The Rat Collector: A Dystopian Thriller (Age of End Book 1) by Chris Yee Page A

Saul along the way. Saul tensed up. He wanted to punch the new kid, but he managed to stop himself.
    Before Ms. Martin could continue with her schedule for the day, Vince raised his hand. “Ms. Martin, I have a question.”
    “Go ahead, Vincent.”
    “I was thinking about it last night. What’s outside of the Pugg? What is the rest of the world like?”
    “That is a very good question. One that I do not have an answer to. I’m afraid no one knows what lies beyond the Pugg’s four towns. There are a handful of curious people who have journeyed across the flatlands, but none ever returned. I’m sure some of you have heard of Harry Hedcrown, one of the Pugg’s top innovators, born right here in Rodin. He planned such a journey off to the east. He told the people that if he found something, anything at all, he would return to report it, but we never saw him again. So, as far as we know, there is absolutely nothing out there… Does that answer your question, Vincent?”
    Vince nodded.
    “Good. Now let’s get along with the class. We have a lot to cover.”
    The class was like any other, bland and uninteresting. Vince was one of the top students in the group, but a night with no sleep made it hard to focus. Saul slouched in his seat, eyes drooping as drowsiness pulled him deeper. But then he sat up, fully alert in an instant. Like a switch, he had gone from zombie to living. He squirmed in his seat with anxiety, tapping his foot rapidly against his desk. Where had all of this energy come from? For the rest of the class, Vince ignored Ms. Martin and kept his focus on Saul.
    When class was finally over, the boys met outside. Before Vince could say a word, Saul grabbed him by the shoulders. “It works.”
    “What?”
    “The stuff that man gave me. It actually works.” A big smile was plastered across his face.
    “Are you sure? How is that even possible?”
    “I don’t know. I didn’t notice much difference at first. Just the rash on my arm. But in the middle of class, it kicked in.” His eyes were wide open. “Vince…I can feel the energy. It’s all around us. I can feel it coming from you right now. It’s amazing. And look.” He stuck out his hand and gently rubbed the skin on his fingers.
    Vince did not see anything at first, but with a closer look, he noticed tiny hairs sticking out from the pores in his skin. A layer of small tendrils was wrapped around his hands and up his arms. They were even on his face. From afar they looked like hairs, but up close they were new and strange. “What are they?”
    “I think it’s how I can sense the energy. It’s like these things are attracted to it. They want to absorb it.”
    “This is crazy.”
    Saul stared down at his hand. “I can’t believe it works. I have to try it out.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “I want to drain something.”
    “Like what?”
    “He said it works on trees, right? Let’s go find a tree.”
    Vince looked off into the woods. “Alright, but let’s find somewhere a little more private.”
    They returned to the woods from the night before. The man was gone, but small patches of dry blood were splattered across the dirt. The needle and tube he dropped lay on the ground, leaning against the roots Vince had tripped over. Saul scooped both of them up and studied them closely.
    The needle was long but slim. There were two buttons at the top, near his thumb. He pushed the first one, retracting the needle. He pushed it again, and the needle shot back out. The second button sent a puff of air from the tip of the needle. He removed the empty tube and replaced it with the full one.
    “What are you doing?” Vince asked. “Why are you loading that thing?”
    “I thought you might want to try,” Saul answered. He gently flicked the tube and watched the liquid swirl around. With the needle raised, he approached Vince. “Hold still.”
    Vince pulled away. “Wait. This doesn’t feel right.”
    “Feel right? You don’t know how it feels.