The Outbreak.

Shadow Voices.

I hear hushed voices as I try to sleep, I frow my brows in annoyance as it sounds the people are bickering over something, trying to not draw too much attention to themselves and failing.

"We must continue the work, it's important for science." One of the male voices goes on, seeming just as frustrated as I am at this point.

"The world has gone to shit, I don't see what good it'll do us to continue the study." The other male voice sounds paincked and almost more high-pitched as he gets more worked up.

"This work will go down in history, if we find out what's happening with these people, our names will be in science books, we may even get a noble prize for this." The first one rambles on, getting less and less quiet.

"Are you delusional? Look around you for a moment, you idiot. There is no world, most of the population was incinerated and the rest are feral beasts, because of some of the work we have been doing down here. Whatever anomaly is happening here just isn't worth the time or effort anymore." The other one getting just as loud.

"It's not like we were the ones that released the Pathogen out into the world, we warned them they were messing with things that they just didn't understand. They have to suffer with the consequences now, not us. These people though, they are the future and there were more out there than we could have ever expected."

"Surely you cannot be that obtuse? If we just refused to research it at all, none of this would have happened-"

"Look! We are doing these people a favor now, if we keep them here and continue the work, they are blind sided to the fact that the world is gone. They are better off do here, there's enough rations to last us years if we manage it right. Those that we trust might even be willing to help us now that the rest of the team bailed."

I get fed up hearing these two men talk about information I just don't understand. I just want to rest in peace after all that I've been through lately.

"Would you two shut up or at least fill me in on the details, because I'm so confused." I interrupt them both, I hear the clatter of something metal hitting the ground.

"Shit! She's awake, dose her again."  I hear one say and than the voices fade away, I almost sigh with relief and the quietness of it all, but the things they said plague me.

I open my eyes and see the pinks, purples and oranges filling the sky as the sun starts to rise. I see that I'm in the passenger seat of my car still, I turn to the drivers side and see Elijah fast asleep with Nadia on his chest.

I look around out all the windows feeling extremely disoriented with my surroundings. It seems we have parked on the side of the road, in the middle of no where. I spot movement and it makes my heart race, but soon settles when my foggy brain soon registers that it's a group of kangaroos hopping in the distance.

Nadia starts fussing as she wakes up, I  carefully pick her up off of Eli as to let him sleep. I realise this is the first time I've actually held her or had a good look at her. I rock her carefully to sooth her as she looks more uncomfortable, her piercing blue eyes watching me cautiously.

I quietly open my car door and carry her to the backseat, my body aches everywhere, my right leg hurting the worst of all. Opening the back door as quietly as I can, turned out to be easier than I thought, I change her nappy and clothes, with stuff that her parents had for her, realising they didn't have much at all and that it's certainly not going to last.

I sit her up in the makeshift seat slash bed, so I can go by boiling some water with my pull out camp kitchenette. I'm sure Elijah would appreciate a coffee and the little one some food. I close the passenger door, as quietly as possible, not wanting to drain the battery, pulling out a camp chair and sitting the tub in it to close the back door too.