The Sway by Ruby Knight Page B

“You should know that in two weeks from now, the world you know will no longer be in existence.”
    He smiled charmingly, as handsome as George Clooney in his prime, but he held darkness in his eyes, and they made me feel like I was being suffocated by a snake.
    â€œEvery major city of the world will be destroyed as of noon, two weeks from today. This world and the wars we have fought have been in vain. It’s time to join as brothers and become stronger than any civilization in the past.”
    The city names spoken moments before in the private feed flashed across the screen in huge, bold white letters.
    â€œIf you live in one of the cities listed, I strongly suggest you pack up and find new residence. Within forty-eight hours, you may also notice your smartphones will no longer work, your Internet will be down, and television will be a thing of the past. This is for your benefit. Letum will take care of you. Once the initial cleanse has been taken care of, we will broadcast across the world what you are to do next. A more simple way of life is coming. Get ready, act calmly, and support each other. You will hear from us soon.”
    The feed of Hank and his commanders cut away, and the cities flashed across the screen along with evacuation orders. It ended with an intricate symbol and the word Letum flashing in bold letters.
    What in the hell was Letum?
    My body buzzed, like an electrical current ran through it and then stopped.
    It buzzed again.
    The Eisenhower protocol.
    No, No. They couldn’t. Eisenhower had given us a backup, a fail-safe if we were missing,
    gone, and they didn’t have conclusive evidence that we were dead. They would activate a protocol, a death protocol. A treatment so deeply implanted in our bodies that it was a part of our DNA, and it did one of two things. It either turned you into a government sort of zombie, pushing your body to do things you weren’t completely in control of, until you could get to safety. Or it flooded your system with cyanide, killing you. I wasn’t sure which of the two was happening. I couldn’t take the chance.
    â€œCole, they’re trying to activate me. I need the next treatment,” I said through gritted teeth. My body shook uncontrollably and sweat broke out in my hairline. “Cole, help!”
    My knees gave out.
    Before I hit the floor, Cole scooped me up. He glanced back at Little Miss Too Innocent. “Kiya, help me!”
    Cole’s paces got quicker, and his feet slapped against the cement floor while he pulled me in tightly against his chest. Kiya ran in front of him, yelling out to people to make way. The leader of The Sway came over the loudspeakers.
    â€œCole, I’m right behind you. Marcus, meet with the squad leaders up front. Marcus will give the rest of you your orders. For now, everyone retreat to your regular schedule. Squad leaders we will meet at 0100 hours to assess the current climate,” Hipster Dude yelled out
    It felt like my brain was in a blender, being stopped from trying to send little electrical pulses to my non-responsive limbs. I couldn’t keep track of the turns we took this time to get to wherever we were going. Cole slammed through two doors and barked out orders.
    That was when I lost the fight to keep my eyes open. My body went slack in his arms.
    â€œNow, she needs it now,” he yelled.
    Someone wrestled with my jacket and slipped off the sleeve on my outside arm. Latex-encased fingers ran along my arm. Then the cool metal tip of the needle skimmed against my upper arm. The needle stabbed into my flesh, and my eyes shot open and I bit my lip to keep from letting out a scream. The taste of a metallic ting filled my mouth. Muffled sounds of pain escaped out of my lips, and when I looked up, Cole was only inches from my face.
    â€œShh, Julia. It will be fine. I know it hurts,” he whispered.
    My eyes got wet and a few bastard tears slipped down my face. I hated