The Genesis Machine

Chapter 4

Cold enveloped me, freezing my limbs and filling my lungs. A great weight seemed to press against me from all sides, as if the air around me was becoming solid, attempting to crush me. I began to panic, unable to draw breath, unable to move, unable even to see. This is it, I thought. This is how I die. And then the mist vanished, the pressure lifted, and my feet slammed into solid ground. My knees buckled and I fell forward into rough sand. Gasping for air, I looked up just in time to see a flash of silver light ahead of me and someone appeared just above the ground and toppled into a dune, just as I had.

I looked around, noticing other people scrambling to their feet, dusting themselves off. Some people just lay where they had fallen, too stunned by everything that had happened to do anything else. I resolved not to be like them. I pushed myself to my feet and turned in a circle, staring at the world around me: The sand I had fallen into stretched as far as I could see, all directions but one disappeared into the horizon, sand stretching out forever except for one sliver where the dark smudge of distant mountains broke the flat landscape. Above me, the sky was a deep blue, unbroken by any clouds. We had been dropped into a scorching desert, I realized. We'd been dropped here to die.

The heat was intense. My body was already drenched in sweat, causing the gritty sand to stick to my skin. I did my best to slap my hands against my pants, getting as much of the sand off as possible, then wiped my brow with the back of my hand. I looked behind me as someone shouted my name. 

"Four! Hey, Four!" 

It was Three. His white garments were gritty with sand and sweat, his olive skin shiny with perspiration. He glanced around and lowered his voice. "What are we going to do, Four? I just helped a couple other people, one of them twisted her ankle. Everyone seems on the verge of going into shock. We need to get organized or else we'll all die." 

I knew he was right. Looking at the people around me, I saw one or two heading off in different directions, but most just stood huddled together and a few hadn't even stood up. We were in bad shape and if we didn't do something, we would only get worse.

"You're right." I muttered. "But what are we going to do? We're in the middle of a desert. There's no shelter or water. We need both of those or else we're as good as dead."

Three furrowed his brow, clearly thinking hard. As we both thought about what to do, we were joined by Two, her dark hair plastered to her face with sweat, and One, who's skin was chalky. Another man, who's neck tattoo identified him as Six, wandered up behind them.

Two panted, fanning herself with her hand. "We need to find some way to shelter from this heat. We won't last out here otherwise."

Six nodded, looking thoughtful. "Why don't we cover our heads with those jackets they gave us? That'd give our heads and faces some protection from the sun." He reached into his pack and pulled out his own jacket, wrapping it around his head and neck to demonstrate. "Then we should head towards those mountains. I'm guessing that the closer we get to them, the rockier the ground will be."

"And why would we want rocky ground?" Grumbled One. "This sand is bad enough, at least it's soft."

Six shot him an annoyed look. "Have you tried walking around in this sand? Yes, this sand is soft, that's exactly the problem. Walking on stony ground will be much easier, plus I have a hunch that plants could probably grow better away from all this sand and grit."

Three looked excited. "And where there's plants there might be water!" Six nodded, seeming pleased that we were catching on. "So now all we have to do is convince the others that our best chance is in that direction," he said, nodding towards the distant mountains. 

To my surprise, One didn't look happy. "Why should we bother convincing them? Take a look around you, Six. They're done for, some of them won't even get up. We should just go, we'll make better time without them."

"He's right. It'll take too much time getting this lot together. We'd do better to just leave." Another man had joined our group, his pale skin beginning to turn red under the glare of the sun. He looked at us, then smiled. "My name is Eleven. This is Ten." He nodded at the woman behind him, she was short, dwarfed by Eleven's powerful frame, and her dark brown eyes contrasted with his cold grey gaze." 

"We can't just leave them!" Three sounded shocked and indignant. "We have to stick together."

Eleven raised an eyebrow at Three, but before he could disagree, Six spoke. "You're both right. A large group will slow us down, but we would stand a better chance of survival with more people. Who knows what dangers this place holds. Sticking together is our best chance at surviving."

Again, he spoke over Eleven's protest, but this time he raised his voice, making sure it was loud enough to carry to the other groups around us. "We'll head for the mountains. If we make good time we can find a good place to camp, somewhere with shelter and water. But we have to go now. Everyone up! Let's get moving!" 

Eleven glared at Six and I was surprised that the force of his gaze didn't burn the other man. Then he shrugged and his expression cleared. Raising his voice to match Six's he bellowed at the crowd. "Everyone get up. Get your backpacks and find a buddy. We need to move in pairs, just to be safe." Six nodded in approval and began moving through the crowd, pairing people up, helping the few who were still sitting where they had fallen, murmuring kind words. Following his example, Three also began to push his way through the crowd, explaining the plan and pairing people off. I glanced at Eleven and then we both started forward, helping Three and Six to get the crowd on its feet, ready to leave.

Within a few minutes everyone was ready to go, including the two people who had started to wander off. Eleven had sent two people after them to bring them back and explain the situation to them. To my surprise, not even they objected. Either Six's plan really was that good, or else we had all been through too much to offer any counter arguments.

"Six and Three should go in front," Eleven said, attempting to take charge again. "We'll need them to lead the way. No one should pass them. I'll stay in the back and make sure no stragglers get left behind." He looked at me, a question in his gaze. "Four, will you stay back with me too? And you too, Ten." He motioned to the woman who had stuck close to his side. "We three can spot anything following us and alert the others, as well as making sure no one falls too far behind the group."

I agreed, though I didn't trust Eleven. I still remembered how he had agreed to abandon most of the group, taking only the strongest and most determined. I also realized that the only two people I trusted were Three and Six, though the way Six seemed to know more about this landscape and how to survive in it struck me as odd. It was almost as if he knew something more than we did. I resolved to keep an eye on him and ask him about it.

And One, the plan to leave the others behind had been his idea. I would need to keep an eye on him as well. Two had agreed with him, I remembered suddenly. She was cold and calculating. I had no doubt that she would happily knife me in the back and steal my gear if she could. As for Ten, the woman who Eleven had volunteered to remain in the back with he and I, I couldn't get a read on her. She moved in Eleven's shadow, seeming to be an extension of him rather than her own person. I had no idea what to make of her.

I heard Six's distant shout and the group began to move forward, forming a more organized column as they fell into step behind him and Six. As the march began, I glanced up at the sky, relieved that the scorching sun was still far from its peak and noticed the strangest thing: A second sun, much smaller than the first was also visible in the sky, lower than the larger and less bright.

What a strange world we were in, I thought to myself as I began to walk. A strange place with strange people.