Breeders (Breeders #1) Read online

  Thor and I sorted through the belongings placed on the bed. Our weapons and rations had been removed, along with the canteen of liquid I had been using during our escape in the woods. We dressed quickly and made our way through the opening. The room was still empty except for us and completely shrouded in darkness. Poppy waited patiently.

  “Please follow me. This, as you have probably deduced already, is the quarantine area where you are screened on arrival. The facility is placed outside the city for our protection, you understand.”

  She lead us through double doors to a dimly lit corridor. “Other than your arrival, or in any event you are unwell, you will not be authorized to return to this facility.” She opened the door to reveal a large open room with a variety of desks which, although filled with paperwork, were absent of people. “It’s pretty quiet here today, as it’s one of our rest days. You have been assigned temporary living quarters in Compound A. Accommodation here is pretty rustic, we battle for certain supplies, but we make do as well as we can. Cole will show you to your Compound. For now, you need to be escorted everywhere until we determine your security clearance.”

  We walked into the large empty space which we had been marched through a few days earlier. Cole waited on the far side of the hall. Poppy left us as we approached him. Thor whispered whilst never taking his eyes off Cole, “Just do what they say, Ariet. We need to gain their trust and find out what we can.” he reminded me. Instinctively, I grasped his hand tightly.

  Cole was a man of few words who led us by using hand signals. We proceeded out the back of the building down a long dirt road. Slowly the town came into view as we neared. Some of the structures were much older looking and dilapidated but unique in their design and build. The remainder of the buildings were what I had become accustomed to in the New World, constructed of steel and chrome, shiny and vulgar but sterile and neat in appearance. It was interesting how the new buildings stood out in harsh contrast to the old.

  As we approached the outskirts of the city, Cole led us towards a building where we descended into an underground tunnel. Looking quizzically at him, “Train,” he spat out as if talking to us went against every grain of his being. A train approached and we hung onto the ceiling rails for support, as there were no seats in this compartment. It moved fairly quickly in a direction which I assumed was towards the city centre. Some illumination was given by lights on the side of the tunnel, and I could just make out some kind of graffiti lining the walls of the platforms we passed. Dirt and debris lined the walkways and stairwells.

  Cole exited off to a side car gesturing for us to stay put, but he returned shortly after. The train slowed to a stop, and doors opened to reveal an old platform with Compound A and an arrow painted on a dimly lit wall. He led us up a stairwell and out into an old courtyard of some kind. We passed through it and crossed a tarred street which extended from one side of the town to as far as I could make out.

  “Why is it deserted?” I asked.

  Cole kept on walking, avoiding the question which was becoming an increasingly infuriating trait of the residents here. Thor raised his eyebrows at me in a warning as I was about to snap at Cole and let my temper get the better of me. We crossed the street and passed through an old alleyway. At the end of it, Cole rapped three times on a large steel door. The door opened with a large man giving us a once over and a courteous nod to Cole. Letting us pass, we walked through a small winding tunnel which opened into a huge building. Rooms and rooms lined winding corridors that coiled up into the heavens, with a half opened ceiling.

  We walked slowly into the centre of the building, making our way through tents and make shift quarters. Faces peered out at us, watching our every move. Most looked concerned and frightened, whilst I got a small smile from a child playing with an old doll. On the far side of the building was a large area designated the ‘Receiving Room’ with a hand painted sign. An old man sat at a wooden desk shuffling through some papers. Cole cleared his throat to announce our presence.

  “Here are the new refugees, Walt, assigned to Compound A.” Turning towards us, “Walt will be responsible for you whilst you remain in here.” Unlike any of the staff we had met since our arrival in this strange world, Walt had a gentle but wise face, lined with wrinkles and knowledge. Gray stubble coated his face and hair. He looked up at us, smiling.

  “Welcome. Please, sit.” He gestured towards two old sofa chairs. Directing his attention to me first, “You will remain in this Compound while you carry your child to full term. Your Guardian will be assigned to another Compound where we will evaluate his skill set, and he will be put to good use.”

  In an instant, Thor was on his feet stalking towards the desk and gripping it with both hands, “I stay with Ariet. There will be no deviation to that plan. Ever. I am her Guardian. Is that clear?” he growled menacingly.

  This seemed to have little effect on Walt. “What is your name, son?”

  “Thor.”

  “I know that, Thor who?”

  “Thor Sterling. But I was previously Thor Birch.”

  A gasp escaped the elder man’s lips, and his face went ashen. This took Thor aback and he settled next to me again protectively. “Your family?” the old man whispered.

  “I have no family. Ariet is now my family. I don’t see how this is relevant.” he snapped.

  The elderly man’s voice was barely a whisper. He rolled up his sleeve to reveal the same scar we had just received where our implantation device had been removed, although his was well healed and had aged.

  “My full name is Walter Birch, they call me Walt though. I am your Grandfather, son.”

  Epilogue

  Watching Thor play with Sam on the small patch of grass in front of me, I cannot help but smile. Amazed at how Sam has softened him, I feel so much love and gratefulness to Thor, it hurts sometimes. I continue to worry about our safety here in the Old World. Although the Refugees have been protective of us and have welcomed us, I know a war is coming, and we are at the centre of it. Soon we will have to leave this place. I cannot hide Sam’s genetic ability for much longer. His advanced memory skills, together with something else Thor and I have noticed, have set him apart from any other infant I have come into contact with. Every day it amazes me and makes me proud, but I know that when they find out, they will use him as a weapon and steal his innocence.

  For now though, I watch the sun set and allow the five minutes of peace I feel to warm me. I wait daily for the arrival of Mason, still holding onto the belief that he will find us, that he will escape and bring my family to me. Be reunited with his son. I fear that this will not happen before we are forced to leave this world. So I wait every day with expectations that are not met. But, for now, I lie down on the grass beside them and watch the sun set.