Aberrant

Nico woke buried beneath a mass of bodies. Others were moving nearby. His mind tried remembering what happened. But it was slow. Everything was a blur, a tangled mess of information arriving only in bits and pieces. A raid. No, an ambush. Men in black paramilitary uniforms, armed with rifles and flash grenades.

Nico was dragged from the fight with a dozen other children and forced outside. But they were pursued. To escape, they deviated from the road, delving into the jungle of trees and vines. He didn’t recognize the other kids, but they were all dressed the same way- a gray one-piece jumpsuit, with a red patch on the shoulder.

The running came to an end. There was no outrunning their pursuers. They formed a tight cluster and waited. Nico was squeezed on all sides. He watched as the attackers emerged from the trees, encircling the children, guns pointed. Nico could hear his blood pumping. Heat flushed his face. He doubled over in pain as something began bubbling in his gut. He was sweating. His skin hot to the touch. The last thing he heard were the sounds of children crying as gunshots rang.

The dead were lifted off him and the relief was instant. Nico took a deep breath. “He’s alive!” Someone shouted. Several hands then lifted his body onto a stretcher. For the first time he got a look at the surroundings. Nothing stood within a hundred-foot radius. Trees were flattened, broken bodies mingled with the wreckage. Nico had been at the center of the explosion.

And then his view was obstructed by a woman. She was grinning while staring down at him. “Yes. He’s the one.” Nico got a last glimpse of armed men in black uniforms before the sedative took effect.