"How's it going?" Angie asked once she reached the back."Almost done."While Angie pitched in to help speed up the process, Valerie whispered, "Angie? I hope you aren't too mad at Elias."Angie threw her a questioning glance."I contacted him to come over. Something seemed odd between you and the doctor. I was the one who disobeyed you. Not Elias." Valerie explained.[I was just about to tell you that!]/What's this, though? A woman's intuition?/"I see." Angie smiled and ruffled Valerie's hair. "Thanks for that."Angie finished up fast since she knew where everything was. Then, they grabbed their loot and left. Valerie looked shy but followed close behind Angie. They still had the research facility to go to. It was easier this time, because the researchers worked at odd hours and their teammates did well distracting patrol. Everything else went as expected, until Kyle's appear
Her eyes shot everywhere and landed on the occasional sparks flying off the electric fence. Following her train of thought, BaoBao proactively turned off the electricity before she had to ask him to. The ever ongoing buzzing suddenly went off. Without it, the soft rumbles of the vehicles suddenly felt far too loud. It prompted all of the soldiers to turn their engines off.They could not possibly leave this place vulnerable when their main line of defense was down. The pin drop silence was like Death's call. A distant roar of the monsters beyond the wire cage caused panic to erupt among the civilians. The control room was in a similar state. The higher ups shouted and yelled at technicians. Languages became colourful with expletives. Scoldings became abusive as personal attacks spilled forth."Leader Angie, you're also responsible for this, right? There's nothing to worry about, right?" Hamilton checked. Brandon and Wilbur looked at her for the same reassurance.&nb
Ferdinand’s team arrived at the scene only to be devastated that they were too late. Their readied rifles and blades lowered as they looked at the hanging bundles of thick vines in horror. Those emerald green vine bundles that were at least as thick as their arms told them all they needed to know. Their dry mouths hung agape. The silence of the forest suddenly felt a lot scarier. The towering trees suddenly looked a lot more intimidating.“We should go.” Ferdinand tried to usher his team back to where they came from. “There’s no point in staying any longer.”All the soldiers looked at Ferdinand at the same time.“But, it’s Commander Covington. It can’t be.”“He may have escaped. He may be hidin
“One of the vines I took turned out to be a real snake. It tightened around my arm but Conrad helped before anything happened, and my mum fixed my arm. So, like I said, I’m fine…” Angie recounted all that happened with a dispassionate tone. “Were those snakes the unplanned attack on Ferdinand’s group?” Jeffery clarified. Hamilton nodded. “Lucky you were there to cut them up. Otherwise, Ferdinand would die far too easily. THEN, Angie would really be upset.” “About that, thank you, guys.” She thanked Jeffery and Elias. However, Elias still looked as gloomy as ever. “I don't care about that… It doesn’t look as fine as you say…” His focus was still on her injury. Her entire arm had thick streaks of red and purple bruises from being squeezed too hard. Fr
The jeeps started up again and crawled forward, with Conrad’s group in front. Each crunch and rustle of leaves sounded too loud among the buzz of insects that filled the air. An occasional distant roar that no one could tell was human or animal added to the suspense. The chilly air brushed against their now sticky skin. Avoiding contact with the plants would be a lot easier if their jeeps were completely enclosed like a car. The occupants in each car pressed closely against each other in an effort to avoid each leaf and tendril. Jeffery helped to cover Hamilton, who became the driver after Wilbur switched vehicles. Angie made sure that her mother stayed safely in the middle of the jeep, while she stayed near the back of the vehicle. Naturally, Elias, who stayed close by her side, also positioned himself at the back of the vehicle. Every time they had to press against each other, Elias conveniently p
The first sun rays that filtered through the thick vegetation and dappled the ground gave everyone their sight back. Elias looked around in astonishment. The sunlight also caused Angie and her mother to stir in their sleep. Elias hastily and firmly held their heads down before they got up. "Careful." Their eyes flew open in alarm. "The plants grew. A lot." Elias continued to elaborate as they took in the same sight that astonished Elias. Tiny tendrils were already curled around the jeep's frame. Large leaves branched out dangerously close to them. Now that they were aware and alert, Elias let go of their heads and backed off a little. "They grow this fast?" Miryam whispered, slightly fascinated by it. "After so many years with no one tending to them… How much land ha
When the sky was brightly lit, everyone woke up one by one. “Is it just me or are they closer than ever before?” Brandon wondered aloud. Angie turned back in surprise. Almost everyone was awake. “Looks like we can start planning our next step.” She slid away from Elias, then casually perched on leg up on the jeep, placing it between her and Elias. /BaoBao… Why didn’t you tell me?/ BaoBao giggled without reserve. /Sneaky little child./ Meanwhile, Wilbur elbowed Brandon painfully in his ribs. Before Brandon could even yelp in pain, Wilbur whispered angrily, “Did you not notice how everyone stayed QUIET about it? You know how Angie is.” He lightly
Just before Amelia’s finger touched the apple, Valerie’s hand shot out to hold onto her mother’s arm. “Mom? I don’t think you should touch it.” Her mother looked at Valerie strangely. “Since when were you… Anyway," Amelia lowered her hand. "What if we can really eat it? Won’t it be a waste?" /Hm? She’s really not going to touch it?/ [Eh? She’s really not going to touch it?] BaoBao and Angie shared the same thought at the same time. /But I'd rather she touch it than anyone else./ Angie started to worry about what the world's consciousness had in store. Would it somehow rope Angie in instead? After all, her death flag had already been triggered. Valerie pursed her