Prologue: Cloud Cover

The stillness of the dark night was shattered by the high-pitched whine of the alarm system ringing throughout the complex.

Amaya's eyes jolted open as the sound waves frantically bounced off the gray walls of her bedroom. They forced themselves into her ears like drummers heralding the coming war. The noise rattled her brain from its slumber. Her brown eyes scanned the darkened room and landed upon the crimson glow of the digital clock. Blinking to bring the numerals into focus: 23:11.

01: Preparedness is Next to Godliness

The bombs fell five years ago. Five years nine days to be exact. Making the date Jan 1st, the ringing in of a New Year. The residents of Carbon Block hadn't celebrated the New Year since Cloud Cover. In fact, for the past five years, holidays came and went without too much of a passing thought. People thought they didn’t have much to celebrate about. Chapter One: Preparedness is Next to Godliness

Amaya Reeves did not include herself among those people.

02: The Bears Leave the Den

At 07:00 hours, on a slightly raised dais at the front of the Throne Room, Sean Arlis Reeves sat surrounded on both sides by two half-circle desks with touchscreen control panels. The Commander's imposing frame dwarfed the metal swivel chair he sat upon. His face, with its hard lines, looked out over his security team.

03: Keep the Magic

17:34.

"Point blank, we need to get that door working," Preston told Enrique Moltaban, head of the maintenance crew. He and Amaya were standing in the corridor by the open panels of the blast door, checking up on any progress Enrique and his crew had made.

04: You Should Be

She felt the cloth that had previously been tied over her face loosen as it was removed. Amaya opened her eyes to take in her surroundings but an intense light forced her to shut them tight. Even closed, the light was sharp against her eyelids, causing a red flame to dance across them. She sat still, hoping the light bleeding through would allow her pupils to adjust.

05: You Can’t Make Tactical Decisions about People You Care For

Amaya woke from her dream drenched in sweat. Phantom pain lingered where the creature had closed its claws around her throat as it always did when the reptilians infiltrated her dreams. Like each time before when she woke she forced herself to examine her body to make sure she had not been burned, cut, or beaten in the real world.