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But here, in this place he called a zoo, I discovered a variety of creatures, each wondrous and, according to him, endangered.
“Animals who are at risk of becoming extinct are cared for in controlled environments like this zoo. We’ve been working hard to ensure we don’t lose any more species. Bad enough we lost as many as we did to the flood due to not being prepared.”
I knew now that the flood he mentioned had been caused by a cascade of disasters, from volcanoes spewing ash around the world to humanity decimating the planet. Add in the sun getting hotter for more than a decade, which melted the ice caps, covering Earth in water and leaving only the highest peaks for humans to rebuild on.
With limited surface areas to use and a determination to not overuse natural resources, what they termed superfluous people were sent underground, rather than be culled. Ironically, animals now lived more freely than humans, being given the vast space to roam.
“You’re looking very serious,” the commander softly remarked at my side.
“Just a bit overwhelmed. That sun is hot.” The giant yellow and orange ball in the sky proved unrelenting.
“Let’s go into the pavilion, where there’s shade.” He led me to a structure that had a roof and pillars but no walls. Within, holographic displays offered videos of animals that were extinct. In rapt fascination, I watched a video about a beast with black and white markings called a panda. And another about a lizard called a Komodo dragon. The eagle proved awe-inspiring with its ability to fly and hunt.
It was as I eyed the display of a bright pink bird called a flamingo that the commander murmured, “There’s something amiss.”
I turned from the display to see him eyeing the people wandering past the pavilion. All the castes but Grays were in attendance.
And then I saw them. Someone dressed in gray from head to foot, face covered in a mask with X’s drawn over the eyes. People startled as the Gray sprinted past them. Farther off, a pair of red Enforcers noticed and began moving in their direction.
As the Gray ran past the pavilion, they lobbed something into the waste receptacle.
The commander shouted, “Take cover.”
He shielded me with his own body just before the explosion.
