Phantom Universe

Chapter 26: Alive

16 years old

Inside, the atmosphere was warm and inviting due to Gage's presence. But on the outside...it's a whole new world—cold and unwelcoming. The hallways are darker than the room, and Leaguers litter the corridors. Some faces are kind and sympathetic, some are downcast and unreadable, and then a select few Leaguers glare or smirk with malice and hate. Summer recognizes each of these faces—she's seen them before. It reminds her of the crew members on the Cosmos. Some were nice to her, possibly even cared about her. Then there were a select few who just acted as if she didn't even exist—like if they believed she wasn't there then she really wasn't. But when she sees the gleaming, hostile eyes of the Leaguers, she can't help but imagine Jarvis and Karl.

It takes her until this exact moment to realize just how wrong she was to ever compare Gage, the man she just kissed—her first kiss—to Jarvis. Gage is nothing like Jarvis, but these other men, and even some women, frighten her so badly she seizes Gage's arm and quivers as they walk down the hallway. Gage glances sideways at her and takes her hand in his, his half-smile reassuring. The eyes of the Leaguers slither from her face to their connected hands, then back. Half of them are questioning, the other disgusted. Cameron trails in their wake, her footsteps almost silent.

At the end of the hall is a set of double doors, huge and metal with two large glass windows that sparkle blue with electricity. A Leaguer stands on either side, erect and straight-faced as they scan the area. As Summer and Gage approach them, they both salute to Gage and open the doors with a press of a button on their uniforms. Outside is blindingly bright compared to the dim corridor. Summer squints as they step into what appears to be a courtyard. The doors slam shut behind them, and Cameron's no longer there, slinking away as quiet as a cat.

People are everywhere, hanging out in groups or sitting at randomly placed picnic tables. Some are playing games and having fun, others are obviously distraught. They're all young; none of them seem to be over the age of twenty. Around them is a high fence with warning signs every ten feet or so explaining that it's electrified. Some are wearing pajamas while others are clothed in newer outfits like the ones Gage had bought for her.

Gage squeezes her hand before they descend the stairs into the courtyard. To the left are rows of buildings, each with a white letter at the end with the first starting at A, and the individual doors are numbered. To her left is a square building where a long line of people stand outside the door with empty plates and cups in hands. Many already have food.

"The camps are divided by age—this part is for fourteen to twenty two. Each room has a minimum of three people and a maximum of five. You'll be staying in building E, room number twenty with Jaden and Lucy," says Gage as he carefully guides her through the mass of people. "All of your things are already in the room."

My things? What things? I have things?

Just like with the Leaguers, the people—or Outlanders, she supposes—stare at them like they're a strange science project. Some glare with more venom than the Leaguers, especially the girls. Summer hasn't known many women in her life, but the ones she has met were, for the most part, decent people. Now she's not so sure.

They approach the long rows of buildings where he leads her between buildings E and D. The grass is grown up around the brick that looks old and abandoned. The doors are muddy-white, and the windows next to each door have such a dirty film on them she's not even sure her trusty Comet could clean them. The over-grown lawn's been trampled on and is beginning to turn brown in some areas. A concrete sidewalk has all but disintegrated, the land obviously claiming and devouring it. Summer stares at building E to her right, keeping an eye on the numbers on each door, the first starting at one and going up as they continue down the lane. Building D to her left has numbers on the doors starting at forty and going down as they walk.