But she didn't experience any of that. So she figured maybe her fever was just from the sudden change in temperature. Just then, something totally unexpected happened. She felt the bullet in her forehead slowly being pushed out by new flesh growing from inside her skull. She could hear the tissue in her head regenerating. It was a strange and almost wondrous feeling. Her heart started beating again, blood rushed through her veins, and her fingers twitched just a little. She was alive again. So this was her ability. Alison had been thrown in with the other dead bodies. When the soldiers left, she suddenly sat up. She stared at her hands and touched her forehead. She was hardly able to believe what she'd just been through. Then she saw that every one of her fingers had a black line on it, each shaped like the number one. Now, her pinky was missing a line. Suddenly, it clicked, and she knew exactly what had happened. She had ten lives, and she'd just used one. That was her ability! "This is incredible." Alison looked at her hands in awe. She escaped, running away from the pile of corpses and making her way to Building B. She'd gained her ability. Her first instinct wasn't to keep it to herself, but to share it with Lisa. It was like when a dedicated student achieved something remarkable and rushed to share it with their mentor. She didn't realize that Lisa—the one who had recruited her and given her direction—had already left Building B. Now, she was eager for approval, but her mentor was already gone. Meanwhile, Caroline and Tyler were leading Nelson across the filthy ground, searching for all stages of mutant flies and mosquitoes—eggs, larvae, and adults—for Nelson's research.The streets were a mess, so everyone was in protective clothing and masks. While they searched, a strange sound came from nearby. Tyler and Caroline immediately grew alert, glancing in the direction of the noise. Nothing was in sight, which made it even scarier. They quickly moved to where Nelson was digging through a pile of trash and stood protectively around him. Completely absorbed in his work, Nelson didn't seem to care what was happening outside. Caroline had told him to focus on what he needed. She and the others would handle the rest. To Caroline, Nelson was one of their own now, and his abilities were remarkable. That meant everyone had to do their part in any crisis. Keeping Nelson safe was up to her, Tyler, and Denton. All Nelson had to do was conduct his research and occasionally help them recover or regain strength. Right now, the ground was covered with all sorts of debris. The army had been trying to clear it for days, but there was just too much to clean up. Every time the wind blew, more garbage from farther away ended up here. Even if the area around the building was spotless by night, by morning the streets would be a mess again. Francis was already reporting to Nathaniel that heavy equipment would be needed—there was no way they could clean the streets by hand. All kinds of bodies, garbage, excrement, and strange, sticky substances littered the ground. Collapsed buildings had left gravel and stones everywhere, blocking Caroline's view. After a while, she thought she saw something move in a heap of trash. It was just a twitch, and then it stopped. She frowned. At first, she thought it was a corpse. Looking again, she realized it must have been someone who wasn't quite dead. Suddenly, that person seemed to gather all their strength and pushed themselves upright with both hands. He was dressed in rags, so thin his bones stuck out, and covered in scars. "Help ... help me ... " His voice was barely more than a whisper. But Caroline and Tyler didn't move. Instead, Nelson suddenly looked up. He stood and stared at the man, his nose twitching behind his mask as if he was trying to pick out a scent. Nelson had a phenomenal sense of smell. He was able to detect things ordinary people couldn't, including poisons and enzymes. After his mutation, his sense of smell had grown even more sensitive. Just now, he'd found a mutant mosquito larva in the garbage beneath his feet, thanks to his nose.