by Cass Kim
“Yeah, Supergirl, exactly right. It makes sense, right? Rich people like to stay rich, and in case you couldn’t tell from his face, Royce grew up about as rich as they come.”
“Is that how you recognized him?”
Syd waved a hand dismissively, “Nah. I actually applied for an internship with his company and did a boatload of research on him. Which is why I knew that he owned more than half the plasma banks in,” she held up one delicate finger, “not just the US, but the world.”
“I’m not sure I know what a plasma bank is. Is it like a blood bank?”
“Nah, girl. Well, kind of. Blood banks are mostly for emergencies in hospitals and what not, but plasma banks are more for research. For example, before the Change, college kids or adults that needed supplemental income could go and sell their plasma for cash at these big medical buildings. That’s why I wanted to intern for Algin Pharmaceuticals. They had the most diverse range of registered experiments with the IRB. And after the Change, every person over 18 that tested clean for the virus had to donate for a mandatory period of five years.”
Renna ticked off on her fingers, “So you were, what, like eleven when this all was happening?”
Syd curled her lip up. “Yeah. That’s why I never got that internship. Guess even crooked Royce Algin followed child labor laws in the US. And as you may guess, his face ain’t changed much since then.” Syd gave Renna a devilish smirk before continuing, serious, “But, my point is, that Algin Pharmaceuticals had the biggest base of Plasma to work with. After those five years, the plasma banks were shut down. Too high a risk of infection as the virus was found to be undetectable during initial incubation. It was this whole big thing, you were probably like ten when it all went down, so I don’t expect you remember it. It was a huge controversy about how the banks couldn’t be linked to outbreaks, but people were scared. I always thought it was a witch-hunt, a bunch of terrified people who were pissed at the big pharma companies for charging so much money for daily medicines or somethin’—”
“If you need to turn a light on you can,” Renna interrupted, as the sun outside was setting and the natural light barely illuminated the room.
“Better not. I don’t want to advertise my presence here. I can’t have them thinking we’re buddy buddy right this minute.”
“Oh. Yeah, that makes sense.” Renna could see well enough; she’d only been being polite for Syd’s vision. “Okay, so he’s been running unapproved experiments with the plasma he had collected?” She refrained from pointing out that such a thing didn’t seem too terrible. It certainly wasn’t ‘run for your life’ dangerous.
“No, that’s not what I’m getting at here. It wasn’t a witch-hunt.” Syd paused dramatically, her hands balled into fists at her side, pacing stopped. “What I’m saying is that I found documents that link Royce Algin, and Algin Pharmaceuticals, to research done on a virus, through the plasma banks, with no IRB approval, and no subject consent. Before the Change”
She turned to face Renna, stepping closer to see her reaction in the dim light. “What I’m saying is that Royce Algin created and distributed the Wilder virus.”
25
Alyssa
Jeremy’s first push off slipped and slid, gaining him no ground. The second step launched him forward, mere inches from the furthest reach of the car headlights. Alyssa’s chest hurt from sucking down cold air and screaming at the top of her lungs.
For seven long seconds, the world stood still, muffled, silent. Frozen in possibilities.
With a woosh that set her healing clavicle on fire, Alyssa tumbled to the ground as Jeremy’s speeding form crushed her into the snow.
The car inched along, headlights sweeping past. It didn’t slow.
They stayed there, gasping, tangled in a pile of winter clothes and limbs, until the car tail lights faded from view. It hadn’t been a cop car. And it didn’t seem interested in the lone car sitting on the side of the road. Maybe it had been people like them, just trying to get safely indoors. Or maybe they were looking for bigger prey than an abandoned car.
“Get off of me, you football playing oaf.” Alyssa shoved him with her stronger arm, hoping her clavicle wasn’t rebroken from impact.
“Hey, I was just trying to get here in time. You’re the one that didn’t move.” Jeremy pushed himself up, taking his weight off her body.
Pounding footsteps came from the woods.
They froze.
The sounds approached fast. Almost inhumanly fast.
Scrambling from beneath Jeremy, Alyssa groped around in the pile of supplies for something heavy to swing. Damnit, she should have made Emerson give her a knife before she left.
“You got back really fast. Who’s this guy? And why are you in the woods?” Emerson’s voice snapped Alyssa out of her frantic search.
She looked up, at a loss for words. How would she explain Jeremy to Emerson? This was going to be awkward on so many levels. “Uh, hey. So, long story short, there’s an outbreak in the town and—”
“In this town? In Placid Lake?” He interrupted her, scanning the area carefully. She noted he’d kept his sunglasses on, even though he shouldn’t need them anymore with the snow and the sun setting.
Jeremy stood up, puffing his chest out, and made a big point of hauling her to her feet. “Yeah. It was bad. We’re all good though, we got out of the store okay.”
Emerson remained rooted in place. “There was outbreak in the actual store?”
Alyssa nodded, “Yes. I got as much as I could as fast as I could. Once I saw the signs, I knew we’d have to go fast.”
Both boys turned to her at once.
“You saw the signs before people started Changing and you kept shopping? You didn’t even warn me!”
“How bad was it? How many Wilders did you see?”
“What was I going to do, pull a fire alarm and leave with nothing?” She spat the words at Jeremy, pushing them through her own feelings of guilt for not warning others. But what if she’d just been paranoid? That would have caused mass panic for no reason.
She turned to Emerson, “I saw two or three, but I think there were more. It was so crowded, and everything happened so fast. I can’t really say how many. But it was bad. It was very bad, Emerson.”
The boys stood, shoulder to shoulder, both staring at her. One lanky, dark haired, and waiting for answers. The other broader, lighter haired, and also waiting for answers. Great. Alyssa sighed heavily, the large inhale lighting a fire in her collar bone. Tipping her face up to the falling snow, Alyssa closed her eyes and braced for the introductions she was about to make.
She delivered the words in one long stream, ripping the band aid off as fast as possible. “Emerson, this is Jeremy. I needed his car, but I couldn’t abandon him now that the city is on lockdown. And yes, he’s that Jeremy, the one you’ve heard about. Jeremy, this is Emerson, he’s a Wilder, but he’s also a good person and he’s kind of dating Renna now, so you know, that’s cool.”
A minute passed as both boys tried to parse out the explosion of words. Followed by Jeremy jumping two feet away from Emerson, who was staring at him with an expression that wasn’t quite friendly.
“Did you say he’s a Wilder?”
“Yes. But he’s okay. He’s like, not dangerous.”
“Hey! I can be dangerous when I need to be.”
“You said he’s a Wilder, right? And he’s dating Renna. What the hell is going on?”
Emerson took off his sunglasses, seeming to enjoy having the upper hand over the other boy. “Look man, no hard feelings. But I don’t think you can come with us.”
Alyssa slapped a hand to her forehead, stepping between the two before they could get their macho egos in a twist. “He has to come with us. The town is on lockdown as of a few minutes ago. He’ll be shot on sight wandering around.” She turned to Jeremy. “Yes. He’s a Wilder. I don’t know how to tell you this but… So is Renna. Jammin is too.”
Jeremy’s body, already tensed
from standing next to a Wilder, burst into action, whirling away from her, then back, jaw working in silent protests. Finally, his voice came, hollow with shock, “Are you sure?”
Alyssa nodded. “Yeah. But she’s fine. Renna got a vaccine, and it saved her life when she got infected. Just. Yeah.” She reached out a hand to comfort him, but he slapped it off his shoulder.
“So what, you’re just all a bunch of Wilder loving weirdos now?” Bitter, unsure, his voice wavered.
“Yeah, Jeremy, that’s exactly what we are.” Alyssa combatted his words with sarcasm. “Look, it’s a lot I know. But trust me, it will be a lot worse if we just stay here talking about it. You can try to make it somewhere safe by yourself if you want to.” She gestured to where his car sat, already covered in a dusting of snow. “But I think that would be really stupid. Come with us, just until the lockdown is over, or we can get you safely home.” She was sure that once the government came to the camp somebody official could get Jeremy through the quarantine lines and to his parent’s house.
“Dude, you can’t just bring anybody you want to, to the camp.” Emerson protested.
“Oh, you mean kind of like you brought Renna and then she brought me when we saved your life?” She crossed her arms and arched an eyebrow at him.
Emerson rubbed the back of his neck, sheepish. “That was different.”
“Nope. Not different.” She swept an arm over the pile of supplies, slowly getting hidden by the falling flakes. “Now, I suggest we start getting this stuff to the rest of the gang and just keep moving.” Her finger itched to braid her hair. “If we just keep on going, it will all work out. Somehow.”
Jeremy eyed Emerson carefully. “You said the ‘rest of the gang,’ Lyssie. Did you mean Renna and Benjamin? Or more like him?”
Alyssa knew that the sneer Jeremy had put into the words was his way of covering his fear. “Look, Jeremy,” she said, trying to be patient. “You gotta trust me here. Let’s get going, and I’ll explain more on the walk. Believe me, there will be plenty of walking to do.”
Without a word, Emerson stacked the boxed medical supplies on one of the coolers, then hefted it up. Satisfied, he pulled several bungee cords with plastic hooks from his pocket and secured the items in place. When he was finished, he clapped his hands to disrupt the hissy silence between Jeremy and Alyssa.
Jeremy broke it first, looking longingly at his car. “Fine. I guess you really backed me into a corner here.”
Alyssa, already stacking the remaining items on the second cooler, rolled her eyes. “Yeah, so awful of me to run into you there and help you survive.”
26
Renna
“Wait, what?” Renna was immediately shushed by Syd when the words burst from her mouth.
“Keep it down, Supergirl, we still gotta figure out how we’re going to get everybody we can out of here safely. And get the info.” Syd frowned, pressing a button on the side of her watch to light it up. “Which we’re going to have to do tomorrow morning. After your ultrasound. I’ll come back later to re-do your straps for real, but fake it ‘til you make it after I leave, kay? I gotta get over there to see how this next test with your brother goes. It will give us a really good idea of how soon we can fly this chicken coup. We’ll need him rational. And strong. We’ll need both of you as strong as possible.” She reached into her jacket, unzipping the inner pocket and withdrawing two protein bars. She handed them to Renna and reached into the other pocket for a water pouch. “Eat these. Both of them. Drink the water. Shove the packages into the bottom of the trash and cover them.” She zipped her jacket back up moving toward the door. “Oh, and Renna? Wear gloves when you dig in the trash. It might be your own biohazard waste, but it’s still nasty.” With those parting words Syd shoved back out of the tent and into the snowing evening.
Shoving the end of the first bar into her mouth, Renna chewed the giant bite while processing options. They were in the middle of the forest. She had no idea how many armed ‘soldiers’ Royce had brought with him, but maybe Syd did. They had guns but not Wilder speed. And if they had the Kims with them, between the four of them, they had to know the woods better than the guards.
After swigging down some water to clear the gritty bar down, she forced another bite in. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d eaten, but she didn’t feel hungry. Then again, she hadn’t felt hungry in a long time. Would Tim Tam know if they left, and follow them? Part of her knew that the cat should be the least of her worries, but he was family. He was also, aside from Benjamin, the least easy to control in this situation.
Once she’d finished the food, she did at Syd had instructed, wearing gloves, and then settled back onto the table, with an extra blanket, to rest. Her mind wouldn’t quiet enough for sleep.
She turned the day’s events over and over in her mind, flipping the piece of the revelations around and upside down, trying to put the puzzle together. Royce Algin had used his position of ownership in a pharmaceutical company to create a widespread, dangerous virus. Why? What did he have to gain from creating monsters and setting the world into disarray? Had he intended for the virus to be released, or was it some kind of accident?
Renna turned, restless, the other big revelation sitting heavy in her heart. A side effect of becoming a Wilder was to become sterile. Unless somebody figured out how to fix that, humanity was doomed to live in a half-pocalypse forever. There was no way they could vaccinate the masses and make everybody childless. Even she knew that. The entire human race would die off.
Yet, if they found a way to fix it, her family line would still possibly end with her and Benjamin. Tomorrow’s ultrasound would tell them for sure. But, deep down, she knew. She hadn’t had a period. The chances of her vaccine being the most perfect in reproduction as well were too small.
Flipping over again, she stared up at the ceiling and thought, for the first time in a long time, about her Father. Before the Change, in her earliest memories, she and Benjamin would spend long weekend days following him around the house while he cleaned. Or when he gardened. He would sit back on his heels after hours of weeding and show off the plants. A patient man, with an easy smile, he always took time to explain to them which plants were weeds. Highlighting for them in long, excited descriptions which were worth replanting elsewhere, weed or not. Moisture welled in her eyes, remembering him. How he explained that every plant had a purpose, and humans didn’t give them enough credit or care. The way Benjamin would mirror his actions in the garden. How, when the day was over, he always stretched his arms out wide to the forest and claimed that buying the property next to it was the best investment he could make for his children, and for their children. Salty tears leaked from her eyes, running in a stream down her temples, into her hair. For their children.
Children they’d never have. Children he never would have had a chance to see anyhow. The salty stream turned into a river, tears falling in earnest. Her lungs dragged air in then shuddered it out in huge, wracking heaves. Flipping onto her stomach, she buried her face in the blanket, welcoming the pain of the cold metal table on her forearms. Sobbing violently for all the things in her life she had no control over. For the losses of her past, and this new, terrible loss for her future.
Once her tears subsided, Renna felt empty. Cleansed, but hollow. The pressure in her head felt lighter with the first release of tears since turning Wilder. Listening for the crunch of shoes outside, she slid off the table and onto shaky legs. Biting her lip to keep from grunting, she forced herself to lower into twenty squats, until her knees no longer wobbled on the rise. Nostrils flaring, she followed with twenty push-ups. Determination kept her moving, stretching, limbering out her muscles, forcing them to work, to prepare.
Many things may be out of her control but not all of them. Renna intended to be ready to seize control of her future. When Syd came back, they would put their heads together and find a way to escape. With as much information as possible. After climbing back on the table, Renna strapped her
feet back in, and buckled her door-facing hand in place. The best shot they had would rely heavily on the element of surprise. She couldn’t do much about her remaining hand, but the most visible straps looked correctly secured. Renna settled back and waited like a good little experiment for the guards to come. It wouldn’t be long now.
27
Alyssa
Alyssa’s arms felt ready to fall off. Darkness crowded around them, making the path harder for Emerson to determine. They’d been walking for at least four hours already. And that wasn’t counting the time that she’d spent chasing Jeremy around in the woods, convincing him that the Wilders they’d joined up with were safe. She’d conveniently left out the fact that some of them might be infected with a morphed version of the virus and who knew if they would Change again. Some things were better left unsaid.
Having the Wilders carry the heavy items helped. And they packed the pathway down ahead of them, helping the humans avoid tripping in the dark. At least she wasn’t expected to run this time. Shelly and Kina took turns scouting ahead and taking up an end of the cooler with Andre. Yvette and Emerson had the other cooler. Jackson took the back, circling around in wide arcs to check both their tail and their sides as they trudged through the snow. He carried nothing but his usual gear, running constantly from one point to another in an endless, curving cycle.
Every step they took reinforced Alyssa’s need to be back in camp. To see Jammin, to hug Renna. Worry ate at her. With the outbreak, the government may be even further delayed. She’d gotten a lot of supplies, but not enough to sustain the entire camp for very long. Clearly the quarantine wasn’t working to control the spread of the virus. They needed a functional, working vaccine. They needed a way to combat the spread, and they needed it now.
Stumbling along beside Jeremy, who was also silent and dragging, it took Alyssa too long to register that the pounding footsteps coming up behind them weren’t Jackson’s. There was a difference to the rhythm. The military-trained Wilder kept a constant cadence, nearly unaltered by undergrowth or thicker patches of trees in his path.