Mass Extinction Event: The Complete Fourth Series (Days 54 to 61) Read Online Free PDF Page B

understand, New York was hit particularly hard.”
    “It was, but -” I pause for a moment, trying to work out how he knows that I was in New York. He knew my name, too. Something about this situation doesn't feel right, but I don't want to let him know that I'm onto him, not yet. “Planes fell out of the sky,” I continue. “All the power went off, and almost everyone else seemed to either drop dead or turn into one of those creatures.”
    “We've seen them,” he replies. “We've named them all Joe, on account of their origin, although a lot of the men insist on calling them zombies. They're not zombies, though. Zombies aren't real.”
    “Then what are they?”
    “They're the result of one man's insane attempt to replicate his mind in the form of a virus,” he continues. “Unfortunately, that man had access to some extremely high-grade military-industrial facilities and compounds, which allowed him to get much further than should ever have been possible. His virus worked surprisingly well, although the resulting creatures usually don't last very long. Most seemed to die off after just a few weeks, although the virus itself remains very potent, even in their corpses. Pockets of further infection are still breaking out here and there.”
    “And how far did it spread?” I ask.
    “Everywhere.”
    “The whole world?”
    “Communication has been difficult,” he continues. “We've established limited contact with forces in Great Britain, France and Argentina, but that's about it. The virus would appear to have infected more than ninety per cent of the global population, and of the remaining ten per cent, not many made it past the first few days of this crisis.”
    “So how many people are left?” I ask.
    “In the world? Impossible to say for certain, but I'd imagine it's no more than a few million.”
    “But it's getting better now, right?”
    “Define better .”
    “It's under control.”
    “We understand it better,” he explains. “We know more or less how it passes from one person to another, and we know what it does to the human body once an infection begins. Obviously we no longer have access to state-of-the-art laboratories, but we've done our best. We use wood-burning generators to keep the base running, and we're working on a plan to move out at some point and head to Boston.”
    “So there's hope?” I ask, barely even daring to believe that civilization might be restored.
    “There's a chance that we won't all die painful deaths in the next few days,” he replies. “Will that do for now?”
    “I want to see Rachel.”
    “We had no idea that was her name.”
    “I want to see her now!”
    “Of course,” he replies, “that's not a problem at all. You should rest, but you can see the child before you go back to your room. The only thing is...” He pauses for a moment. “Elizabeth, there's one thing you need to know about her first.”

Thomas
     
    “What the hell are you doing with these things?” I ask, staring down at the creatures as they stagger around in the pit. Some of them have noticed us and are looking up, while others are clawing at the muddy walls as if they're desperate to get out.
    “I'm working with them,” Mark replies, watching the creatures with an expression that seems almost like pride. “Teaching them, learning from them... Training them.”
    “You have to kill them!”
    “Why?”
    “They're dangerous! Do you have any idea what they do to people?”
    “I've seen them in action,” he replies. “I understand them, but it's all about context.”
    I stare at him, unable to believe what he's saying.
    “There's a place for them,” he continues, “a place in the world. I'm going to help them find that place.”
    I watch as one of the creatures starts climbing up the side of the pit, but it only manages to get about half a meter off the ground before falling back down.
    “Don't worry,” Mark continues, “they can't possibly escape. I've gone to great lengths