“I probably deserved that,” Jackson started. I glowered at him, frowning.

“You think, Jackson? Really? You tased me,” I began to shout. “I woke up in the hospital with something in my veins, I escaped and was shot down, I left some guy named Charlie who could be dead, Jackson!” I fumed, fists clenching dangerously. He just watched me warily.

“Anne-” He started.

“Don’t you Anne me, sir! I had to run- no, sprint through some stupid forest, engulfed with fog and then listen to hissing before I discovered it was tear gas that almost made me scratch my face off and gouge my eyes out!” I got into Jackson’s space, growling. I pushed my pointer finger into his chest, eyes flaring angrily. “You did this, Jackson. You.”

I spun on my heel and marched to the other side of the room, trying to calm down from my burst of anger.

“I’m sorry, Annie,” he apologised. “I know that ‘sorry’ isn’t good enough but, I’ll say it anyway. It’s just- the Palm Trees needed someone and I had to bring you up. You were given Cotin, a new serum that we’ve been testing. We needed a patient zero and you were perfect for the job.”

I let out a huff and rolled my eyes, back still facing Jackson. “What does this serum do?”

“It enhances your immune system and performance. It’s supposed to fix your genes and make you a Civil,” he continued. Jackson rubbed the back of his neck and I turned slowly, looking at him with pursed lips and knit eyebrows.

“Goodbye, Jackson. You can leave.” I turned my back to him once more and heard the sound of footsteps out of the room, new ones coming in. My attention turned to the new individual in the room and I noticed the small man from before standing here once again, holding a clipboard.

“Patient Zero, Isa is ready to see you.” He glanced up from his clipboard and motioned for me to follow him. We walked through the hallways silently, twisting and turning, my stomach slowly turning. We stopped in front of a door and suddenly, my stomach dropped and I became anxious. “This is Isa’s office,” he explained. “She’ll see you now.” The doctor opened the door for me and I walked in slowly.

A chair sat behind a desk, turned toward the window, which showed the entire Palm Tree base. I walked in curiously and took a seat in a smaller chair across the desk. The large leather one spun around to reveal a woman, who I assumed was ‘Isa’.

Her long brown hair cascaded down her shoulders and wire-rimmed glasses sat on her nose. She was young, probably somewhere around my age. She wore a Palm Tree uniform, everything the same except for the golden medallion on the right breast pocket. I assumed that she had a high up position in the base.

“Hello, Patient Zero,” she addressed. I watched her wearily and noticed something hauntingly familiar about her eyes. They were blue, icy blue, nothing like I had ever seen before, except maybe on Pearson. Isa leaned up and placed her elbows on her desk, resting her chin in her hands.

“I have a name, y’know,” I said, narrowing my eyes. I hadn’t liked being called Patient Zero. I wasn’t a number. I glared at Isa, who simply laughed at me.

“You were just as stubborn when we were children,” she chided. “You never wanted to do anything and would get worked up about everything!” The air was tense now. She didn’t seem like the woman you became friends with easily. And, she seemed to know a bit more than she let on.

“Children?” I asked.

“Annie,” she cried. “I can’t believe you don’t remember your own best friend? Your only friend?” This was Isabel. But, she had completely changed. Her blonde hair was gone, dark, and longer than ever. And now, she was cold. Her eyes were bright but, they were iced over and unforgiving.

“Isabel.”

“Congratulations, Patient Zero,” she laughed. “You’re now smarter than any of the K-9 units!” Her teasing took me back and I stared at her bewildered.

“Look, I’m ready to go home so, what do you want?” I crossed my arms and watched a grin creep onto Isabel’s face. But, this smile had no humor in it, it was only unforgiving.

“Patient Zero, we’ve only begun,” she taunted. “It’s time for you to start conditioning! Please, head to the registration office and get started!” As Isa finished her explanation, two men came in, dressed like the women who had given me a bath, form fitting black suits clinging to their bodies. The men picked me up harshly and began to drag me out through the hallways as I complained. We exited the building and the men dropped me in the dirt, returning inside the building quickly.

It was busy outside, plenty of people walking and going along on their ways. This wasn’t like the town though, this was a community inside the military base. There were people in uniform and people who weren’t, people who carried guns and weapons and people who carried bread and grocery bags.

I walked through the crowd, wandering, wondering where to go. I glanced around to just see tall buildings and more people. It was overwhelming, seeing so many faces at once but, I had to have a freak out about that later. My trip took me to the edge of the military base and I noticed that the base was surrounded with a wall, taller than the City walls. Two guards sat under a tree near the wall, smoking cigarettes. They were both girls and looked substantially younger than me.

“Um, can you guys help me,” I asked, walking over cautiously. One girl looked up, a bandana covering her bright red hair. Her sneer showed I was unwanted.

“What do ya want,” she snapped, puffing smoke into my face. I sputtered and regained my composure, taking a small step back.

“Look, I don’t know where to go but, Isa told me that I needed to find a ‘registration office’,” I explained. Bandana Girl rolled her eyes and dropped her cigarette, crushing it under her boot.

“Let’s go.” Bandana Girl swatted the other girl’s cigarette out of her hand and crushed that one as well. The second girl, who sported two pigtails, wrinkled her nose, making herself look five years old. I bet she was fifteen at the max. I followed Bandana Girl and Pigtails to a building a few blocks away. The sign on the front read REGISTRATION. I nodded at the girls but, they were already walking away.

People passed by the building mindlessly, having already gone there. I walked in and swung the door open, causing it to creak loudly. A man sat at the front desk, tapping away at his keyboard. I walked up to the counter and cleared my throat.

“Hello,” the man responded, not looking up.

“I was sent by Isa,” I started. “I need to be enlisted or something?” I stood there and watched as the man turned in his chair, facing a basket full of files. He pulled the top one out and flipped it open, reading the file quickly.

“Patient Zero?”

“Um, I guess. But, I’d prefer to go by my actual name. I’m not a number, y’know…” The man glanced up at me and for the first time, he looked annoyed.

“No need for the attitude, miss. First and last name?” I wish I couldn’t remember my last name. I hadn’t used it in fifteen years, it was impossible to forget though. I sighed.

“Annie. Annie Roode.”

“Alright, Annie,” the man said, typing everything in. “Here’s your uniform and your key. Your apartment is M31.” He handed me a long silver key and a box that most likely contained my uniform.

“Thanks…” I exited the building and began to walk around. Keeping my head down, I followed signs and listened to directions. Finally, I reached a far part of the base, apartments, hundreds of them. The base was massive and had so many different people in it, it was crazy. I entered my building and started the ascent to floor 3. The apartment building was tall and tan, each window also having a balcony.

The inside of the building had a box labeled MAIL with several decorative house plants and dilapidated walls. Long hallways extended out left and right each staircase I finished. I got to my door, a large blue one. Taking the silver key from my pocket, I unlocked my new apartment and stepped inside.

It was neat and looked fairly normal, something similar to where I lived in the City.

I had a house. I had a uniform. I had been registered as Annie and not some Patient Zero. I had green veins all the way up my arm and a purple bruise that covered the inside of my elbow. I had met my childhood best friend, I still hadn’t seen my brother. So, what was next?