Hybrids: A New Species

“No! I don’t want the cure right now!” Pierce shouts.

“Come now, just drink the blood. You’ll become stronger.” Jack says.

“No!”

“Pierce I will force you!”

Ben sits outside in the back porch, listening to Jack and Pierce’s conversation. He relaxes for once and enjoys the view. The porch overlooks the Rocky Mountains. Even in the depth of the apocalypse, nature is still beautiful.

Two days have passed since Jack took the cure and now he’s urging Pierce to take it. Isabella has already drunk Ben’s blood the day after Jack did. Her transition was just as horrendous as Jack’s but she survived. Now Isabella rests in a room, regaining her energy. Ben continues to listen in while relaxing in a lawn chair

“Isabella survived it and I’ve survived. I know you will too. You’re a strong man Pierce.” Jack says.

“I’m not ready!” Pierce barks.

Pierce steps outside in the back where Ben is.

“Hey!”

Ben looks up at the large man. His large figure creates a shadow over him.

“What’s the chances of me surviving this cure?” Pierce asks.

Jack follows outside, the sun glares off his red sunglasses.

“Benjamin. Convince him that he’ll live through it.” Jack says.

Ben clears his throat. “Well...”

He looks at Jack’s arm. He’s removed the bandages already. The large open wound has already healed.

“I honestly have no idea.” Ben says.

Pierce shoots him a dirty look.

“What do you mean you don’t know?”

Ben stands from his seat and stretches.

“I was sure Jack would die. Seeing how damaged he was. So I’ll assume the same with you. Seeing that you’re still banged up from our fight.” he explains.

“But if you live, you’ll heal quickly.” Jack adds, still trying to convince Pierce.

The large man grunts.

“Jack let me heal first. I am not comfortable taking this cure.”

Jack smiles creepily. “I say you take it now. It’ll show just how strong you really are.”

“Stop it.” Ben interrupts. “We shouldn’t force this on anyone. It’s a life risking situation. He should take the cure when he’s ready.”

Jack glares at him.

“Many people won’t be ready. We shouldn’t give them a choice.”

Now Ben glares back.

“I joined you because you seemed reliable. If your plan is to force people, then we’re going to have a problem.”

“Looks like we do.” Jack mutters.

There’s tension between them. Ben feels a bead of sweat behind his neck.

Jack cracks a smile, then suddenly laughs.

“I’m only kidding Benjamin. Learn to loosen up.” Jack plays. “Fine, I won’t force Pierce.”

Ben feels a bit of relief. Relieved he didn’t have to fight Jack. He isn’t sure how that would of turned out. Jack is already skilled at fighting, and his new Hybrid cells will only make him stronger now.

“Go on Pierce. Get some sleep. When you’re ready for the cure, find me.” Jack says.

Pierce nods his head and walks back into the house.

Ben sits back on the lawn chair.

“May I join you?” Jack asks with a smile.

“Sure.”

Jack grabs another lawn chair leaning against a wall and sets it next to Ben. He sits.

“Ah. Feels good to relax.”

“Right.”

The two look at the scenery. The sun shines bright in the sky and the clouds looks as if they’re painted on a canvas.

Jack looks at Ben happily.

“Hi.”

Ben gives him a strange look.

“Why don’t we talk?” Jack says.

“About what?”

He sits up a bit.

“About the cure.”

“I told you what I knew.” Ben says.

“Of course you did. But I feel you’ve learned more. Did the boy tell you anything else?” Jack asks, talking about Cole.

Ben thinks for a moment, trying to remember Cole’s words.

“From what I can remember. We have different species of animal cells within us.” He says.

“Interesting, like what exactly?” Jack asks, curious

“Uhh.“Ben thinks. “Gorilla, some reptiles, hawks, cheetahs, sharks. That’s all I can remember.” Ben explains.

Jack smirks. “Amazing! We really have these animals in us?”

“I believe so. The Hybrid cure contains certain traits from each of these animals.”

“Hybrid?”

“Oh yeah. That’s what the cure was called. ‘Project Hybrid’.”

Jack chuckles in excitement. “I love it! We’ve become a new species haven’t we?!”

“In a way, yeah. I mean we still look human. Besides our eyes changing.” Ben speaks.

Jack takes his sunglasses off, revealing his red eyes.

“Oh I know.”

Ben’s spine tingles from the sight. It makes him uncomfortable to see Jack’s cold stare.

“I just don’t understand why yours are red. Mines were yellow, so are Isabella’s .” Ben says.

Jack puts his sunglasses back on. “I have a theory. Maybe it due to our original eye color.”

“What do mean?” Ben asks.

“Mines are blue, which gives me red eyes. Yours, Isabella, and I assume that boy, Cole, have brown eyes. Thus, making yours yellow.” Jack explains.

Ben thinks on it. He isn’t sure himself. He thinks about Cole and how he would have probably known. Ben suddenly feels grief hit him. A flash of Cole’s bloody body flashes in his head. He shakes away his thoughts.

“I guess that makes sense.” Ben mutters.

He sits himself up on his chair and faces Jack.

“So, what’s your plan? Now that you have the cure?” Ben asks seriously.

Jack snickers, “Find more people and turn them. We need to start spreading this cure.”

“I don’t want to force people. They should have a choice.” Ben suggests.

“People won’t want to change.”

Ben raises an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“Humans are fearful creatures. Some will adapt but many won’t. They’ll fear us and see us as monsters, and they will fight.” Jack explains.

Ben thinks back of the men that attacked him on the road. They were scared of Ben when they saw his eyes. Jack may have a point.

“So what exactly are you suggesting.” Ben says, anger in his tone.

“We don’t tell anyone that they may die. We sell them the idea of a cure that won’t kill them.”

“For the ones that do die? What then?”

Jack smiles sinisterly. “They’ll be dead. You can’t talk if you’re dead.”

Ben can now see what Cole meant about Jack. He is an evil man. However, it is a cruel world. It’s either this cure for another chance at life, or the extinction of humanity.

“I understand.” Ben says.

He stands from his seat.

“I’m going out. Can I borrow your car?” Ben asks.

“Oh? Where are you going?”

Another image of Cole appears in Ben’s mind.

“I need to head to my cabin. If I’m going to be living here, there’s some stuff I’d like to grab.”

Jack reaches in his pockets and pulls out a key. He tosses it to Ben and catches it.

“Bring her back safe.” Jack says.

“Sure.”

He begins walking back into the house.

“Oh Benjamin.” Jack calls out.

Ben stops in his tracks.

“If you plan on burying that boy, there’s a shovel in the trunk.”

Ben says nothing. Jack knew what he was going to do.

“Thanks.”

He walks inside.

Ben speeds down the road in the black Camaro. He’s never driven one before. He’s excited to be driving one. He keeps his eye on the road, but he thinks to himself. A lot has happened in a week. He was just another survivor. He had a wife and daughter. Ben wanted only to protect them. After losing them, he was just an empty shell of a man. Ben still feels the pain from this lost, but he will use it to make him stronger. He felt ready to accept death, but this cure changed his destiny. Made him into something new.

Ben clenches the steering wheel. It’s a strange feeling, but he knows he’s not human anymore.

We are a Hybrid of various animals. We’re a new species. We are Hybrids.

The cure to save humanity. Ironically it doesn’t make you human anymore.

Humans must evolve. Jack’s word’s echo in his head. Humans will fight back. They will fear us.

Ben thinks about the future. Can humanity ever be restored? Or will it just be replaced with something more dangerous?

He begins to slow down the car. He stops it by some oddly shaped bushes. Ben drives the car through the buses and ends up on dirt road. He knows the geographic layout of the mountains. After surviving for so long here, he was bound to learn. The first road he’s on is a secret passageway to his cabin. Ben modified the bushes to mark the spot. He had many different paths that lead him to his home.

Rock and dirt constantly hit the bottom of the Camaro. This isn’t a car to be driving off road, but it’ll have to do. Ben finally reaches the cabin. It’s the back entrance. He parks the car behind the cabin. The car turns off.

Ben relieves a sigh. He sits in the vehicle for a few minutes, trying to gather his thoughts. The thought of Cole liters his mind. What if he could have done it? Modify the cure to be safe. Ben feels he chose the logical path. The less risky.

Ben opens the car door and steps out. The fresh cool air feels good on his face. His abandon home looks cold. Up ahead are two dirt mounds, the graves of Pam and Hailey. Ben opens the trunk and pulls out a long metal shovel. It’s where Jack said it be.

Ben walks over to the graves. He can feel tears coming but he fights them back. He kneels down by the graves.

“Girls. I hope I didn’t make a mistake. Cole was a good kid, he didn’t need to die. He just...” He chokes up on his words. “... He just wanted to help. He helped me. If it wasn’t for him, I’d... well I don’t know where I’d be.”

A strong gust of wind passes through. Ben stands up.

“The least I can do is bury him. I owe him that much.” He mutters.

Ben walks away from the dirt mounds and begins to make his way around the cabin. The dead leaves crush beneath his boots. As he walks, he pictures Cole’s deceased body.

He could have turned. No, the cure killed the virus in him. Maybe a group of Fallen begin feeding on him. Maybe there are only scraps of flesh and clothes. A mountain lion could of fed on him, or some birds of prey could have begun pecking at him. Or maybe?

Ben reaches the front and makes a sudden stop in his tracks. He drops the shovel to the ground. His heart sinks to his stomach.

Cole’s body is gone.