Lana shrugged. “We tried going there once, but Nathan’s too uncomfortable around other people. On the other hand, he’s amazing at finding us food and keeping us hidden, so we make do.”

“But why stay on campus? There are better, more secure places.”

“Oh, it’s not so bad here. We know this place like the back of our hand and the Warped almost never come inside. And if they do, Nathan can--”

Nathan gave a throaty sound, cutting her off.

Nori frowned. “Nathan can what?”

“Oh, nothing,” Lana said lightly. “He’s just really good at escaping them and finding food.”

Nori stared hard at the shorter woman, then swung her gaze to study the young man.

Lana, Human, level 0

Nathan, Human-scion, level 0

She raised her brow, seeing the man’s information. Everyone else she’d met since the Calamity was listed simply as ‘human’. There was something weird about these two, but they didn’t look dangerous.

Nori was still exhausted from her wild run and the adrenaline rush was draining away, leaving her weak and trembling.

She collapsed into a beanbag. Staring at the small pack of cereal, she reached into a small pouch on her belt and drew out a chocolate bar. “I’ll share mine if you share yours.”

2 - First Encounter

“So, you’re from one of the shelters?” Lana merrily chewed on the piece of chocolate.

Nori shrugged. “Not really. I go from shelter to shelter. Not many can survive the open streets, so I do what I can to help—delivering messages mostly. Luckily, we don’t need much food or medicine anymore, but people have other needs and other people they’re worried about, so I try to get word back to them whenever I can.”

Lana nodded. “Isn’t it weird though? A few months ago, I was just another history major and now I can see people’s names when I look at them - and I barely need to eat. Nathan and I both used to wear glasses, but the day after the text messages first appeared our eyesight was 20/20 again.”

Nori nodded. “It’s the same everywhere else. I saw a ninety-year-old grandma get out of her wheelchair and start doing laps, and a guy I met swore he used to be missing two fingers.”

Lana sighed into her bowl. “I was so excited when it first happened. Everyone was. I thought I was dreaming when I saw that ‘Tec Infusion Commencing’ message. The news said it was happening all around the world - well, before the TV and all the other electronics shut down …” She sighed again. “So what do you think it all means? It’s gotta be aliens, right?”

Nori nodded. “Everyone thinks so. It looked like a gift at first. Everyone was healing rapidly, but then the power went out and people started to Warp.”