The Simulation - Book 1

Part 1 - Chapter 1

I'm so sorry for not updating this sooner... I was super busy with school exams and dance exams and IELTS preparations and IAs and WAs and EEs... So sorry. I really hope that you guys enjoy this chapter. Please stay with me even though this book is completely different from The Elemental Chronicles... I'm sorry that I haven't updated it earlier, but please continue to be loyal readers and stay with my new series. Thanks for everything that you've all done for me so far. :) I love you guys and thank you so much. Picture of Laurel Silver on top. :) 

Part 1

Chapter 1

5 years later

"Silver, report," another doctor barked across the room; Laurel jumped and tried to focus her bleary eyes on the lab paper in front of her. "Well?"

Laurel forced herself not to rub her eyes hard or yawn in front of her supervisor. It had been 15 hours since she had slept, but Dr. Spencer did not look kindly towards anyone who was not 100% committed to the research that they were doing.

"Negative success, sir," she said, laying down the sheets of paper covered in tiny, neat handwriting.

Negative success was preferable to saying 'failure'.

For once, Dr. Spencer looked as weary as she felt. They had been on the go since six in the morning and it was now nine at night. That was a long shift, even for the dedicated research department. They had only had a short break for lunch halfway through the day and that hadn't even been half-an-hour. And this was considered a short day.

Dr. Spencer looked at the intern next to her. "Reynolds, report."

Reynolds, her fellow intern, cringed next to her. He was more than a little afraid of Dr. Spencer; they both knew that the main doctor of the research lab was more than a little intimidating.

"Negative, sir," he said, avoiding the doctor's gaze.

When the doctor turned his attention to another of his colleagues, Laurel grimaced and muttered in a low voice, "Don't worry, Rey." She nodded towards Dr. Spencer in a subtle way. "He acts like that to everyone."

Reynolds pulled a weird face back. "But he picks on us a lot."

Laurel rolled her eyes. "We are the novices," she pointed out.

Reynolds sighed. Laurel put the lab report down on the table and picked up another one. Part of their internship was to read all of the research papers on the VR virus so far so that they would be able to investigate the virus independently when they were done.

Reynolds was not a keen learner. When he had taken the medical internship, he had probably imagined himself as saving lives, not reading endless electronic reports which were the latest research papers, all the way back to back to when they hadn't had electricity and had used sheets of paper.

"Alright, interns, nurses, doctors, shift is over," Dr. Spencer said. He didn't need to remind them of the drill, but he did anyway; he told them the exact same thing every time they left the lab. "Get some food and sleep. Return for your shift at 6 in the morning. Good night."

Reynolds grinned at Laurel, his normally downcast expression transforming into a much happier one; his white teeth gleamed against his dark skin and his hair, which was standing on end thanks to him having run his hands through it all day, was now looking alive.

"Want to grab a bite, Laurel?" he asked her; they tended to eat together if her brother, Viktor, was still on shift with the Enforcers. "Or is Viktor free today?"