Gene. Sys. by Aaron Denius (best ereader for comics txt) 📕

causes me to squint my eyes, and the booming sound thumps in my chest. More orange streaks fly over the wall, these slightly closer to where we are.

Fe’s screams clear my head, and I snap into action. “Go! Now! Get all the girls and head to the simulation room.”

She stops screaming and looks right at me. Fear has filled the depths of her eyes. “What about you?”

“Just go! I will meet you down there with the guys.” I push her toward the hole. The booms of more explosions thump in my chest, and I hear the sounds of guns as I follow her down.

We run along the hallway, and she continues past the guys who have spilled out of their rooms. I stop by them.

“What’s going on?” Ox asks.

“We’re being attacked.” I look them over to make sure they are all there.

“Why?” Sil steps closer to me.

“Don’t worry about that now. Go in your rooms; grab your pillows and as many protein pouches as you can. Then head down to the simulation room.” They all stand in shock. “Now!”

This gets them moving, and they all run into their rooms. I run down the hall to help Fe with the girls. As I turn the corner, I see her running at me with her group. The girls run past me, but Fe stops.

“I couldn’t find Ev,” she says, panting between words.

“What?” I look behind her and see an empty hallway. “Go down to the room with the others. I’m going to find her.”

“But—” She grabs my hand, concern in her eyes. “Be careful.”

She runs off, and I run deeper into the compound. I make my way through the maze of hallways, screaming for Ev. Just as I turn one of the corners, I almost run into her. We stop inches away from each other.

“Where were you?” I ask.

“Not now.” She runs past me and toward the simulation room. I follow close behind.

The blasts’ booms get closer as we turn corner after corner until we reach the hallway that leads to the elevator. We are a few yards away when a blast blows in the wall next to us.

I am thrown against the wall, my head slamming into the hard concrete. A dust cloud fills what used to be the hallway. “Ev?”

There’s no response, so I pick myself up. A sharp pain shoots through my left leg, but I fight through it. I pull my shirt over my mouth and work my way through the dust cloud to where I saw Ev hit the wall.

I almost trip over her when I finally reach her. I kneel down and see her face covered entirely in blood. “Ev, are you all right? Ev?”

She doesn’t respond, so I check to see if she has a pulse, my heart breaking in anticipation. When I feel a tap against my finger, a wave of relief fills my body. I see her chest rising with short breaths, so I know I need to get her down to the simulation room as soon as possible.

I place my arms underneath her and pick her up. The pain rising in my leg forces a scream from my throat. I carry her as fast as I can to the elevator and set her down. After I press the button for the simulation room, I look back down at Ev. Her chest has stopped moving. She’s not breathing.

CHAPTER XI

The elevator doors open, and I drag Ev out as quickly as possible. I make sure she is on her back, and I kneel down next to her. As I pinch her nose and tilt her head back, I see the Genesys run over. I put my mouth over hers and inhale into her mouth twice.

“What happened?” Mag screams.

“Is she okay?” Ox adds.

I ignore them as I lean down to listen for a sign of breathing. Nothing. I pinch her nose again and give her two more breaths. “Come on, Ev!”

“Is her heart beating?” K leans in.

“Everybody shut up and step back!” I can’t handle their questions; I need to focus. I lean in to listen again, still nothing. I pinch her nose and breathe into her mouth again.

As I pull away, I see Ev’s lifeless face. There is peace there, and she looks more beautiful than ever, but I am not ready to let her go.

“Don’t leave me!” I shout at her. Tears streak down my cheeks and cloud my vision. I check for her pulse, and I feel a faint beat. She doesn’t have much time. I tilt her head back one more time and put as much hope as I can into my breaths.

The Genesys begin to shout encouragement at Ev, pleading for her to come back. I lean down to listen for breathing and still don’t feel anything. Bringing my lips closer to her ear, I whisper, “I can’t do this alone. I need you, Ev.”

I wipe the tears from my eyes and go in for two more breaths. As I pull away, her arms shoot up and pull me down. Ev coughs as she convulses back to life. The Genesys cheer around us, and I’m pulled to the ground next to Ev.

“I’m here,” she whispers to me. “I’m here.”

Relief runs through my body, and suddenly I feel weak. My brain remembers that my leg is injured, and the pain I feel is unbearable. The light around me fades.

“We need to go get help,” Al says.

“No! Nobody leaves the simulation room. It’s too dangerous. We take care of our own down here.” The voice surprises me. It’s Titan’s.

As much as I can’t stand him, Titan is a good leader. Knowing that the Genesys will be safe with him calling the shots, I let exhaustion overtake me, and I pass out.

I teeter in and out of consciousness. Just as I’m about to fade completely to black, a shot of pain pulls me back into awareness. I can’t open my eyes or move my body, but I can hear