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

its descent. Rene runs toward the steel door, and I run after him, carrying Fe.

“Hurry!” Rene shouts, encouraging himself more than me. He reaches the steel door, opens it, and runs in.

When I get to the door, he steps back out. I look at him. “What do I do?”

“Put her in her hyperbaric chamber. It will heal her as she sleeps.” He pushes me in.

I run in and lay Fe on the bed of the chamber and seal the top. Instantly the hyperbaric chamber jumps to life. Vitals and other information display on the glass of the lid.

I run back out to Rene just as the missile hits the city. A bright flash spreads out, and a giant cloud rises to the sky. The boom that follows shakes the ground I’m standing on.

“Come on.” I grab Rene’s arm.

“I love you, Atom. You are my legacy.” He brushes my hand away and pushes me into the bunker.

I run back toward him, but he slams the steel door in my face. I try the handle, but it won’t budge. Above it is a digital display, counting down from two years. I look out the small window in the door, and I see Rene standing a few feet away from the door.

“What are you doing?” I scream.

A few hundred feet in front of him, I see a giant wall of fire making its way toward us. It engulfs the Fly with ease.

“Get back here! Don’t!” I kick and punch the door, tears running down my face. “Dad!”

He looks back at me as the wall of fire takes him away from my life. A few seconds later, the wave of fire hits the door, and all I see is the yellow, orange, and red of the flames that are the end of the world. This is why I was created.

EPILOGUE

For two weeks, I mourn. I cry for my father. I cry for Ev and the other Genesys. I cry for 80 and Grant and anyone else who once was.

I check out the window in the door from time to time, but all I see is a darkness cast by the gray clouds that have not left since the explosion.

The only thing that seems to brighten the darkness is Fe. I check on her to make sure she is fine, and every time I do, I smile. She looks angelic as she sleeps. At the risk of the relationship I might have lost with Ev, I am glad I went back for Fe. The Genesys are my responsibility, and I need to lead them to E.D.E.N.

After doing one last check around the bunker, I climb into my hyperbaric chamber. I grab the lid and slide it over my body; it hisses and seals into place. I take a deep breath and close my eyes.

*****

I dream of standing alone in a vast, white abyss. It’s cold, and the ground feels hard and slick like ice. The sky is also white, and the only reason I can tell there’s a difference between the floor and the sky is that I see a figure out in the distance. I run toward the figure, and as I get closer, I can tell that it’s a girl. Her hair reaches down to the middle of her back. She is thin and tall. She’s turned away from me, so I reach out to touch her. Right before I do, she turns. It’s Ev.

The “Gene. Sys.” story continues. Read the first chapter to the second book:

CHAPTER I

I don't want to die.

My shoulders sting from being pulled above my head. My shoes struggle to stay on my feet as the heels drag against the ground. The world around me moves slow, much as it does when I'm in a battle against the outsiders. This is different, though—a different struggle.

I don't want to die.

My heartbeat echoes through my ears. I focus on the thumps as they pound inside my head. The beats grow faster, and my breathing matches the tempo. I look around and see two drones pulling me down a hallway by my arms. We pass a few people, but I can't see clear enough to tell whether they are drones, Genesys, or scientists. I try to make sense of the hallway to get my bearings. None of it looks familiar. My muscles tighten as adrenaline engulfs my body. I'm scared.

This is new. I don't like it. Fear is not something with which I am familiar. We drones were designed not to have it. Death was not supposed to scare us. But I'm scared. I don't want to die. I don't want to die.

“I don't want to die!” I scream out. I struggle to pull away, but before I get a chance to do anything, I’m thrown into a room. The door slams in my face.

I pound with my fists on the metal barrier, screaming until my throat feels like it's on fire. I know that it's all for nothing. They won't open the door until they are ready. Exhausted, I step back and take in my surroundings.

It's a small room—a bed in the center, little decor. One wall grabs my attention and holds it. It's covered in screens showing a live feed of different parts of the compound. The hallways, the medical ward, the bunkers that I call home, and many areas I’ve never seen before pollute my eyes. This compound must be enormous.

“Atom?” I step closer to the screens and see Atom pounding on the door of a tiny room, much smaller than the one I'm in. He's screaming, and even though I can't hear him, it's pretty evident that he's yelling, “Don't kill him.” I can only assume he's talking about me.

I pity Atom. If only he knew the burden he carries on his shoulders. He's powerful and courageous, but his empathy will make things difficult if he is to succeed at leading the Genesys after the Ragnarok and