled water and packaged food from the canteen. She only left the room to go to the toilet or to catch a few hours sleep. She spent every waking minute staring into an electron microscope and adjusting her results on her laptop.
She needed to sort this all out and map the virus. The sooner she completed the task, the sooner everyone could go home. Because at the rate the situation was deteriorating, give it another week, there wouldn’t be anyone left alive in the building.
18
Thursday 4th January 2013
Day 20
The breakthrough came at 9 AM. Melanie sat staring at the eyepiece. She sat for most of the day double checking the data and her notes.
She felt like something was going right for the first time in almost three weeks.
She didn’t run up and down the corridors screaming that she had done it. She sat silently in her room, alone, and went back over the data, to double and triple check.
Melanie didn’t feel bad that she was keeping the information from the others. After the way they had shunned her, she didn’t care if they never talked to her again. She had known some of them for years, and within days they just cut her off as if she was a leper.
After she had finished all the checking, she rewrote her report. She then left the room to go and collect another two samples. Upon returning, she copied her results down to the last detail, to check it wasn’t just a fluke or a mistake. Both new batches gave identical results, even though they were from two different host samples.
She had done it!
She sat and stared while she softy cried with relief. She would be able to go home soon.
She was so hyped on adrenaline, she didn’t realise it was so late. Checking and rechecking, and rewriting took all day and the best part of the night. It was now 2:18 AM.
She prepared a message to give to a soldier, so they could inform the General that he had no choice, he had to speak with her personally, because she had cracked the virus.
The virus was unlike anything she had ever seen. It didn’t piggyback; it completely took over, readjusting and altering the host, creating a hybrid species.
Also, her results showed four main stages to the virus. They had seen the first-stage – rapid eye blinking and confusion. The second stage was gripping the world at the moment.
However, this was just a drop in the bucket, if her results were correct. The third stage was unlike anything she had ever seen before, and she needed to warn the General, so he could pass the information along. And the fourth stage was even worse.
The way things were looking; it was going to be the most devastating outbreak to ever effect the human race since the Spanish influenza of 1918, which infected five hundred million worldwide, and killed over a hundred million of them – which was five percent of the world’s population at the time.
As devastating as the Spanish Influenza was, it would pale into comparison compared to what she had just discovered – there would be a hundred percent mortality rate – no one would survive.
However, there was hope for those not infected. With the right equipment, and time, a blocker could be created to stop others from being infected.
Even though it was late, she went and found a soldier so they could pass the note to the General.
She returned to her room and spent the time waiting going over her results.
She was too hyped to sleep, so she went and packed her things.
Surely, I will be able to go home and see my family now?
At 4:38 AM, a soldier found her. He informed her that the General would meet her in the morning at 8 AM.
Brilliant, she thought. I will explain everything, and my report will be distributed around the world, and by lunchtime I will be back home with my parents.
THE SIXTH EXTINCTION
THE SQUAD’S FIRST THREE WEEKS
THE ARK MAP ZONES (ENGLAND)
1. Main city
2. Artificial crop fields
3. Food storage area
4. Live animal section
5. Seed storage area
6. Military barracks
7. Military vehicle storage area
8. Artillery and uranium/plutonium storage
9. Natural underground freshwater reservoir
10. Water purification and waste sewage plant
11. DNA storage vault
12. Data storage and supercomputer
Stars represent artificial islands built in the underground reservoir.
The nuclear reactor power plant and power storage is four hundred feet below Zone 1.
ECHO’S STORY
Alexis Carrie Philips (Echo)
Mexico City D.F
Belisario Dominguez
Coyoacán
Mexico
Works for the British army in a clandestine unit in an undisclosed military base called The Ark, situated below Dartmoor Prison, in Princetown, Dartmoor, England.
1
Alexis Carrie Philips (Echo)
Mexico City D.F
Belisario Dominguez
Coyoacán
Mexico
Thursday 20th December 2012
Five Days After the Start of the Outbreak
Day 5
Echo was woken up by the stifling heat. She lay on a king-size bed. The large room was airy and light. The balcony door was open, with the silky curtains wafting in the warm breeze. She brushed her mouse coloured long hair out of her green eyes, so she could check her watch.
7:42 AM.
So that’s UTC time zone. So in England, GMT it’s 1:42 PM.
The bright sunshine poured through the large balcony windows, illuminating the pastoral coloured walls and chunky, rustic furniture.
The muffled sounds of the street outside floated up to her window.
In Mexico City – which sat between two and four thousand feet in elevation – December normally peaked between twenty and twenty-five degrees celsius. However, the month so far was a scorcher, hitting the mid thirties. The city was wilting under the barrage. The pavements shimmered in the heat, and windows were painful to glance at.
She found it strange walking around in the heat with Christmas decorations everywhere. People dressed in thick Santa gear with sweat pouring down their faces, and fake snow melting to the glaring windows.
Echo needed the break. Two weeks away from the madness of the base and her father. One week in Mexico City, sightseeing, and then another week in Cancun swimming, snorkeling, and scuba diving. She had two days left in the large city before heading to the country’s golden east coast.
It was so claustrophobic working below ground; it was great to have a change of scenery and feel the sun and breeze on her face. She also enjoyed the solitude. After being surrounded by people all day, everyday, it was nice to be alone – alone in the sense she was a stranger to everyone around her.
She always traveled alone. She could be herself. No need for pretence when there’s no one around to try to impress.
It was her fifth day staying in Coyoacán. She loved the area that is officially known as the Historical Centre of the city. With its huge market in the Plaza Hidalgo, and large churches such as Parish of San Juan Bautista. She enjoyed walking around eating from the many street food stalls.
Her favorite place to eat in the city so far was from the famous Tostadas de Coyoacán restaurant, just inside the Mercado Coyoacán, at Calle Malintzin, a short walk from the central plaza. A tostadas is a deep fried corn tortilla heaped with anything of your choice. She loved the chicken in a brick-red sauce, and the pork in the dark rich chocolatey mole. She had tried the pulpo, but wasn’t too keen on octopus, and cochinita pibil, a tangy pulled pork from the Yucatán, which was a little bit too spicy for her British taste buds. She washed it down with agua de frutas – literally fruit flavored water.
She also enjoyed the flautas, an elongated rolled corn tortilla, filled with barbacoa – roast lamb, or a variety of other ingredient, which is deep-fried and topped with sour cream and salsa verde, and sprinkled with grated queso fresco – white cheese. And for some reason, regardless of what type of flautas you ordered, it was always served with caldo de gallina – chicken soup.
Echo is sure she’d put on a couple of pounds since arriving in the vast, bustling city.
She had been all over the city in the quirky little green and white beetle taxis, which had the front passenger seat removed, leaving room to climb into the back.
She loved El Zócalo the main plaza in the heart of the historic centre – Plaza de la Constitución, which was one of the largest open spaces in a city centre in the world, just after Tiananmen Square China and Red Square Russia.
She spent an hour just looking around The Catedral Metropolitana de la Asunción de María – The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary, the second largest Catholic church in the world after St. Peter’s Basilica in The Vatican. She was amazed at the amount of gold used on the alters. Also at the amount of people inside praying, and meaning it. Not just someone bowing and making the sign of the cross, but people deep in prayer, kneeling, giving it all they had. Some were even crying and whimpering as they prayed with their eyes squeezed tight.
When she returned outside, she stood staring up at the huge flag flapping gently in the breeze that stood on a one hundred and twenty meter flagpole in the middle of the square.
She watched the flag change when she was here a few days ago. It is so large it needs twenty-five soldiers to carry it and raise it, which was changed every evening at 6 PM.
Echo showered and dressed in a simple cream coloured summer dress. She grabbed the big floppy hat she had purchased as soon as she arrived. White sandals finished the outfit.
Today she was going to attempt to use the subway system. They called it Sistem
a de Transporte Colectivo – or simply put a metro system. It was the second largest metro system in the Americas after New York.
Echo slung her bag over a shoulder and grabbed her sunglasses off the dresser. She looked down at her mobile phone. It had been switched off since she arrived. No texts. No phone calls. Also no newspapers or the TV. It was bliss. She was completely disconnected from the world, and she made a point of ignoring the front covers on newspapers – not that she would understand them in Spanish. Also, she didn’t book a hotel in advance. When she arrived, she walked around with her bags and decided to stay somewhere that she felt a connection with.
She decided to take her phone, just in case she decided to check for messages, as she headed out into the bright sunshine. In the distance, she could hear a mariachi band playing on the radio, or it could be a real band playing on the streets somewhere.
2
The streets were full of people bustling around. The market in the central square was setting up for the day. Nothing was rushed here. People ambled about, drinking, smoking, chatting, having a five-minute rest, even though they had just started.
Echo wandered past a Sanborns, a large chain of restaurants for people not willing to risk eating from the street vendors or smaller businesses. She tried it on the second day. It was what she expected; mass produced food for convenience. The only good thing about the place was the air-conditioning. The waitresses had the look of servers the world over.
She decided she would only eat from small businesses and street venders for the rest of her stay, where she could see the food being prepared. She agreed with the saying: There is no better way to immerse yourself into a culture than to eat what the locals eat.