Botanicaust

light this bright, she ’ d only need a couple hours or less exposure a day to fulfill her blood sugar needs.
    Michael stepped into the room and waited on the other side of the door. She peered around the corner, expecting frills of foliage. Instead, six gurneys lined up like in a triage unit, each flanked by a beeping monitor and several IV stands. Above the beds, huge halogen reflectors beamed light directly onto the patients strapped to the beds.
    Green skinned patients.
    Haldanians.
    “ What … ” Confusion cluttered her mind. On stiff legs, she approached the nearest bed and looked into the ravaged face of a dark haired woman. “ Greta. ” The name came to her lips without thinking. This was a woman who ’ d reverted six months ago. Not one of Tula ’ s, but she remembered the euthanization orders.
    Frantic, she moved to the next bed, and the next. Two of the beds held a pair of twins she ’ d converted over a year ago. One of her most heartbreaking failures. Vitus had warned her twins were impossible, because each twin would always remind the other of her past. But Tula had been determined to save them. After seven months of stealing excess food, attempts to escape, and episodes of violence against fellow students, the twins were sent to euthanization. Or so Tula had believed.
    She turned to Michael, who watched from the door. “ How did they get here? ” Her voice echoed off the visor of her suit.
    He shrugged, the fit of his suit a bit too small to allow his shoulders to fully rise.
    “ I know these girls. All these people are supposed to be dead. ” Inside the confines of her helmet, she struggled for air. But she couldn ’ t risk removing the protective clothing. “ What are they doing here? ” She turned to a boy with a mane of golden hair who reminded her of Levi when he ’ d first arrived at the Protectorate.
    Following the line of the IV, she saw the familiar telomerase setup. Behind the boy ’ s ear, another line snaked across the gurney to terminate at a valve. Bending closer to the boy ’ s head, Tula discovered the line led to a brain shunt. What had Dr. Kaneka said about Haldanian steroids? Something about the blood brain barrier. Were these “ test subjects? ” She jerked upright and spun to face Michael, the suit hampering her movement.
    “ Is this what ’ s in store for me? ”
    Michael didn ’ t meet her eyes as he shrugged once again.
    “ I need to get out of here. ” She hurried out into the lab, her stomach roiling. The protein drink they ’ d provided at lunch felt like poison in her system. Once out of the light, she ripped off her hood and gulped huge draughts of air. Recirculated air. She was trapped inside a mountain. Trapped inside the stiff fabric of the radiation suit. Every crease in her skin dripped with nervous perspiration. As she struggled to free herself from the grasp of the suit, she heard voices from the hall.
    “ … VP shunt until the infection clears. ” The door opened and Dr. Kaneka froze, his blood-curdled eyes wide as he assessed the scene. Another man stood behind him, his mouth hanging open.
    “ Michael? ” Dr. Kaneka asked. Then he sighed. “ Tula. ” He shook his head. “ I really wish you hadn ’ t seen any of that. ”

    Levi tossed and turned in bed, his excessive movement continually triggering the automatic lights in the ceiling. Sitting up, he pressed the heels of his palms against his eyes. He needed rest if he was to make good time tomorrow. But hurt and anger circled his brain like a pair of turkey buzzards. Why would God let him love her, then take her away? Just like He ’ d taken Sarah. Was everyone Levi loved to be ripped from his life?
    The clock on the bed table read 3:12. He could only assume that meant AM. The sun would rise in a few hours. Bleary eyed, he looked around the sparse room. Resting in the chair, the new carrying pack Dr. Kaneka had provided sat upright and ready to go. Stuffed in the bottom, the blanket, robe, and sheer lab coat would be his only warmth for the journey. And his only memories of Tula. The water bottles rested in a jumble on top, filled from the tap in Levi ’ s bathroom. The remaining first aid items had their own exterior pocket, and the cannibal knife had another. He hoped the stiff fabric was sturdy enough to resist the blade ’ s edge. Everything fit nicely, with a padded, interior pouch specifically for the beacon.
    He clambered out of bed. If he could not sleep, he might as