Ava Altair grew up reading fantasy and science fiction novels. She graduated from Florida Tech with a BS in Science Education – Physics and a minor in Computational Mathematics. She taught as an AP Physics teacher for five years in Florida. She now lives in Oregon, teaching horseback riding lessons and managing the stables with her mom. She enjoys hanging out and talking about science concepts and story ideas with her dad.

What it is to be human doesn't apply anymore. The surface of the Earth has been poisoned by years of abuse and now most life lives beneath the waves of the ocean. Over the last 500 years, humans have become fragmented and specialized by genetic manipulation, but two main factions exist in the Undersea. The hybrids, a race that continues to genetically modify themselves to climb the social ladder, and the humans, the unmodified organic race that makes up the lowest tier of society. 

Alex, a Delta Six hybrid, finds an unlikely companion in a human man, Jack, while on a mission to steal the Athena file. Alex withholds the file to elicit help from Jack and they set out on an adventure across the Surface. Their relationship is tenuous until a device mysteriously links them together. Now, running from Alphas, an elite group of hybrid assassins, Alex and Jack must weather the hostile surface of the planet to reach their common goal. They soon find they can't both have the thing they want most, but also can't seem to let each other go.

FLUX

Tom watched Jack run off at warp speed. Whatever he was off to do seemed pretty important.


Tom turned to his guard and extended his hand. "Well, I'm Tom."


"Aidan," he said, "Now let's get a move on."


"What do I do with this one? He hasn't broken through yet." Another guard asked as the man on the end of his chain struggled against him.


Aidan walked up to the man and looked into his eyes. They were some pretty crazy eyes and Tom felt for him. He knew that kind of crazy and the pain that came with it. Tom grabbed his shoulder. "Come on man, snap out of it."


The man was lost. There wasn't even a sparkle of humanity left. He just looked like a monster. The ship shuttered and jostled them.


Aidan shook his head sadly. He pulled out his sidearm and shot him in the head. The prisoner slumped under Tom's arm. He felt a pang of sadness, but before he could do much else, Aidan was jogging away shouting orders to the others.


Chapter 67: Run Away/Escape Pod