08 Fall
The Juggernaught By Samuel Main
January 2015
Table of Contents ~ Chapter 1: Recall
Page 3
Chapter 2: The Experiment
Page 5
Chapter 3: A Blind Chase
Page 7 ~
Chapter 1: Recall
[Winter, 3079] Earth was the first and last beacon of life for humanity. Climate has become mankind’s enemy, thus the world was struck by the 6 th Ice Age of its lifetime. However, this is the least of the human race’s worries… “Crap, I forgot to pack an extra magazine.” The man stood in his tracks for a spell, but decided to continue forward in the blistering wind. He noticed the incoming blizzard brewing. “If only my parents were around, I wouldn’t forget things so easily,” he thought. He laughed a hardy chuckle under his thermal-poncho, “Heck, that was 30 years ago, and here I am complaining like a child. I’m already 42!” Trotting farther and farther away from the outskirts of the city of Foxhole, the man finally targets his first game burrowing in the snow. He lays his chest down slowly against a mound of snow, and swings the neck of his rifle from his back. He holds in a deep breath as his index finger hugs the trigger. CLICK! “Dang it, forgot the safety,” he thought. Wiping the fog off the scope, he refocuses his aim. The white rabbit pops out of its hole and meets eye contact- BANG! Exhaling the intensity from his lungs, he releases his tense muscles and lowered his gun. “I still got it,” he thought. As he emerged from a blanket of fresh snow, an enormous figure peeks into his peripheral vision. A snow leopard spots the man, and hesitates. “No, no, no no…” The man leaps for his hunting rifle as the leopard charged for the rabbit. “The blood is so visible, of course anything could see it a mile away!” CLICK!... CLICK, CLICK! “My extra magazine…” he spat rubbing his forehead, “I can’t believe I ran out of ammo…” Disappointed and defeated, he doesn’t even watch the leopard rejoice in its victory. Slowly picking up his pack, the man turned to walk back home in civilization’s last major city. He thought to himself how similar the situation he just experienced was to the Lurker invasion. We were unprepared, and never knew what hit us. The very reason for his parents’ death was due to the alien attack on Earth 30 years ago…
~ “Halt! State your name and code number!” “Charlie, it’s me. I left six hours ago. I’m in no mood for your silly questions.” The guard sighed, “It’s procedure, Alex, you know that.” Alex shot a glare causing the man to wince. Charlie quickly opened the gate and shouted down from his outpost tower, “At least make it seem like my job is at some level of importance!” Entering under the bridge, Alex replied back, “As soon as you stop kidding yourself, I will!” Charlie smiled to himself and returned to his post. ~ The market is the beating heart of Foxhole, and without it, the system would collapse entirely. Food rations, ammo, clothing, and just about every human necessity are traded there. Except this time, Alex has nothing to trade… “Can’t believe I didn’t pack the mag…” he thought as he makes his way through the courtyard. A boy accidently runs into him, and snaps, “Watch where you’re going old man!” “Hey! Don’t go picking fights without finishing yours over here!” An older juvenile swings left for his head as the boy charges in for a head-butt. “Kids are so rude these days,” Alex thought stepping between the two of them. Catching the left-hook with one hand, Alex lets the other boy run under his arm into a headlock. The boys were shocked at the inhuman reflexes. “Now, you kids behave or-“ “Stop right there! Let the boys go sir, and come with me.” Alex turned and released the boys from his death grip when he saw the Royal Guard uniform. “Alex O’Conner?” asked the officer as he stared at the grimacing boys on the ground. Alex sighed, “Look, I was just trying to break up a fight and-“ The Royal Guard stopped him and recited, “The Royal Military is requesting a full 1020 immediately.” Alex fixed a hard stare at the officer.
“Yes, Mr. O’Conner you’re being recalled into active duty at once.” Chapter 2: The Experiment “DO YOU EVEN KNOW HOW OLD I AM,” shouted Alex, “I’ve already served my 10 years in the bloody field! I want to live my last 10 in peace!” “Mr. O’Conner, I know you’re experiencing a bit of frustration, but please allow us to explain the whole situation.” “Whatever it is, I want out. Period.” “It’s the key to the very end of this war! And frankly, this is way over you and me, Mr. O’Conner. You don’t get to decide anymore.” There was silence in the research facility for a spell. “So tell me why we are in a rat lab, and not in the military bridge?” The officer continued, “There is an experiment that hasn’t been tested yet, but if successful research indicates that we can evolve soldiers into powerful beings beyond our comprehension.” So this is where we have come to, thought Alex, turning our own race into humanized weapons… “What’s the catch?” The officer stiffened for a bit, “You see, only certain individuals with the matching DNA coding can be applied into this experiment, so we can’t just ask anyone…” “That’s not my question, officer.” “… the survival rate predictor expects a 15% chance per individual…” said the Royal Guard quietly. After a long internal, mental debate, Alex decided if it were for the preservation of humanity, he would willingly be that noble sacrifice. Relieved that the argument had concluded, the Royal Guard officer led Alex into the testing corridors. “Mr. O’Conner!” The doctor who ran the so-called “experiment” greeted Alex as soon as he came in. “I’ve heard plenty about your valiant work as a Royal Marine-“ “Save your flattery, let’s just get this over with,” Alex snapped.
“Hmmm touchy, yes? Very well, not a moment to lose,” replied the doctor, “please, step into the testing pod.” The transparent cylinder was just a foot taller than he was, however looked utterly suspicious. Alex lies down on the inside padding as the glass lid sealed shut. “15% chance, huh,” he thought, “I never was very good at gambling…” And he knocked out the very next moment. ~ “You didn’t mention that others were participating the same experiment!” yelled Alex. “To be straight with you Mr. O’Conner, that’s out of your hands, and in addition, you didn’t ask,” the doctor returned to his data looking rather pleased with the results. He will pay for the innocent lives he taken, thought Alex furiously. Over 300 participants were submitted into the Juggernaught Experiment, but… only 4 survived. This was inhuman and unforgivable. Alex glanced at the survival profiles: Zeke Banning - (Test Subject 59) successfully transferred altered DNA for the Juggernaught experiment. High school dropout, Zeke Banning, worked as an unlicensed vehicle mechanic and is known as a technology genius. His blackmailed recruitment gave him no choice but to enter the Juggernaught experiment to avoid jail-time for illegal service. Kayla Menzer -(Test Subject 12) successfully transferred altered DNA for the Juggernaught experiment. Handpicked by Lt. Foyer from his own Special Operations Team to join the super-human experimentation. Menzer was a former sharpshooter and is in the top 3-percentile. One of fifteen subjects from her team to survive the experimentation. Lieutenant Jacob Foyer –(Test Subject 2) successfully transferred altered DNA for the Juggernaught experiment. Royal Guard Special Operations Officer; Additional info disclosed. Lieutenant Foyer broke the silence, “That’s enough chatter wouldn’t you say?” Alex was shocked at the lieutenant’s unaffected attitude towards the human losses. The lieutenant continued, “Let’s head to the military outpost so we can get started on your training.” Chapter 3: A Blind Chase “Alright, shinies lets hit some target practice, shall we?” shouted Lieutenant Foyer.
Banning stared at the gallery of weapons on the metal counter. Menzer straps in her dual pistols and slings an automatic submachine gun over her shoulder. “What’s the matter?” scoffed Menzer, “Never touched a gun before, Banning?” Banning returned an icy glare, “I build them, not shoot them.” He grabs a small pistol with extra magazines for himself. Lieutenant Foyer raises an eyebrow at O’Conner, “What, you going to bring a knife to a gun fight, O’Conner?” “I have my own rifle, thank you lieutenant,” replied Alex a little too sarcastically. Foyer ignored the comment, “Let’s head out, J-squad there’s a lot of work to do-“ Suddenly, sirens in every direction lit up red and screamed the warning alarm. “This is not a drill, repeat, this is not a drill…” The Lieutenant snatched his automatic rifle, and shouted,” ON MY SIX, Juggernaughts!” And he ran for the nearest exit. There was a team of 7 Lurker scouts sighted a few clicks north of the military outpost according to Banning’s radar. Every step felt like 5 yards, and the squad wasn’t even at full speed. Our team closed in on the scouts in less than a few minutes. This doesn’t even seem real, Alex thought. BANG BANG! Menzer knocked two down without aiming, “Wake up O’Conner! I thought you were a Royal Marine Vet!” Alex blinked, and reached for his rifle. He never shot while running, not to mention running at 30-mph. Struggling to keep the rifle steady, Alex takes his first aim. BANG! “Not bad, O’Conner,” called Menzer over her shoulder, “Just try not to slow us down old man.” Kids these days, he thought. Then he grinned, and refocused his aim. In no time, the Lurker scouts were eliminated from reporting to their main head quarters. However, Alex knew for some reason that they were too late… “You think that you little humans were the first to inhabit this pathetic excuse for a planet?”
Alex stopped frozen. He turned and looked at the reptile monster grimacing in pain just feet away from him. “We, the almighty Hyrulers, were the first,” laughed the dying Lurker, “and we’re here to reclaim our rightful territory you call Earth-“ BANG BANG BANG BANG! “It’s not about who was first,” Alex replied cocking his rifle, “it’s about who wants it more.” He swung his rifle onto his back, and left to regroup with the rest. I always knew it was a trap, thought Alex, now they know where we are hiding… But we’re ready.