Virus: Insanity

~13~

Luna wasn't sure if there was really a God of any kind. If there was, then why did it send the virus, or let something give them the virus? No, there probably wasn't. No good god would let this happen, let a war rage across their land, let Jace die...take her partner away. No almighty power would let that happen. She rolled over in her bed, her thoughts keeping her awake. She ended up looking out the window at the dark skyline, only a few lights left shining, people who were still up like her. The rest of the city was sleeping, and rightfully so. It was long past when the sun went down. Luna stared out across the city, trying to remember when it was in its heyday. She couldn't. The virus had shown up when she was little. Back then, everyone took what they had for granted. Cell service, a general unit of time, games and toys, working amusement parks, a steady flow of electricity in more than one place. Many of these things had been eliminated by the first strains of virus-infected people, leaving the world scrambling for a safe haven. Not long after, the original Purebloods discovered an almost-antidote. It fended off the lasting effects of the virus, and it was free. The Purebloods still supply humanity with their almost-antidote today, trying to keep our species alive. They've done a pretty good job about it, but the mutant population was still growing despite their efforts. The virus was beginning to learn how to avoid the pseudo-antidote, which was really, REALLY bad. Humanity was slowly disappearing off the face of the earth. Each new mutant was a fallen carrier pigeon, shot down by an unavoidable bullet. Soon they would become extinct. They would join the endless species of animals they have destroyed, now kindred spirits in oblivion. Luna sighed. Humanity was screwed. If there is a God, she thought, why isn't he helping us?

Stephen looked up from his laptop when someone pounded on the door. He was in the office, the pounder was in the gym. The sound echoed throughout the whole lower level, alerting everyone. Stephen got to the door first, and his face instantly broke out into a smile.
    "Naia!" he said excitedly, opening the door for her. "What are you doing here?"
    "Jace told me about you Rebels," she said, giving him a smile back before she stepped to the side. "So i brought recruits." Outside was a miniature army of mutants and people, all from the prison. The girls ran up behind Stephen, mouths agape. Stephen laughed and shook his head, throwing his hands into the air in excitement. They weren't screwed! Yay! Now we've got a chance! Before he even knew what he was doing, his arms were around Naia's neck. The world froze. Then Naia shoved him backwards, red and angry.
    "What are you doing?!" she snapped.
    "I, um, uh," he stammered, blushing and bewildered.
    "Just don't do it again," Naia said, sending him one last glare before shoving her way past him to talk to the girls. All of the mutants stared at him, as if they wanted him to do something.
    "Um..." he said, wings fluttering nervously, "Uh, come inside and, uh, have a seat where you can, I guess." He hovered above the crowd as they filed in, the girls stepping to the side as well. The people sat on the bleachers, the hoops, the crash net, and the littler ones ran around on the floor. Stephen flew in and shut the door behind him, landing on the floor. Then Naia began to bark out commands.
    "Hey! We're gonna get organized now!" The girls made a horizontal line, Stephen hobbling into step beside them. Naia continued. "We're gonna sort you guys by type," she said, standing beside Stephen and turning him to face the mutants with the girls. "Humans first. Stand in a line behind me." All of the humans did as she said, which was only a couple dozen people. "Creatures behind Stephen." About half of the remaining people walked, galloped, or hopped behind him in a line. "Shapeshifters behind Ellie." Somewhere between ten and twenty people went behind her. "Spell-casters behind Tori." About ⅔ of the remainder walked over. "Elementals behind Madison." Half of the remainder got up and walked over. "Anyone else behind Vera." The rest obeyed. "Great. Now we're going to split off to go train. C'mon." Naia walked outside, leading her team to what was a field, once upon a time.
    "You stay here," Ellie said, waiting for the other groups to leave.
    "What am I supposed to do?" he asked as she started to leave.
    "Just do what we did for you," she called. "Or think of something yourself." Stephen sighed, exasperated. He turned to the group of creature-like people standing in an uneven line behind him. Then he had an idea.
    "Line up in front of the bleachers," he yelled, crossing his arms."It's time for a skill test."