One month later.
Emily P.O.V.
"We did it finally!" Roland shouts in excitement.
His outburst makes us all flinch in our seats as we turn to look at him. Roland holds a clear glass vial with a pink liquid in it. As he holds it up to the light twisting it between his two fingers his smile only grows.
"Roland, maybe next time a little warning before you decide to scare everyone!" Nicole scolds him.
He doesn't say anything to her, he puts the vial back down and looks at us all with a confused look.
"What'd you do Roland?" Z asks.
"Let me rephrase" he pauses.
"We found the cure!" His voice carries out full of excitement.
Following his announcement we stop what we are doing and begin cheering and high-fiving. After all this time, after all the hardships we have faced there is finally a cure. Now we can use it against Solarious and stop his plan.
"Are you sure about this?" Z asks, breaking the cheering session.
"Yes, absolutely." Roland responds.
He heads over to the table and places a small sample of specimen X that we had extracted from my cells and blood. Roland places it on a glass plate and brings the image up on the screen in the lab.
"Okay here is the sample of specimen X, "
He adds blood. Specimen X immediately attaches to it and consumes the blood droplet and grows a little in size and then separates into two cells.
"Now watch what happens when we add in the cure."
Roland takes a small dropper and fills it with some of the pink liquid. Squirting a few drops onto the plate. Specimen X attacks it the same way it did the blood, only this time something is different. Instead of consuming and replicating the sample is obliterated by the pink liquid.
"Amazing, " Z says stunned as she takes a closer look at the screen.
I think at this point we are all relieved that we had finally achieved what we thought was the impossible. It's been about four months since all of this started. So much has changed since then. I am no longer just a human survivor I am a special weapon ready to stop a force that means to bring all the planets in the galaxy to their knees.
If you had told me all of this back in 2020, I would've laughed it off and called you delusional. But now it's real, all of this, my friends, the cure, the coming war...all of it is real. Normally I would feel hopeless and full of nothing but fear, I don't anymore. I am hopeful and ready to fight and bring the peace we all so desperately deserve.
"Hey Emily, " Natasha nudges my shoulder, taking me from my thoughts.
I blink a few times and then smile at her.
"Sorry, what did you say?"
"I was saying isn't it exciting? After all of this time we are finally one step closer to ending all of this." Natasha bears a smile so wide it would light up a room.
The past few months have been nonstop trial runs of finding a cure. Using many different blood types, using my DNA trying to find the right combination to recreate the genetic close of the incell. We failed miserably over a few hundred times. Each one that didn't work we would come up with another. Some of our days were spent two days in a row without anyone stopping to sleep. All of us determined to find a cure and finish what we had started.
"So what's next?" I ask.
"We must try an actual trial on a meta being. That way we will know if it does really work, once that step is complete, we will mass produce it." Z replies.
"How will we find a volunteer?"
Z doesn't say anything for a moment and then she sighs.
"I don't think we will be finding a willing volunteer Emily, "
"Z you mean to tell me we are going to force it upon someone? We can't, that isn't right" I protest and I know the others are not agreeing with me.
"There is no other way, " Z responds coldly.
"Then we will find another way, " I snap back at her.
Z looks at me and her brow furrows, and she walks closer to me.
"Emily, there is no other way, and we don't have the time to sit here and wait for a willing candidate, "
"Then find time Z, we are not going to take someone and inject them, especially when we are going based off of a simple cell trail!" I raise my voice at her.
But of course Z doesn't back down.
"This isn't up for debate, whether you like it or not, one day you will have to make difficult choices, the old world you knew and the old ways you know are gone Emily-"
"Z that's enough, " Natasha interrupted Z mid sentence.
" It's not, Emily needs to hear this, and it best if it comes from me." She looks back at me.
" What you knew is gone, it's time to face that fact, and move on. Live in the present, more lives are at stake than just one. And protest all you like, it is going to happen." Z backs away and storms off.
The others stay completely silent until Z leaves the room. While Z does make some good points about living in the present that is what I have been trying to do. But she can't expect me to fully forget everything I had been taught growing up. I won't abandon my morals.
...........
With the late hours creeping upon us, I stretch in my seat and let out a long yawn. The rest of us finish cleaning up and saving all of our work on the hard drives before finally calling it a night. Typically we would still be up and going but since we finally had our big break we thought it best to get some actual sleep for a change.
We hadn't seen Z since the argument the two of us had gotten into. With how heated the conversation had gotten we all decided to give Z the space she needed and I figured it would be best to cool down myself as well.
When I arrived in our living quarters the bunk beneath me where Z normally sleeps was empty. The others had already defined off to sleep for the night. I looked around the room and contemplated on going to find Z or going to bed myself. My mom used to tell me it was never good to go to sleep mad, and that is precisely what I would be doing if I went to sleep.
Rubbing my eyes I decided I wanted to go talk to Z. I needed to clear all this up if there was any hope of progressing further. I walked out of the living quarters and down the hall. Everyone around was asleep and darkened out. I tip toes the whole way careful not to disturb everyone else.
Reaching the main staircase I looked down into the lobby area and found that it was empty. I decided that it might be best to check outside maybe in the courtyard before checking the other floor.
I headed down and was greeted by the cool night air. It was refreshing and I took in the scent of flowers and water. This kind of reminded me of being in the rose garden at the park after a good rain. I closed my eyes and basked in the moment. Taking in the refreshing air and all the scents that surrounded me. They flooded my nose, the various flower aromas, the rainfall smell that blanketed the air.
Opening my eyes, I looked down the bath to my left where a sitting area would be. And on the bench I could see a shadow figure sitting there, bent over holding their head in their hands. Z? I thought to myself and inched closer and closer.
Z P.O.V.
After the argument with Emily, I had to go for a walk to clear my head. There was no way I could get her to understand what I was thinking or where I was coming from. I could feel myself getting more and more enraged. For her to be able to say we couldn't drove my crazy. She hadn't lived in the future for very long nor had she faced some of the evil that we have, especially me. How could a human simply understand me?
I knew she wouldn't ever agree to my reasoning so the coming days would end up with nothing but endless bickering. However, it would get done none the less. There was no choice in the matter no back up plan. There was just the one plan, the one shot to see if it would work or not.
You are so stubborn Z.
I am in no mood Leona.
To bad, because our mate approaches.
I pick up my head out of my hands and turn to see the silhouette of a young woman approaching. I hadn't noticed someone sneaking up on me this whole time. Emily stopped in her tracks.
"Z?" She whipsers.
"It's me Emily, " I respond turning back around.
She comes and stands in front of me, I don't look at her.
"Z may I sit?" I gester my hand to answer her question.
As she sits and awkward silence greets us. I don't look at her and she doesn't say anything. Emily tilts her had back to look up at the stars in the navy blue sky above us.
"I hadn't thought about my old life in a while, some days it makes me sad, and others I find myself happy to be here..to be with you." Her voice is shaky.
Her words catch my hears and I perk my head up.
" You must miss it, " I reply softly.
" I do but then if things hadn't turned out how they are now I wouldn't have met you all." She widgets with her hands on her lap.
"Do you miss yours?" She continues.
My eyes widen and then I look away. I honestly hadn't thought about my last or my old life before Solarious's attack on my homeworld. I thought about my wife..my mate often but that is what any normal Lycan does.
" There are times when I miss it, and there are times when I don't think about it all too much," I respond keeping my eyes away from hers.
" I see, "
"It's easier when you are surrounded by people that love and care about you and vice versa. It isn't as lonely when others are around." I added.
Emily nods her head in agreement. And the more I sit and ponder everything with her the more of an asshole I feel for snapping at her earlier.
"We may be alone, but at least we have each other right?" She asks.
I can't help but look at her and meet her eyes. They shimmer so bright beneath the stars.
"You're never alone, not as long as you have me Emily." I can't help the words that follow.
My heart beats in my chest, and it's reassuring to know we share and feel the same pain. The pain she feels for the loss of everyone she loved and cared for, and the pain I feel for the loss of my loved ones and my mate. We truly understand each other in this moment. I can feel my palms get sweaty as I inch closer to her.
Emily leans in towards me and now we are both a fingertip length away from our lips touching. I can feel how her heart is beating just as quickly as mine.
"Z there's something...Ummm...something I have been wanting to tell you for a long time now…." Her voice is shaky and i can tell she is nervous.
"I like you a lot Z, really truly like you and I hope-"
I cut off her words and my lips meet hers, there is no denying my feelings or her feelings any longer. She is my mate, she carries the same demeanor, heart as my Estelle and she is my second chance mate.