“Are you okay?” He asked, knowing she wasn't, “You should eat something”
She shook her head, food seemed unimportant at the moment, it would give her some kind of satisfaction and she couldn't bring herself to do that.
“Emma told me what happened” He said putting his arm around her, “I can't imagine how it feels you know, but you need to try and let it go. All this madness that has been going on, it's affected everyone; he was no longer able to be himself.”
A small tear ran down Monique's cheek.
“I have to be cruel to be kind Monique; he was practically dead long before that. The second the Elite took away his individuality he was gone, and you know that if what happened didn't actually happen, then I wouldn't be able to talk to you right now”
“I know” she replied laying her head on his chest, a few more tears dampening his shirt.
“We'll get them back for this, for him, for everyone” Mike whispered.
THE MORNING AFTER
It was the morning after the night before. They had all had many of these, but this one felt very different. The whole of humanity was being wrenched away from what made them human, well most of them anyway; the others were indulging in the greed that was an unwarranted side effect of human evolution. They felt a tremendous burden weighing down on them, that and the hangovers that were constantly slapping at the inside of their skulls. Sheryl strode in the main hall, looking surprisingly buoyant considering the amount of gin she had soaked up.
“Hi everyone” She said, “Did you all rest okay?”
There was a sea of murmurs, which sounded like a field of confused cows. Not all of them had slept well, some found the day before was still being flicked back into their brains in a series of freeze frames, while others could hardly remember going to bed.
“Well I'll get started” She said, “Most of you have no idea about what it is we're trying to do, with the exception of Mateo, Gina and Jarrah”.
There was now silence from them as they tried to keep their hangovers at bay, listening carefully to every word Sheryl said.
“We are at a cross-roads in humanity, and only people like us can make a difference. I have used all the resources possible to bring you together, every last cent I had has been poured into this. It is a legacy I want our children to thank us for, a better future for all, but it's going to be difficult. You aren't the only team, you are just my team. There are many of us dotted around, hidden underground in different places across the world. We're all in covert communication, all with the same goal, to hit back at the Elite” She informed them, before taking a sip of her morning tea, “Each of you has a specific skill or some specific knowledge and that's why you're all so important”.
David lifted his arm to ask to speak, like he had been transported back to high school. Sheryl paused and looked at him to allow him to speak, hoping he didn't just want the bathroom.
“What about” he paused a second, “What about Niel, Sofia and Ben? Their skills are no longer with us, will that hold us back”.
Sheryl shook her head.
“No, hopefully not. As you know, Sofia was a software programmer. We also have Mateo who can fill that void, one of his many IT talents” She said smiling at him.
Mateo didn't know what to say; so just smiled discreetly and did a strange thumbs up motion.
“Ben was an expert in the new field of Nano-technology. His skills in that area are obviously lacking, but we were able to get hold of his research, thanks to Danny”
“Those things were brutal, I don't want to see any of those little shits again” Brandon butted in.
Sheryl cleared her throat and took another sip of tea.
“They have many uses. Obviously as you have seen, they can be abused, as well as used responsibly. The prototypes the Elite commandeered are quite basic models, they haven't yet finalised the designs to make them almost indestructible. Ben had devised far superior Nano-bots, but it won't be long before the elite increase their technology and do the same” Sheryl glanced around the room at everyone, their eyes all focused on her every word, “Niel was a hidden treasure, also a programmer, but he had figured things out that others hadn't yet. Thankfully his copious notes were retrieved, so we should still be able to tap into his expertise”
The silence blanketed the room again apart from the odd pained cough that didn't do everyone's headaches much good.
“So the plan is for each team, that's positioned in a different location, to build and launch a space-craft that's purpose is
