Dark Harvest Rebellion (Adaptives Book 1) by Hopper Christopher

Author:Hopper, Christopher
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Somnium Publishing
Published: 2024-05-12T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

GABRIEL

Someone’s calling my name. It’s distant. And I don’t recognize the voice. But I should know it.

Who’s there? I ask.

They don’t seem to hear me.

What’s going on?

Something jars me, unsettling the safety afforded by darkness. The voice calls my name again, and then, all at once, my stomach lurches. I’m falling—arms out, hands reaching, like an infant who’s been lowered too fast.

Only, I can’t move. Something’s restraining me. And then comes a blinding light. Finally, I hear myself speak with a groggy voice, saying, “What’s happening?”

“Gabriel!” It’s Chloe. “Wake up.”

“I’m awake.”

And, God, I wish I wasn’t. My body feels like an overused punching bag. I look around, squinting. I’m strapped to a metal table, angled at forty-five degrees. Chloe is to my left, Brick to my right. I blink to clear my vision and see the rest of our team members in identical beds lining the wall. I can’t recall how we got here. “The last thing I remember was… we were…”

“The ship’s captain nearly strangled you. You blacked out. Then the robots brought us here.”

“Brian,” I say, remembering.

“He’s dead.”

“Dammit.” The memory of him being shot by a blaster spear flashes in my mind’s eye. With it comes the same flood of emotions that hit before I blacked out. Regret. Anger. And a deep desire to put down every last one of these alien bastards. But something tells me I might not get that chance.

“Any idea why we’re here?” I ask.

“Shit Bot said we graduated to adaptation.”

“Doesn’t feel like something we should celebrate.” I struggle against the restraints.

“It’s no use,” Brick says. “They’ve got us locked down.”

I turn back to Chloe. “And Shit Bot?”

“They kept him back in the arena.”

“I swear to God,” Monty says two beds down. “If they confine his consciousness again, I’ll nuke their whole system.”

“Roger that,” I reply, still trying to take in my surroundings. We’re in some sort of white room with light coming from the floor, off the walls, and down from the ceiling. The sense of exposure is unnerving; at least we’re still clothed. But above each bed is an extremely concerning collection of tools. I’m no medical expert, but these don’t look like things typically used in hospitals.

“I feel like I’m back in the body shop,” Isabella says as if reading my mind. “Only I’m the one on the lift. Saw blades, torch tips, soldering irons…”

“And needles,” Monty adds. “Lots and lots of needles. Awww, hell no.”

“I don’t like it either,” I say.

Chloe chuckles nervously. “Really? ’Cause I’m pretty relaxed over here.”

I shoot her a sideways look. “I’ll take whatever you’re having.”

She smiles, but it fades.

After another second, I ask, “Did Shit Bot explain what adapation meant?”

“No,” Monty replies. “The only thing I found on file was a manifesto of sorts.”

“About?”

“How the Sorin Kah are blessed with the Right of First Harvest, which includes preparing the bounty for mortal combat. My guess is that they’re not sending us to the highest bidder empty-handed, but modifying us in some way.” Monty glares at the tools above him.

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