The Altered.

Chapter XXVI.

Bri's group had food.

And, surprisingly, enough for everybody. It wasn't the healthiest food they could have had, but it was filling. Claire had been proud to announce that it had been her doing; she'd raided a supermarket while in the city the previous day. Miles, who hadn't eaten anything in more than a day now - and the same for everybody in his group - was like an animal, lunging for anything he could get his hands on. That was, except for Lia, who hung back and waited more sensibly to collect double the amount of food she might need. Before anybody could object, she carried it all towards the corner of the treehouse and sat herself down beside Percy, giving him a smile.

He was awake, today, and seemed to be calming down a little. He was still trembling and sweating and going between being too hot and too cold, but he wasn't unexpectedly lashing out any longer. Miles had explained, when they'd all first found him awake and improving, "It'll happen to all the Altered, too. Their bodies will start to grow used to the weird new feeling and they'll sort of succumb to it, I guess. They'll become less like wild monsters and more just like insane humans. Remember the man that tried to kill Aaron? How he couldn't control a single thing he did? Then think about the kid who was attacking Percy when we found him. That kid's moves were calculated and accurate, right? It's because he'd been infected for a few hours and his body became used to it. So, the Altered will gain control over their bodies, sort of, but not their thoughts. Their head will still be telling them to do the wrong thing, since the computers in there have basically seized control."

Aaron had looked stressed after that whole explanation. "So, Percy has no control over his thoughts?"

"You weren't listening," Miles had said with a shake of his head. "The Altered don't have control over their thoughts, because the computers control their whole brains. Percy, on the other hand, has a microchip that just controls his arm. So this is as good as he's going to get, probably. If one part of his body is confused, the rest of him is going to keep trying to fight it, making him like... this." He'd waved a hand at Percy.

Now, Percy was still in the corner, sharing a few words with Lia as they ate and he tried to keep his movements under control. Everybody else, including the members of Bri's group, was eating too, mpstly in satisfied silence. Miles was tearing open a biscuit wrapper with his teeth, while Aaron was opening something similar politely with his hands.

Miles' and Aaron's shift last night had been particularly uneventful, and Miles assumed everybody's had been. They'd all been too exhausted to say or do much. This morning, the sky was still dark, but the rain had ceased, leaving a tranquil petrichor scent hanging in the air and the windows spattered with raindrops that were struggling to dry out without any sunlight.

"So, Lia told me about the idea you guys had for what's going on," Bri started. Miles could tell it wasn't just to kickstart conversation, either. There was something Bri wanted to say. He'd seen her talking to her group, earlier, sharing the idea with all of them, too. "We're all on the same page. We agree."

"You didn't have any of your own ideas?" Miles asked, trying to sound curious instead of expectant.

"We did." It was Claire who spoke, sounding plain and matter-of-fact. "We were on the same road as you guys, but not quite as much. We knew there was a virus and it was only affecting the Altered, but the realisation that it was the computers is all you guys."

Bronte put in, "So that means no electricity or anything at all?"

Eira bobbed her head in confirmation. "Battery stuff works, though."

"Our phones won't last forever without electricity to charge," Aaron said uncertainly.

"Aaron, you don't even have one." Miles knew that Aaron was right, though. Phone battery usually only lasted a week at best.