The Descent by Apryl Lopez

Author:Apryl Lopez [Lopez, Apryl]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Five

When Sera’s eyes opened, it was upon a topsy-turvy vision that distorted the world around her. Her head pulsed like a ticking time bomb, and she thought she’d lost her arms because she couldn’t feel her fingers. Then she realized she hung upside-down, still strapped in by the seat belt.

She struggled with her numb hands, bringing them up to her waist where the buckle was located. It took a few tries—it was increasingly difficult as pinpricks of retreating numbness affected her fingers—but she finally depressed the button and released the belt around her waist and chest. She crumpled to the glass-covered ceiling and lay there as her body readjusted to gravity.

After what felt like an eternity, she lifted her head. Her eyes drifted, slow and sodden with blood rush, around the interior of the truck. The front window had shattered and the frame was bent. The passenger window had a curious impact ring that splintered out. Sera brought a hand to the side of her head and winced at the bloody lump nestled under her hair.

A low groan came from the other side of the cab. James.

With sluggish movements, she crawled toward him curled up near the remains of the windshield. She remembered he never wore a seatbelt and sent a prayer of thanks that he hadn’t died instantly during the rollover. “James,” she panted out. Crawling the short distance made her lose her breath, as if the wind was constantly being knocked out of her. Nothing hurt like a broken rib or punctured lung, but she was sore all over.

Her best friend continued to groan, but he uncurled enough for her to see his scratched and bruised face. His eyes were squinted in pain, but there was also a fiery strength behind them. Clutching his torso, he pulled himself up to lean on his elbow. He stared at her as sparse streams of blood dripped down his face and over his eyelashes. His jaw was set and his entire body seemed to vibrate.

Sera put her hand out, concerned, but he brushed it away. “I’m okay,” he said, though his voice was tight and constrained. “They tried to kill us. Mikah tried to kill us.” He turned his head and spat out some blood forming on his lips.

She didn’t want to admit it, didn’t even want to listen to James’s claims, but she couldn’t forget the image of the moonlight shining on the plane. That symbol—once a logo for Creator Technologies—had become a sign of their rebellion. It was a source of pride for all Gen-Ens. But now it represented betrayal.

Could Mikah have really ordered that plane to shoot them? Not if he knew she was in the truck, surely. He was probably upset with her for leaving against his orders, but he wouldn’t have her killed! She was his sister, after all.

“It had to be a mistake,” she said slowly, getting her breath back. “The pilot probably couldn’t tell that it was one of our trucks and thought we were the enemy.

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