The Last Colony

Part 45

Both Mark and Nate jumped to their feet as Kenny fell across the floor. Mari rushed to his side, dropping to her knees to lay her hands on his shoulders. She was getting hysterical. Jerking her head up, she screamed at them. "We need to call someone!" Mark dropped to his knees by Kenny, asking Mari over her terrified pleading. "Mari. Mari! Did you get the EpiPens?" Mari nodded, settling down enough to remove her backpack. Unzipping the backpack, she dumped them out across the ground. Mark exhaled a jagged breath at the sight of them. Mari gestured to them all, nervously telling him. "The gnome was empty... So, I took all the EpiPens that I could find... Do any of them look familiar?" Mark ran his hand over them with a blank look. They all looked the same. Locking eyes with Mari, Mark swallowed nervously. Mari bit her lip, her hands shaking as she held Kenny's hand in hers. Nate kneeled between them to look at the EpiPens. Picking some up, Nate looked them over before asking Mark curiously. "What are you looking for?"

Kenny's body jerked as his breathing slowed to a stop, Mari grabbed an EpiPen at random and pulled the top off. Before she hit Kenny in the thigh with it, Mark stopped her wrist. Taking the EpiPen from her, he gestured her aside and did it himself. He didn't want the bad result to be on her. Nate held onto Mari to keep her clear. The EpiPen clicked softly and Kenny suddenly jerked on the floor as his body gasped for air. Rolling to his side, Kenny coughed loudly and took deep strained breaths until his breathing leveled out. Mari strained against Nate's hold on her, relief flooding her voice as she cried out. "Kenny! Oh my god!" Mark dropped the EpiPen, falling backward onto his ass as he took deep calming breaths himself. Slowly rising up onto all fours, Kenny breathlessly muttered out. "I hate bugs..." Mark let himself chuckle, watching Nate release Mari. Mari draped herself over Kenny, wrapping her arms around his neck to cry softly against his shoulder. Kenny put a hand on her head, stroking his fingers through her bangs. When he sat up, she snuggled into his chest and he hugged her tightly.

Gathering up all the EpiPens, Mark grumbled out bitterly. "I should have marked the fucking things... Damn it!" Nate got up to pick the gnome up off the table, looking it over now as said softly. "Why? What's going on?" Mark held up an EpiPen, informing him curtly. "I was told to bring in a bunch of EpiPens that would infect the colony... I had them in the gnome and never intended to use them... but things got complicated." Nate turned the gnome over, curiously saying. "What if we can't tell the difference... because the ones you brought in were taken somewhere else?" Mark stopped gathering the EpiPens, upon asking bluntly. "What do you mean?" Mari tore herself from Kenny, rushing in. "Doesn't matter. Mark, we have to save Sean!" Mark's thoughts drifted to Sean, before replying seriously. "Tell me what you know." Mari composed herself, regaling to him. "I saw them go into quarantine and snuck into the lab where we were held. I figured that I could talk to them. Warn them. I wasn't in there long when the alarms started to go off. Everything went into lockdown around the building. By the time Zero was shoved into the room, he only gave me basics before telling me to find him."

Mari bowed her head, adding in with a heavy sigh. "I rushed outside when the building opened back up... but by that point, I was told that my mother had 'Dealt with the problem.' People said they saw her and a team moving a container to the lab in the hospital..." Mark looked at Kenny, dryly questioning him. "What would she want with Sean? If she thought that he was infected... why capture him?" Kenny shrugged, honestly answering. "I'm just a soldier... I don't know anything that happens in the labs. You'd have to ask Spencer and Wyatt... They were always the smart ones." Nate cleared his throat awkwardly, interjecting softly. "I know..." All eyes turned to Nate. Nate licked his dry lips, brushing his bangs back off his face as he told them uneasily. "I think she is trying to find a way to control men through mutations. She infects them. Studying how the virus effects men in different ways. I think she plans to make a cure for women and simply lessen the virus on the men. Making them-" Nate didn't finish before Kenny slipped in to finish with concern. "Controllable... Oh my god... But that means that Dad..."