"You're the one who freed me," Alex says, relaxing as his eyes quickly take in my mentor.

Dr. Greene nods her head.

"Wait, I am so confused right now," Quinn says.

"I think we all are," I mumble, resting my head against Braeden's chest.

"Well, we don't have much time, so let me explain the best that I can." Dr. Greene pulls some papers out of a file, setting them down in front of her.

"As we all know, the humans were wiped out about thirty years ago, by a deadly virus, and we have been taught that the virus was transferred via the contaminated blood of a chimpanzee. But that isn't quite true."

"Uh, what?" I say, brows scrunched in confusion.

"The virus that wiped out the humans wasn't created by mother nature. Hybrids created it, hoping to wipe out most of the human population, and sadly they succeeded."

"Why the hell would we do that?" Quinn says, sounding utterly offended, and I am right there with him.

Dr. Greene makes a sound of understanding. "Almost offensive to hear something so vulgar about your species, isn't it? But it is the truth. None of you were alive when the humans were still here." She gives a slight shake of her head, eyes wandering to a picture on her desk. "We were treated like a subspecies, only a small portion of humans treated us with compassion. It wasn't rare to hear of one of us being kept as a pet or a source of pleasure that we didn't always consent to. We had animalistic features and were considered exotic, so we were treated as a lower species.

"Our numbers were dropping, and so a group our scientists decided to take it upon themselves to wipe out our oppressors and torturers. And it mostly worked, so we thrived. Many of us, though, were deeply disturbed about what happened, because we had friends or family who were humans, and who died a torturous death.

"But, as you know, not all the humans died." She looks over at Alex, giving him a soft smile. "The ones who survived were strong, immune to the virus that wiped out all the others. Most of the humans who survived were friends to hybrids, and that is what saved them. They had a piece of hybrid genetics in them that made them immune to the virus." She swallows heavily, looking back down at her desk. "But not all who survived were our friends, and I wouldn't expect them to be. Now, there are many human compounds that are almost like old-fashioned army bases, using their women like breeders to pump out more soldiers."

"Hold on a second," Quinn says, eyebrows scrunched in confusion. "How did our government keep this a secret from us? There are still many of us who were alive when the humans were alive."

Dr. Greene nods her head. "Yes, there are." She has a shaky smile on her face. "Haven't you ever wondered why the younger population heavily outweighs the older generations?"

"Yes, it is odd," Braeden mumbles.

"Well, not to me," Dr. Greene says. "Most of us, especially the generation before mine were wiped out. We were told to comply, and our history was erased. Those who refused were killed or sent away."

"Sent away?" I question. "Where would they be sent?"

"The hills," Dr. Greene says. "The ones sent away are the ones who grow most of our food. It isn't tortuous out there, but it is hard work."

"How do you know all of this? Did you let them force you to comply?" I ask.

"I was young when this all happened," she says, "barely ten years old, so I wasn't pressured as hard. Any one younger than thirteen was seen as a none threat." She clears her throat, eyes flickering over to a picture on her desk. "And I know about the hills because that was where my mate was sent after he was caught smuggling goods to human traders."

"I-I thought your mate was dead?" I whisper.

"No," she responds, voice cracking slightly. "But I haven't seen him in years."

"I'm sorry," I say, reaching over to give her hand a soft squeeze.

"Well, it is because of him that I am doing this, so I am grateful for that." Dr. Greene hands me a piece of paper, and when I look at it, I see that it is a map. When I look up at her, she gives me a sad smile. "You guys will need to leave before they issue quarantine, and I know someplace safe for you to go. It's a village, small population of hybrids and humans together. They are the ones who don't want to fight the coming war, so they have moved far away. You should go there, where you will survive and no one will be able to find you."

"War? Why is there a war coming?" Braeden questions, his arms tightening around me.

"Because many of the humans are angry, and they have a right to be, but our leaders aren't just going to sit back and let the humans kill all of us." She lets out a long sigh. "Remember how I told you that some humans were immune because of their hybrid ancestry?" We all nod our heads. "Well, we have been trying to locate this gene and replicate it, in order to create a vaccine for the disease that is ravaging us."

She sits back in her chair. "I guess you could say that karma is just doling out what we are due because it was human scientists this time who created the virus that is harming us."

"Those monsters out there were once hybrids?" I ask, and Dr. Greene nods her head.

"Yes." She looks down at one of the papers in front of her. "A few years ago, some hybrids from the colony Trivesta went missing, something very unusual. They were never found, but we know now that they were used as test subjects to create the disease. Once the humans had succeeded, they led the infected hybrids back to their home colony, where they infected others. Slowly but surely, the virus has managed to spread, despite our efforts to stop it, and we still haven't been able to discover a cure or manufacture a vaccine.

"I was trying to give you hints about what was going on, Henley," she says, "because you have to survive what is going to happen."

"W-Why me?" I ask.

"Because I knew your parents, and they didn't deserve what happened to them."

"What are you talking about?" I say, voice coming out a little harsher than I originally meant. "My parents abandoned me."

She shakes her head, pulling open one of her desk drawers and pulling something out. She looks at it for a few seconds before handing it over to me. With shaky hands, I take it from her, and when I look down at what she handed me, my breath catches in my throat.

Because it is a picture of my parents, my mom with both hands around my dad's waist, and my dad holding me tightly against him, a proud smile on his face.

"Your parents were both advocates for the humans when the virus first started. They were part of the biggest organization working for a cure. When it failed and our government finally rose up after years of battling, they were one of the first ones to be... to be executed."

"Oh my god," I mumble, tears welling up, and I don't even have a chance to try and stop them before they are spilling over.

"They saved my life," Dr. Greene says, her voice trembling. "They took me in when my own parents were killed, raising me for six years before they were killed." She wipes at her eyes, clearing her throat. "They saved my life, so now I am saving yours."

She stands up from her seat. "Before you leave, though, I want to do a prenatal check on both of you." She gestures at me and Quinn, waiting for us to stand up before leaving the room.

"I still feel like I have no idea what is going on," Quinn mumbles.

"Same," I say, still trying to process everything that Dr. Greene had said.

My whole world just got swept out from under me. Apparently, my species tried to completely wipe out another, and now we are about to be in an all out war. Infected hybrids are running around, trying to spread their disease, and one of my friends happened to be attacked by one. Even more shocking is the fact that my parents didn't leave me. My entire life, I have hated them, thinking that they were selfish for leaving me behind. But I was wrong. They were fighting for the greater good and were killed for it.

Dr. Greene snaps me out of my musing when she asks me to lie down on the patient table. She quickly and methodically takes my vitals before switching on the ultrasound in order to peek at the baby. She is done in about ten minutes, printing off a picture to give me before doing the same procedure for Quinn.

"Would you like to know the sex?" she asks him, and Quinn gives a quick nod of his head. "Well, it looks like you are having a girl. Congratulations."

Quinn swallows heavily, blinking back tears. He has a shaky smile on his face, and it is clear to see how happy he is. Dr. Greene prints off a picture for him as well.

"You both are right on track. Babies are looking healthy and strong. Now-"

Her words are cut off by a loud scream, stopping us all in our tracks.

"What the hell was that?" Braeden asks, moving so that he is standing in front of me.

"All of you stay here," Dr. Greene says, waiting for us to nod before walking out of the room.

I am able to stay put for all of ten seconds before I can't resist any longer. Before Quinn or Braeden can stop me, I go after her.

Crying starts up, intermingled with screams every few seconds. My heart starts to pound when I see that they are coming from the room where Lena and Lottie were laying down.

On shaky legs, I force myself over to the open door and a sob leaves my lips when I see the scene in front of me.

Because my best friend is laying on the ground, sobbing and coughing up blood, with a large bite mark on her neck. But it is drastically worse than the one Lottie had. Half of Lena's neck is missing.

"Oh god, oh god, oh god," I whimper, moving closer to her.

"Henley, no, you can't touch her," Dr. Greene says, stepping in front of me. She has a needle in her hand, and another empty one lays on the ground, next to a collapsed Lottie.

Or what I assume used to be Lottie, because it is hard to tell. She looks like she was in the middle of mutating into one of those creatures.

"The medicine didn't work," I whisper, and Dr. Greene nods her head.

"It wasn't strong enough to hold back the infection," a deep voice says.

Turning, I see Link in the corner, leaning heavily against the wall as if he is about to collapse. His eyes are fixated on his unmoving sister.

"And now she is dead."

Dr. Greene crouches down next to a quickly bleeding out Lena, making sure not to make contact with the blood. "Lena, can you hear me?"

My best friend continues to cry, but it is becoming harder. She is practically choking on her blood. Dr. Greene lets out a painful sigh, seeming to hesitate for a second before pressing the needle into Lena's chest, directly above where her heart is. Lena lets out a few heavy breaths before her breathing stops completely, her eyes wide and motionless in her passing.

Dr. Greene forces herself up until she is standing. Sirens begin wailing in the distance, making her look a bit panicked.

"You guys have to leave now before they get here."

She walks over to me pulling me out of the room, and I see the others standing in the hallways, their faces ghostly white.

"Quinn," I whisper, looking up at him with blood shot eyes. "Go get your mate, we have to leave." He gives a shaky nod of his head before walking into the room, never looking at the lifeless figures on the ground while making his way over to his mate.

Every part of me is hurting. My friend, who was practically a sister to me, is no longer here. No longer breathing. It feels wrong to leave her behind.

Braeden wraps his arm around me pulling me close while my tears continue to flow. Quinn eventually comes back out of the room, a tight grip on his silent mate. Dr. Greene looks us all over, despair clear on her face.

"Grab your bags." She takes us into her office, where the others had left our things. Alex and Braeden pick up their own bags, slipping them on their backs, before handing me, Link, and Quinn one.

Dr. Greene hands me the map that I had put down earlier, along with the picture of my parents. "Go out the back door and follow the trail that leads into the forest. Your first check point is at the end of the trail. The map will tell you where to go from there."

She leads us back out of her office and over to the back door. Holding it open for us, she waits until all of us are out of the building before throwing me a set of keys.

"There is a shed at the end of the trail, next to the checkpoint. There are weapons and some supplies in there. Take them, you're going to need them." The sirens are getting closer, and she gives us one last long look. "Things are completely different outside our colony. You'll see things that seem impossible, but they are real, I promise." She starts to close the door, giving me one last smile. "Good luck."

And the door closes.

*****

When I was writing this, it was exceedingly long, that is why it is split into two chapters. My heart is still hurting from writing this.

RIP Lena and Lottie