Selected (Book 2 of the Immune Series)

Smells and Sounds of Death

"Squadron 4, step towards the next four trucks."

In this crowd is Lexi. Her hands shake as she stands by the blue trucks, but she holds still, watching Kovach. I wish she'd been in another group. Any other group, really.

"Squadron Two, your job is to go into the compound and utterly destroy anything and anyone in your path. These people are enemies of Compound 5. You will leave no one alive!"

At this point, Kovach is screaming. A few soldiers seemed pumped up by the show, but others just look scared.

"And my last squadron, step to the next four trucks," Kovach continues, in her usual quiet voice, "Your job is to make sure they left nothing behind. You will be armed with weapons of fire, and you will demolish everything, leaving it in a pile of ash behind you."

She motions for the captains, and they move into action, ushering their squadrons into the trucks and handing out weapons. I stand beside Rivers, waiting to be told what to do.

"Ready, Quinn?" Kovach whispers to me, squeezing my arm. I nod. "We will be riding in one of the trucks behind the medics. Let's go board."

As we walk to our truck, I watch the medic team board, surprised that Naomi is among them. She doesn't see me, but I count the breaths she takes, note the thick bags under her eyes.

Am I doing the right thing?

The drive to Compound 4 takes an entire day. We drive on through the night, not stopping. The next morning, mountains start to appear around us. The ground isn't flat like back at home. I trace the hills with my eyes, listen to the rivers as we pass over. There are less empty spaces and more forests, trees as far as the eye can see. Scraps of cities pass, nothing but piles of metal, concrete, and brick. I feel like I'm looking at pictures, because everything is just so still.

It's nearly dark when we get the signal from the first truck that it's time to unload.

"Should we help?" I ask, watching the soldiers pile out, now carrying weapons that seem bigger than them.

"No, Quinn," Kovach says, "We wait here where it's safe."

That doesn't seem fair, considering I planned this attack. Yet, the wall shines bright from here; the silhouettes of guards patrolling are black against the sunset. My hands are shaking, and I feel sick again.

I wouldn't last five seconds in the line of duty.

"Let's go watch from a safe distance," Kovach finally says, getting out of the vehicle.

The soldiers are grouped off in squadrons, quieter than mice. The first group is already making their way down towards the wall, bodies low against the ground, navy uniforms blending in with the darkness around them. As I watch, they split into pairs, some of them disappearing around to the unseen sides of the wall.

"Ready?" Kovach whispers, and I notice she's holding a flare. "Do the honors."

I take the flare from her.

Five...

Is everyone around the wall? Yes.

Four...

What is this fails? What if everyone gets shot?

Three...

If phase one fails, there will be no phase two. I'll be the joke of Compound 5.

Two...

I light the flare, nodding as I take a deep breath. I planned it; the chances are slim it will fail.

One... The flame meets the flare, shooting a bright red streak into the air. All around the wall, miniature flames come to life. The sounds of the wall guards meets my ears as they begin to panic, not sure where to run or shoot. Then, the bombs start going off.

The ground under us shakes from the shockwave of the bombs; the blasts light up the night sky as if it's dawn already. Then, the second wave hits as the wall falls, crumbling like a playing card tower. Screaming fills the air, and for a moment, I panic, unsure if it's our people or theirs.

The panic passes quickly as Kovach gives the signal for the second squadron to move along. We press forward with them, now within reach of what remains of the steel wall. Bodies are scattered along the ground, but they wear the olive uniforms of Compound 4. Our first group are retreating towards the medics, smiling. Their joy is contagious, and as I watch Lexi disappear into the darkness of Compound 4, I feel proud.

If I thought the bunks were chaos, I didn't understand what chaos was.

As residents of 4 try to escape, running past us, the third squadron shoots them down, surrounding Kovach and I in the bodies of countless adults and children. At first, it turns my stomach as the smell of blood, urine, and feces fills the air. This is my doing. I did this.

This is good. These are our enemies. I can't forget that.

"Quinn!"

In the middle of everything, I hear Lexi scream my name, and I pull out of Kovach's grasp to hunt for the telltale sign of Lexi, that bright red hair.

She's standing a few feet away, holding the form of a young woman against the ground. Once Lexi's eyes fall on me, she breathes a long sigh, holding her gun in the air.

"They are unarmed," I barely hear her say, "You're asking us to slaughter unarmed people, Quinn."

I approach her, hear the terrified cries of the girl in her grasp. I can't find my voice, can't form words.

"This isn't right, Quinn," Lexi pleads, "I thought you said we could trust General Kovach."

I meet her eyes, swallowing hard.

We can trust her. These are our enemies.

"Lexi, you need to follow your orders," I whisper, taking a step back.

"If you give me the command, I'll listen, Queen," she says, barely audible under the sounds of a fight around us, "But otherwise, I refuse to kill unarmed people."

"Alexis Collins, I command that you leave no man, woman, or child alive," I say, watching the tears form behind her eyelashes.

"As you wish, your majesty."

Her eyes close as she pulls the trigger, the body of her victim falling limp in her grasp. I have to look away, have to run back to Kovach, who is watching the scene unfold with that half-smile plastered on her face.

These are our enemies. Why can't I remember that?

Discussion Question: So, this chapter was SUPER hard to write, especially towards the end. Things are slowly going downhill, and it's only going to get worse. For this part, I want to ask: Who is the real enemy here?