24. Power outage
When Luffy woke up the next day, he found that everyone else was still sleeping. Feeling hungry, Luffy went back to the kitchen where he ate at night. After frying a few poached eggs, the others also came to the kitchen, and seeing that Luffy Yang was already busy, they began to make breakfast that fit their eating habits.
After a while, the drunken people came to the kitchen one by one. As soon as Glenn arrived in the kitchen, he fell on the table and couldn't get up. Sean also had a few more scratches on his neck, and from Sean's gaze at Rick's wife, Lori, Luffy noticed that it seemed to contain some different emotions.
As if sensing Luffy's gaze, when Luffy looked over again, Sean's gaze became the same as looking at everyone else. Although Sean reined in, Luffy had a feeling in his heart that something must have happened between Sean and Rick's wife, Lori.
But there is really no way to say these emotional things. Moreover, as Rick's good friend who rescued Rick's wife and son in the apocalypse, if Sean and Lori have a crush on each other after experiencing many dangers or something, Luffy believes that it is not impossible.
However, these things, as an outsider, Luffy Yang is not good to talk to Rick, and it is impossible for no one in the camp to notice the relationship between Sean and Lori, but they did not talk to Rick, and Luffy Yang does not want to be a villain in vain.
When Jenner also came over for breakfast, Dale said, "Good morning, Dr. Jenner!" I don't want to ask you questions early in the morning, but can we see how your work is progressing? ”
After hesitating for a moment, Jenner said, "Okay, after breakfast, let's go and have a look!" ”
Led the crowd into the hall. Jenner said in a loud voice: "Yui, turn on the big screen and play back Experiment 19." ”
As a data model of the brain made up of blue dots of light was displayed on the large screen in the hall, Jenner turned and said, "Not many people have seen this material. ”
"Enlarge the inside image." After the data model was revealed, Jenner asked the central computer to show the information transmission inside the brain and explained: "These beating points of light are all that a person has, life, memory, experience, everything, all here." All these networks, all these points of light, they are you, the unique you, and they make you unique. ”
Until now, looking at this man who was talking eloquently, although he looked very haggard and down, his body was filled with a kind of confidence that looked forward to Feiyang, which made Lu Feiyang remember that this person said that he had been studying the virus alone here, and it seemed that it was not a lie.
Daryl was very neat in dealing with the zombies outside, but it was a bit blind to make him understand these things, so he said suspiciously: "But I still don't understand, what is this?" ”
"These are synapses, the electrical impulses in the brain that carry all the information," Jenner said. From the moment you were born, it controls what you say, do, and think until death comes. ”
"Until death?" Rick keenly grasped the meaning of Jenner's words and said, "Dr. Jenner, are you saying this is a surveillance image?" ”
"Yes." After a pause, Jenner said, "To be precise, this is a monitoring image replay. ”
Hearing Jenner's words, Luffy Yang said suspiciously, "Are you saying this person is dead?" Who is he? ”
Jenner tilted his head up, and others saw his eyes, and said quietly, "She's Subject 19." A person who contracted the virus after being bitten, but volunteered to let us record the transition. ”
Speaking of which, Jenner glanced back and said, "Only, browse through Project One." ”
As Jenner's words fell, the brain made of blue points of light was displayed on the big screen, but at this time, the depths of the brain were occupied by some brown colors, which made people think of death. Luffy looked at the images on the screen and said, "What are these?" ”
Jenner pointed to the screen and said, "It's like meningitis, infecting the brain!" It makes people bleed from the adrenal glands, then the main organs of the whole body, and finally dies. ”
Before Jenner could finish his sentence, the brain made up of blue dots of light on the big screen turned ominously black. With Jenner's deep voice, everyone fell silent. Andrea remembered her sister who had just died, and choked silently.
Jenner looked at Andrea, who was crying suddenly, a little inexplicable. Lori explained in a low voice, "Just the night before, he had just lost her sister. ”
Looking at the crying Andrea, Jenner came over and comforted: "I have also lost loved ones, and I know how painful it is!" ”
Looking at Andrea's pained eyes, Jenner wanted to divert people's attention, so he said, "Yui, Wandering Project 2." ”
When the central computer opened the record, Jenner said: "The mutation time is long and short, according to the report, the shortest mutation is 3 minutes, and the longest is 8 hours. ”
Looking at the pitch-black brain displayed on the big screen, Jenner's voice was full of unspeakable pain: "And this patient, her mutation time is 2 hours...... 1 minute ...... Zero 7 seconds. ”
At this time, deep in the brain on the big screen, the area that was originally infected by the virus and turned brown gradually began to flicker with red light spots. Luffy and all of them stared at the big screen with their eyes wide and their mouths wide open, and Andrea asked Jenner, "What's going on?" Is the virus getting the brain back in action? ”
"No, no!" Jenner said, "It's just the brain stem." In principle, it is to let the zombies get up and move around. ”
Rick walked over and took the opportunity to ask the question he had been wondering about, "But aren't these zombies moving?" ”
Looking back at Rick, Jenner pointed to the big screen and said, "Then tell me, what did you see on it?" ”
"Except for the brain stem, all parts of the brain are dark, indicating that it is dead." Looking at the brain on the screen, Rick shook his head and muttered. It's like refuting what you said before.
Jenner nodded at Rick and said, "Its frontal lobe, cerebral cortex, keeps people alive, and a part of human nature is not alive." It's just a thoughtless, instinct-driven shell. ”
At this time, the zombie on the big screen began to struggle, and then someone shot through the entire head. When both recordings were played, Jenner turned around and walked towards Luffy and them, while also causing the center computer to turn off the big screen.
"You don't know what it is, do you?" Seeing that Jenner wanted to leave, Andrea said with her hands in front of her chest.
Jenner stopped and looked back at the crowd that was staring at him: "It could be bacteria, viruses, parasites, fungi......"
At this time, Jacque, a black woman who had not opened her mouth, interjected with tears: "Or, God's punishment!" ”
"Maybe." Jenner couldn't argue either.
Andrea said, "Somebody must know something." In other places, there are other people, right? Other institutions? ”
Jenner closed his eyes and sighed, "Perhaps." I think there are still people like me who have been hiding underground for so long. ”
Seeing that Jenner didn't seem to understand anything, Rick also became anxious and said, "But you don't know? Why don't you know anything? ”
Jenner looked at Rick calmly and said, "Nothing, no communication, no instructions from superiors, nothing!" I've been living underground alone for almost a month now. ”
Andrea said in a nasal voice: "That is, no matter where it is, it is all the same?" That's what you mean, right? ”
Jenner acquiesced to Andrea's words.
Everyone was hit hard, and they all looked incredulous. Daryl rubbed his cheeks with his hands and said, "Oh my God! I'm going to get drunk again. ”
Dale then pointed to the watch on the wall that only had an hour countdown and said, "Dr. Jenner, although I don't want to disturb you, I want to ask, what does that countdown clock on the wall mean?" ”
"The basement is running out of fuel, and the power will soon be out!" After saying this, Jenner no longer paid attention to the questions of the crowd and left the crowd.
Seeing that Jenner wouldn't be answering questions, Rick followed Jenner's example and said loudly, "Only, what happens when the power runs out?" ”
"When the power runs out, a full disinfection program will be initiated." The rigid electronic voice actually gave people an indescribable sense of cruelty at this moment.
After Jenner left, Luffy followed Rick and they went to the bottom floor, only to find that the bottom floor of the base was full of empty oil drums, and the generators had stopped running. And when Luffy Yang and the others went to check the situation on the ground floor of the base, the air conditioner and lights in the room they lived in were also slowly stopped because there was no power supply.
When Jenner reappeared, everyone gathered around him and asked, "What's going on, why did all the appliances stop?" ”
Faced with everyone's questions, Jenner said: "It's not my decision, District 5 is closing itself. The system is shutting down all non-essential equipment in order to keep the computer running until the last minute. When the remaining time is close to half an hour, the program will run automatically. ”
Speaking of which, looking at Andrea, Jenner said, "French." ”
Looking at Andrea's bewildered expression, Jenner explained, "As far as I know, they held out to the end. While the people here are either running away or committing suicide, the French have been sticking to this laboratory, thinking that they are close to finding the answer. But in the end, they, like us, ran out of power. ”
Looking at Jenner with a calm face, Rick felt a wave of uneasiness in his heart, and turned back to his wife and said loudly: "Lori, go, take Carl back to pack up all your things, and leave immediately." ”
Seeing what his wife was going to say, Rick immediately yelled, "Go now!" ”
And just then, an alarm sounded in the hall. Listening to the sirens, Jenner locked everyone in the hall. Seeing that the door was suddenly locked, a bad feeling surged in everyone's hearts. After locking the door in the hall, Jenner sat in front of the computer and said to the camera, "I'm recording now, the countdown to 30 minutes has begun......"
After Darryl sat down with Jenner, he said incredulously, "Are you locking us here?" What do you want? ”
After finishing speaking, Daryl was even more impulsive to pick up a wine bottle that Jenner had placed in the hall, and wanted to give Jenner a full face.