10th Anniversary: Shades of Gray #5 Night of the Twilight- The Chimera Strain

By Kristie Lynn Higgins

10th Anniversary Edition:

The Shades Of Gray Series follows the adventures of Kat, a woman with no memory of her past who is called the Pandora Project by those who hunt her, and Kim, a woman leading the life of a legal assassin called a Life Closer. The world they live in is plagued by clouds that prevent the sun from shining down on the land called Dry Clouds, making all who live in Noir forced to live in endless night. Start this series by reading #1 Shades of Gray: Noir, City Shrouded By Darkness and #2 Shades of Gray: From Moscow, With Love.

Kat searches for clues to a past she can't remember while androids called Un-Men and human bounty hunters try to kill her, and Kim searches for who murdered her mother. The two women's paths collide, and they form a shaky partnership to unravel the mysteries that haunt their lives and they try to protect one another from those who do not wish for them to discover the truth.

Everyone's soul is marked by a color. Which shade of gray will they hold to?

This small section of the Shades of Gray series deals with a zombie apocalypse. The apocalyptic infectious outbreak drags many of the characters of the dystopian series into a horrifying life and death situation that many of them might not survive. Thousands of undead surround them. If you like the Walking Dead, Fear The Walking Dead, World War Z, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies enjoy this section of the Shades of Gray series that pays homage to George A. Romero ( the Father of Zombie Film ) who started the zombie genre we all love with works like Night Of The Living Dead, Dawn Of The Dead, Day Of The Dead, Land Of The Day, The Crazies, and many others.

#5 Shades of Gray: Night Of The Twilight- The Chimera Strain:
10th Anniversary Edition

One man's hatred...
One terrible infection...

In six days, on UnDay, a deadly contagion ( the Chimera Strain ) will be created in Anubis, the Jackal of Death. And he will have three goals; infect everyone at the Third Branch Office, bring the Sphinx Corporation to its knees, and usher forth the Twilight. Those who are infected become mindless zombies he controls and in turn those infected infect others. Will anyone be able to stop Anubis?

As the seasons...
Things change...

Kat ( the Pandora Project ) looks to start a new life. The first thing she has to do is find a job. With the help of her neighbor Zax, she finds a delivery position at Sphinx Corporation Third Branch Office. Little does she know what waits for her in six days.

Can something lost... be found?

Kimberly Griffin ( The Phoenix ) searches for Kat. Kim can't leave things as they ended with her. With the help of Stephanie (Cerberus), Kim scours Noir. Will her search take the Phoenix to the Third branch Office just in time for UnDay?

**Shades of Gray- A Science Fiction Action Adventure Horror Mystery Thriller Series**

(STARTING POINT QUADRILOGY)
#1 Shades of Gray: Noir, City Shrouded By Darkness
#2 Shades of Gray: From Moscow, With Love
#3 Shades of Gray: Cerberus Versus Pandora
#4 Shades of Gray: Sisters

(ZOMBIE TWILIGHT QUADRILOGY)
#5 Shades of Gray: Night Of The Twilight- The Chimera Strain
#6 Shades of Gray: Dawn Of The Twilight- Outbreak
#7 Shades of Gray: Day Of The Twilight- Patient Zero
#8 Shades of Gray: Land Of The Twilight- Closing of Days

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kristie Lynn Higgins
• Release date: Dec 26, 2019
• ISBN: 9780463598252

Kristie Lynn Higgins

You can also check out my author page on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/author/kristielynnhiggins

Book preview

Chapter One

Night Of The Twilight

The year 32 A.D.C...

October 32 (six days in the future)...

UnDay- A day that was not marked by Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, etc. A day that was separated from all other days and had a place set aside on the calendar. A day to celebrate spirits, monsters, and the darker side of man.

12:22 A.M...

16 minutes after Zero Hour- the birth of the Chimera Strain...

Hellenistic Sector, Business Vicinage...

Sphinx Corporation Third Branch Office...

Anubis’ view…

The Twilight is here! I, the Jackal of Death, proclaim in a deep resounding voice as I lift my mighty arms in victory. I ushered it forth! Me!

I stand in the hall outside of Lab 33-284. My mutated body is a testament to what I have become. I lower my arms and peer into the Hades' hole where it all began. The lab… I was born there. I shake my head as I try to dislodge a madness that wants to take up residence in my mind. I can’t worry about the past. It doesn’t matter. Only the future I will bring will matter.

I lift my arms again and proclaim, The Twilight is here!

I blankly stare at the floor with eyes that have long gone pitch-black. They’re not the only change to my body. My chest and arm muscles are huge, and I can feel the power surging through them. I just became king of this world, a world of death and blood.

Me... I ushered it forth, I continue to proclaim to those around me as I point at myself. A skull scar marks my chest. It’s my crown, my crown as king of the dead. All is not a glorious victory. Pain surges through my body, but I push through it and yell, savoring what I have accomplished, I am the creator! I am the god of it! I lift my voice with a roar and utter for all to hear, I’ll bring about the Twilight!

I hold a music player in my left hand. The music player has a part in making the contagion. I hold onto it as if it’s my scepter and all the while, liquid scarlet trickles from my mouth to my chest. The runny evidence boasts of my first two victims. Saps who had once been the ones victimizing me. I took my revenge and infected them with the Chimera Strain, and now they belong to me. I’ll paint a canvas with the horrors of this new world. I’ll paint it for all to see, and it will be a masterpiece of gore and mayhem.

My stomach rumbles and churns with complaint. It’s the dominant side effect of the contagion and what I call the Hunger. The Hunger’s still with me, and it’s never satisfied. Sanguinary drool drips from my chin to the white tiled floor and splatters my barefoot as I sniff the air. I take a deep breath as if smelling steak on the grill. Someone else is here. I smell their blood, and they’re close. I feel like a demonic wild dog as I sprint through the hall.

End Anubis’ view…

Several hallways away…

A man walked out of a door, and it was one of many labs on the floor. The man held an H.H.C. and scanned a few files on the small device. A name badge with Charleston on it was clipped to his white lab coat. He typed a few notes on the H.H.C., finishing up his work for the day. He could go home and see the wife and kids. Charleston pulled up a picture of them on the device. His little rug-rats… he hadn’t seen them in two weeks. He placed the H.H.C. in his lab coat pocket, glanced around the hall, and saw no one was there. It was late but still, it was a little creepy like he was the only man on the planet. He started through the hall, knowing if he hurried he could be home in two hours.

A foul odor distracted him, and he uttered, Hades! What’s that stench?

He peeked around the next corner but saw nothing out of the ordinary. An elevator waited with its doors open. He waved a hand in front of his face.

Ah! What died? I better let maintenance know. It could be a dead rat up in the ducts and those things can smell for weeks if they aren’t removed.

Charleston headed for the open cab and when he heard the pat-pat of bare feet, he turned as someone ran up behind him. Charleston saw a deranged naked man charging around the corner.

Whoa! he yelled as if the man was a horse, and then he took two steps back from him.

Anubis’ view…

I slide to a halt. There he is, the one whose savory vital fluid called to me. It has pleaded for me to come and take it, so I can’t deny its petition.

My Zeus! What happened to you? the man in front of me asks. I see by his ID badge his name is Charleston. He steps forward as if he is going to help me, but then he must decide not to get too close. I’ll call for a medical team, he says as he reaches into his lab coat pocket for his cell phone.

Medical team? I utter before I leap on the man, tackling him to the floor, and then I tell him, You have things all wrong. I stand on his chest in a crouched position and look down at him with my ravenous eyes as I add, Grievously wrong.

The fall knocks the wind out of Charleston, and his cell slides across the floor out of his reach. He gasps and chokes, What are you? Charleston takes a deep painful breath and manages to yell, Get off me!

Charleston’s view...

I have stumbled into some sort of nightmare. The thing before me is horrifying with bereaved-burgundy splattered all over its skin and raging-roseate staining its fingers. It repulses me with its foul breath and gore covered teeth. It’s so grotesque! I can’t bear to look at its face. I turn, sickened and want to vomit as I exclaimed, My Zeus! What are you? The monster in human form doesn’t answer me, so I shout again, What are you? For the love of Zeus! What are you?

The monster in human form places a red-tinged hand over my screaming mouth, then leans to me, and whispers, Shh... No need to get all carried away. No one’s going to hear you. He grabs my throat and speaks, If you stay still, this shouldn’t hurt. It chuckles, and then it adds, It shouldn’t hurt that much.

I try to fight my attacker, but this monster... this scarred man is more powerful, inhumanly more powerful than me. I desperately choked out, Get off me! Get off me!

I can’t hold it back anymore, the scarred man tells me as he opens his mouth and bares his inch long canines at me. The craving’s very strong.

I shake my head as I start to scream, This can’t be happening. This can’t be happening! My wife... My kids...

Anubis’s view...

I lash out and sink my fangs into the man’s neck near his shoulder. The life liquid enters my mouth and gives me some eating pleasure, and I have a sense of enjoyment, but something’s missing. A satisfaction that ends the Hunger never comes. I never feel like I’m full or that I have lessened the need for blood, and I pull back, ripping skin and muscle with my teeth. I chew on the flesh, hoping that’s what I need. I swallow and wait, but the Hunger doesn’t lessen. It grows even more voracious.

What’s wrong? I yell. Why can’t I satisfy the Hunger?

Blood gushes from the wound, saturating Charleston’s coat collar as his screams fall silent and his body goes limp. I examine the man, and the way his lifeless form feels to me is different than my first two victims. He’s dead, and he died much faster than the others. I look at the music player, then insert an in-ear earphone in the dead man’s ear, and press play. A few seconds pass, and nothing happens.

I’m immensely disappointed that my third attempt to create another child failed, so I stand and consider where I had pucked up. It looks like they need to be alive to hear the melody. They have to be alive for the final element to take hold and begin the transformation and then after that, they can die. I pull on the cord, and the earbud pops out. I start back to Lab 33-284, knowing I have been too rough with my victim. Their death has to be slow and allow the Chimera Strain to do its job. Very few times in my life have I been annoyed with myself and this is one of them, but I can’t worry about my failure for I can’t undo death. I peer at my hands. It is beyond my power, but maybe... No, that kind of thinking is only a distraction, and I have other things to worry about. My walk turns into a trudge as the excitement of the hunt vanishes. I am the carrier of the Chimera Strain! A once lowly man now has the power to destroy the whole world! I put a hand to my stomach. All I have to do is gain more control. I need to let the victim bleed, not kill them right away, and that’s all I have to do.

I dig my nails into my abdomen and curse as the Hunger gnaws at my gut. I pause and lean on a wall. It will drive me insane if I don’t somehow satisfy it. I have to make it go away, but I just fed. I clench my teeth and rant, I can’t let it dominate me. I have to be the master!

I’ll be the master, and I’ll bring death to the world! I utter and then lick gore and bits of flesh from my mutated canines as I start for the lab again. I can accomplish my goal if I can get my Hunger under control.

My stomach repeats its rumbling and turns its rampaging on itself. The PP BL-S causes insufferable agony to flood my body, but the pain doesn’t hinder my purpose. It drives me and urges me to take my revenge as I ball my hands and shake a fist toward the heavens. I will take my revenge on this cruel world! I grab my stomach again as the Hunger reminds me I have to hunt.

I start to search for my next victim, but the Chimera Strain muddles my mind. I’m brain-sick as a bout of confusion hits me, and I grab my eyelids with my fingertips and pull at them, feeling my bloodshot eyes bulge. The Chimera Strain reminds me of the pain and its endless scorching, baking, and frying. It’s still with me… has never left me… but I focus on something more important. I need to surface above the confusion, so I think about my future. The Twilight nears, and I, as its Herald, have already proclaimed it. I drop my hands from my face as the confusion leaves me.

Clearer thinking slowly comes back to me, and I decide to return to my birthplace. I have to keep my plan on track. I look inside Lab 33-284 at the two men lying on the floor who I infected successfully. They moan as the infection takes its course. Dr. David Tenes is the man who injected me with the PP BL-S, and Din Lay happened to be at the wrong place at the most convenient time. Din Lay is the one who brought the music player. I can’t help but take pleasure in their torment as I lean on the door frame and ask maliciously, How are daddy’s boys?

The two men don’t answer as their bodies convulse on the floor. The Chimera Strain transforms them and creates mindless creatures with human forms. They’re becoming something unlike me. Maybe they’re becoming something even more frightening. I look at the examining bed where they had restrained me, and I think back to the beginning of my metamorphosis. They had used me like some guinea pig and thought they could take advantage of their position in the world.

Hah! Now, who’s the aspholes?

I enter the room and leer, pleased with watching the two infected men as they transform from brilliant scientists into mindless minions. I walk over to Dr. Tenes and look at his bald head, wishing he had hair so I could whack it all off. I turn to a mirror in the lab, not that my appearance matters anymore. I won’t be picking up chicks with my looks. It will be more like I’ll chase the ladies until I take a bite out of them.

I kneel between the two men and rub the one man’s bald head like I’m petting a cat as I ask, What do you think, Dr. Tenes? Am I all you dreamed I'd be?

The infected, or maybe zombies is a better term, turn and face me. They hear my call, and they moan again, unable to speak as drool runs from their mouths. They don’t answer me and that’s okay. I’m all I have ever dreamed of and that’s what matters. I stand, and the zombies join me, their new master. Dr. Tenes hand bleeds were I had bit off his pinky, and the red liquid covers his lab coat as blood gushes from Din Lay’s neck where I chomped on him. I can sense some of their thoughts… what little they do have. Their stomachs rumble as the Hunger hits them, and their need to feed on the living dominates their thinking. I’m about to give them a command when another interrupts me.

There is one you must find, I hear the voice of the one who whispers as if speaking within the wind. There is one you must find.

I ignore the wind-whisper. His voice is very distant and inconsequential to the moment. I have other things to worry about than the one I must find. There are many I must find. There are many that I must infect.

I roar like some lion with my new power and speak in a reverberating voice to the two I have already infected, Do you remember how this started? I do. I can clearly remember the beginning. You had asked me if I felt any pain. I mock Dr. Tenes by asking, What are you experiencing right now, my good scientist? Do you feel any pain? My sneer fades as I speak, In your state, do you feel anything? Probably not. I had hoped you would suffer longer. I step to the side as my minions slowly walk out of the lab, and I tell them, I believe I hear your minds, that is, what is left of them. I feel a wicked grin spread across my face as I say, You too have the Hunger. You have that insistent craving for human blood. I won’t be alone in my urge.

I hurry past them to the door as I command, Come. It feels as though my stomach is eating itself again, and I instruct them, We must hunt. I have this feeling the Hunger will never go away and in the end, it may drive me mad but until then, I’ll take my revenge and see how much I can puck up this world!

End Anubis’ view…

CHIMERA STRAIN REPORT:

12:28 A.M.

Infected- three. About .00011% of the 23,286 employees present at the Third Branch Office.

The Twilight nears...

Chapter Two

Barbra And Johnny

The present...

October 26...

Tuesday...

1:47 P.M...

Hellenistic Sector, Business Vicinage...

Sphinx Corporation Third Branch Office...

Level 301...

A brother and a sister, who were both fair-haired and dressed in black, paused outside the George A. Romero Hologram Room. She straightened her skirt and then inserted a card in a reader by the door.

The computer read the file and stated in a male robotic voice, The program has been uploaded. You may proceed in. The program will last twenty minutes.

They somberly stepped forward, activating the automated door. It slid to the side, and they entered. The room housed paneling that enabled the walls to project a day with normal small clouds that let in the sun. It was a place where plants and animals thrived. Everything within the room was a hologram.

The man adjusted his suit, glanced at an H.H.C., and motioned for his sister to follow him down a row of light generated gravestones. He held a wreath.

The woman seemed lost, but she remembered her part and said, They otta make the day the time changes the first day of summer.

What? the man asked. What are you talking about, Barbra?

She looked around the make-believe world, and in the distance, a clock sat on a black cast iron pole near a winding sidewalk. Barbra examined the hands and then stated, Well it’s eight o'clock, and it’s still light.

He glanced at his watch and told her, It’s actually a little before 2 P.M.

Johnny please, she pleaded. Stick to the script. The one we always do. It makes it easier. Easier for me to deal. Anyway, that’s how I programmed this hologram room. It is eight here.

Yeah, eight here and not a Dry Cloud in the sky. We both know this is all fake.

Johnny, please.

He thought it might make it easier for her, but he also thought it was a little weird as he said, But if it makes you happy...

She started again, Well it’s eight o'clock, and it’s still light.

Johnny cleared his throat, changed the file on his H.H.C., and read, A lot of good the extra daylight does us now. We still have a three-hour drive back. We aren’t going to be home till after midnight.

Barbra snapped, Well if it really bugged you, Johnny, you wouldn’t do it.

He chuckled and pointed at the hologram graveyard and said, You think I want to blow Tuesday on a scene like this? He glanced at the H.H.C. and read, You know I figure we’re going to have to move mother out here or move the grave into the Valhalla Sector.

She can’t make a trip like this.

Ohh... You don’t know that she can’t. He looked at her purse and asked, Is there any of that candy left?

She looked inside and replied, No.

Johnny wondered why the answer couldn’t be yes as he continued with the script, Look at this thing. He held up the circle wreath of flowers and read on it, We still remember. Johnny shook his head and then said, I don’t. You know I don’t even remember what the man looks like.

Barbra walked ahead, stopped, looked back, and said, Johnny, it takes you five minutes.

Yeah, five minutes to put the wreath on the grave and six hours to drive back and forth. Mother wants to remember, so we trot two hundred miles into the Hellenistic Sector, and she stays at home.

She put a hand to her hip and spoke, Well, we’re here, John. Alright.

In the distance, the door to the hologram room opened, and a black man slowly trudged in, dragging his left leg as the siblings walked to the graves.

Barbra asked, Which row is it in?

He motioned to the one they stood in and said, Well, there’s no one around.

Well, it’s late. If you had gotten up earlier...

Ahh... Look. I already lost an hour sleep when the time changed.

I think you complain just to hear yourself talk, Barbra stated as she continued past the gravestones, pointed, and said, There it is.

Johnny knelt and placed the real wreath of flowers next to the gravestone of generated light. He said, I wonder what happened to the one from last year. Each year we spend good credits on these things, and we come out here, and the one from last year is gone.

She looked around the quiet landscape as she spoke, Well, the flowers die, and the caretaker or someone takes them away.

He stood and said, Yeah, a little spit and polish could clean this up. Sell it next year. I wonder how many times we bought the same one.

She knelt by the tombstone.

After a minute, Johnny said impatiently, Hey, come on Barb. Temple was this morning.

In the distance...

The black man who was dressed in a white business shirt and tan pants aimlessly lumbered in a circle until he spotted the siblings. His eyes were vacant. He started toward them, dragging his leg.

At the grave...

Johnny glanced at the H.H.C. again and read his line, Hey, I mean praying’s for temple. Come on.

Barbra lifted her head and said, I haven’t seen you in Zeus' Temple lately.

He chuckled and then said, Well, there’s not much sense in me going to temple. Do you remember one time when we were small and we were out here? He pointed to a tree and told her, It was from right over there. I jumped out at you from behind a tree, and grandpa got all excited, and he shook his fist at me, and he said, ‘Boy, you’ll be damned to Tartarus.’ Johnny laughed. You remember that? He pointed to the tree again as he spoke, Right over there. You used to be really scared here.

Johnny!

He put the H.H.C. away. Johnny knew the next couple of lines by heart. Actually, he enjoyed them. Johnny said, You’re still afraid.

She no longer acted as she snapped, Stop it now! I mean it!

With a big smirk on his face, he taunted in a ghoulish voice, They’re coming to get you, Barbra.

Stop it! She walked toward the entrance and yelled at him, You’re ignorant.

He repeated in the same ghoulish voice, They’re coming for you, Barbra.

Stop it! You’re acting like a child.

He ran, grabbed her from behind, and told her, They’re coming for you. Johnny pointed to the man moving toward them, and he yelled, Look! There comes one now.

She tried to quiet him by saying, He’ll hear you. No need to go off script. Our trip is done. We can leave.

Her brother wouldn’t stop acting as he spoke, Here he comes now. I’m getting out of here.

He ran ahead of her, around the other man, and neared the entrance, but Barbra felt bad that her brother had been rude and went to apologize to the man. The black man turned and opened his mouth as the brother walked by but said nothing and turned to the sister. He lunged for her.

Johnny! she screamed as the man grabbed at her arms. She stepped back, and he fell to the ground. Johnny, help me!

The man started for her again.

Her brother turned, saw she was in danger, and ran at the man, pulling him off of his sister.

Hey! the man uttered as he raised his hands. Wait a minute. Don’t get the wrong idea. I tripped and fell that’s all. I hurt my leg earlier. He looked at her as he told her, Sorry. My name’s Ben, and I’m the Chairman’s assistant. I was sent to bring you upstairs. The Chairman heard you were here, and he wants to see you.

Us? she said.

Yes, so if you don’t mind, Ben spoke as he motioned for the exit as the program shut off, and the area reverted to an empty room. Let’s head up to his office.

I’m famished, Barbra said. We need to stop somewhere first so I can eat.

That’s fine. Ben removed a cell phone from his pocket as he told them, I’ll call the Chairman and let him know you will be up later. Come this way, and I’ll take you to the Deli Shop.

He led as the siblings followed him out.

Chapter Three

Where’s Katharine?

Tuesday...

2:29 P.M...

Hellenistic Sector, Residential Vicinage...

Kimberly’s view…

I run outside, leaving the front lobby of the Nexus Apartments. I try to decide where Katharine would have gone. I’m desperate to find her, so I hurry my pace as dark Dry Clouds grumble overhead. The storm sends down sheets of Tainted Rain as I cross the street. The oily black water soils my teal pantsuit and darkens my blonde hair. I should have never let her leave. Katharine could be anywhere by now. Reddish-blue lightning streaks across the barriercumulus as I enter Zeus Park. I hurry along a path that winds through the park as I search aimlessly. Transgenic Maples, grass, and bushes line the pathways. I don’t see Katharine.

I think about what was said in the apartment, and tears run down my face as I whisper, I’m sorry. I’m such an idiot!

I should have never told her... I should have never told Katharine until I was a hundred percent sure. I see a brick bridge in the distance, and I bolt for it. It was stupid of me. I should have waited, but I was impatient and had to tell Katharine. I can admit it now. I was excited. I was excited Katharine was my sister, and I hid those feelings. I hid those feelings even from myself and look what it cost me. I have no idea what it cost Katharine and for that, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I quicken my pace as I think back.

Monday around 9:30 in the morning…

For me, it had come down to the moment of truth. It was a moment I dreaded. Again, I lied to myself. I was really overjoyed, scared out of my mind, yes, but overjoyed. I didn’t hate the fact you were my sister. It was... It was just... I’m such an idiot! I should have never let you leave the apartment! I should have kicked Stephanie out! I can remember standing at the end of the kitchen counter and staring at the kit I had tested your blood with. I had been floored by the results, not only did I have a sister, but at the time, I thought it was you, Katharine. I squeezed the kit in my fist, gathering my courage, then went and sat across from you at the table. A small round surface separated us, but it felt to me as if we were universes apart. What was holding me back? Or what was I afraid of? Maybe I was afraid of connecting with someone. Maybe I was afraid of caring for someone again. Maybe I was afraid of caring for someone and then have them taken away from me just like my mom.

You had asked me, Does your father know the name? Your father must know the name of the project.

I told you, no, then I opened the kit, removed the test stick, and placed it in front of you. I laugh now as I think back. You glanced at the device and your eyes widened as you gave me a puzzled look and innocently asked, Are you pregnant?

I was so mad and yelled at you, and I can remember screaming, For Ares' sake! I’m not pregnant! Why would you even think that? What in this conversation has led you to believe..?

I should have laughed at you. I should have said how silly you were to even say such a thing, but I couldn’t let go of my anger. I’ve always had problems letting go of my anger and rage. It has caused me to do stupid things and letting you leave the apartment was definitely one of those things. I’m sorry. I should have forced you to stay.

After a little more discussion, I told you I tested your blood while you were asleep. You didn’t understand why I would test your blood. You had no clue what I was about to tell you, and you asked me, What does that mean?

I took a deep breath and told you that means you’re my sister.

You couldn’t believe it and asked me, Are you sure?

I told you as sure as this test was. It was when it happened. It was when you got very upset with me. You showed more emotion at that point than when you discovered Stephanie was really my sister. Thinking about it now, I must have really caught you off guard. It must be why you exploded when I first told you that you were my sister. Maybe deep down you later expected to be rejected as my sister, so when the second shock came, you were able to keep everything bottled inside.

I can still hear you screaming at me when I first told you we were siblings, and you said, "You’re making this up, right? Would you say something like that to me just to be mean? Would you say it to me to see how I would react? The thing is you would. So did I do something to make