Category : Books-Fiction

Sub Category : Science Fiction

         Chapter One: Quarantining
    
    Two months after the plan to quarantine the strain began. 
   
   "Commander Rodriguez." "What is it this time private?" "Great news sir." "We have successfully quarantined the strain we have sought after since this whole outbreak began." "Excellent private, excellent." "Yes sir it is truly astounding how we quarantined the strain, it turns out the only way a person or animal can become infected, is if the strain happens to be within one of the infected bodies near the uninfected person." "Save me all the tech lango private, I want to savor the moment when we gain the peace we have sought after for so many years." "Yes sir commander."

    Ground Zero, the quarantine sight. "Jacobs how far away is the transfer aircraft?" "The pilot is thirty minutes out sergeant." "Ok Stevens, where are you Stevens?" "Here sarge." "I'm watching our care package, that is inside the quarantine zone." "Nevermind that Stevens, I need some assistance in trying to contact HQ." "I need you to authorize it's you through this, damned voice recognition system. 
      Stevens walks over to the machinery, kneels on his right knee, and speaks his name, "Edward Stevens". At once the machine replies back, "voice verified, welcome Edward Stevens." "There you go sarge, all set for your call." "Thank you Stevens." "Hello HQ?" "This is sergeant Jackquin, we have the transfer aircraft inbound in t-minus fifteen minutes." "Everything is going by the books." "No uninvited guests yet." 
        The sound of gunshots ring out to the distant buildings. "Sergeant, we have multiple infected inbound." "Is that...is that a behemoth?" "Sergeant, you might want to take a look at this." "I'll call you back sir, Stevens has seen something,Sergeant Jackquin over and out." 
       "What the hell are you shitting yourself over---." Crash! "What just hit the wall?" Jackquin looks over at Stevens for an answer but all he sees is a blank stare. "Stevens I'm talking to you, what just hit the quarantine barrica----" "Sir it was a...a behemoth." "What the hell do you mean by behemoth Stevens?" "One of the infected mutated so rapidly it became a behemoth." "Sir." 
         "What on earth is that thing Stevens?" "Sarge it was the behemoth I was telling you about." "We...we need to report this to HQ immediately." "Stevens get that machine where I can make a call." "Yes sir sergeant, right away sir." "Jacobs...Jacobs!" "Stevens where is Jacobs at?" 
        Stevens looks at his sergeant then turns away bitterly. "Stevens where is Jacobs?" "He fell into the infected sergeant." "He didn't make it." "I'm sorry sir." "Stevens." "You knew his family." "His friends." "Let them know he died an honorable soldier on the battlefield." "I will sergeant." "He will not be forgotten." 
         "Our ride is here sergeant." "You can make the phone call on the transfer aircraft." A couple hours after the incident. "Private!" "I told you to not mess this up!" "Commander sir, I can explain this whole thi----" "I don't need an explanation private!" "I heard the news about what happened in fact, I was the first one to know about it." "What i want to know private, is how in the hell did that creature advance so fast?" "Well commander, the creature as we call it, has mutated so vigorously because of a thing called, prions." "What is that exactly private?"
      "Well commander, prions are a type of DNA strand that attack the brain functions." "In other words commander, the behemoth has a already dead brain so the prions store up inside the body of the behemoth causing them to grow in size. Over time their body becomes only prions, no muscle or tissue structure at all." "That commander, is how a infected becomes a behemoth." 
       So private, we are fighting a unliving, moving, husk of a creature?" "That is preposterous private." "No sir its rather not." "Ok private Johnson, lets say the behemoth is prions based, we could simply quarantine the behemoth and the strain host together." "Commander sir, may I speak honestly." "Yes private Johnson, you may." 
        "Well commander, I think your idea is the dumbest idea I've heard." "Sir, if I may, if we quarantine bit the behemoth and the strain host together, what is there to say that the behemoth eats the host." "Then he mutates or worse." "Or, worse sir, the behemoth does eat the host and we destroy it?" Then the strain is airborne and unattainable once again." "So commander, we have a no win situation." "Ok Johnson what do you propose we do then?"
         As the private goes over his plan with the commander, about two days travel from that exact location, there is a colony of survivors who have banded together. This group calls themselves the Outlasters. And at this very moment the head of the colony is about to begin his speech.
       Chapter Two: Welcome To Paradise


"Hello my fellow outlasters." "My name is, Andrew Surillian." "I have gathered you all here today, to explain our plan I call, To Our Last Breath." "What is that all you might ask?" "Well I keep simple for all you listening to me." "We have heard news of a plan to quarantine the creature called the behemoth with the host of the strain." "Now my fellow brethren, do we want them to take away our god and destroy him, or do we want to be his saviors?" Everyone yells in great roar, "his savior, his savior!" Andrew cuts the crowd down to a low rumble." " "Alright then my brothers and sisters, we shall place bombs upon the walls at night while the outsiders watch our god." "Then as daylight breaks we shall detonate the explosives causing the wall to break." "Have no fear my brethren, as the reincarnated come after the bombs noise." "We will be long gone by then."
     "So people of the outlasters, let us be called to arms in hopes of saving our god." "Our god the outsiders call the behemoth." The crowd bellows out cheers and chants as Andrew walks away. 
        Now back to the commander and the private. "Private, this is the most brilliant idea you have made." "It is almost bulletproof." "Yes commander sir I know but it has to be triggered at the right time otherwise, the plan will fail." "Leave that to me private." "When this is all over im going to personally promote you private, you deserve one." "Thank you kindly sir, but don't count your chicks before they hatch." "You never know what will happen sir." "Oh I know what will happen Johnson, we will capture that son of a bitch and the strain host." "I hope so sir, I hope so." 
         A few weeks later. The plan called Operation: Sledgehammer is now in effect. The plan the commander and private Johnson created. What is this plan you might ask? Well let's go to the site where this trap is being setup even as I speak.
         "Sergeant Jackquin sir, the trap is almost completed." "Excellent lieutenant Stevens, we will avenge Jacobs untimely demise." "Yes sir sergeant." "Oh, question sergeant, how is this trap supposed to work?" "Well as you can see Stevens, the trap is based on three things capturing the strain host, the behemoth, and keeping them separated from each other." "Close enough for the strain host to not call out for other infected ,because it senses the behemoth, yet far enough away that the strain doesn't move to the behemoth." "Oh ok sergeant that makes more sense to me, thank you for explaining sir." "Your welcome Stevens, now get back to the plan we need it completed before sundown tonight." "Yes sir sergeant." 
           Night falls over the jungle engulfed city seven hours later. "Ok Stevens, tell everyone to hit the lights." "Yes sir sergeant." Stevens shoots a flare into the starry night sky. Almost immediately after that powerful floodlights, wrapped around in a circle, light up the inward part of the circle. Blinding the behemoth and strain host almost simultaneously. "Stevens, get that computer authorized so I can call the commander." "Yes sir sergeant right away." As Stevens goes and powers up the machine and begins to authorize himself, the outlasters noticed the outsiders are doing something different than what they heard.
         "Alex, where is that kid at?" "I have no idea Susan I'll go look for him." "Thank you Stephen." "No problem Susan, I'll see you all at the sewers." Stephen walks towards the way they came from." "Alright Alice and Devonne, we have to report this to Andrew." "I'll set up the comm line for you Susan." "Thank you Devonne, as for you, Alice, can you get closer and see what they are doing?" "Sure thing Suzie, I ain't a sniper for nothing." "Thank you very much Alice." As Devonne sets up the comm line Alice takes the sniper approach to the site.
      About thirty minutes later. "Yes sir, I will let them know Susan over and out." Alice returns at that very moment." "Alright Susan, I snooped around and it appears they seem to be holding our god and a reincarnated about thirty feet from each other." "Ok Alice, that is some of the much needed information.
      "I contacted Andrew and he told me to set Devonne as the backup and place you, Alice, perched in a building picking off the outsiders." "What about you Susan?" "Well, Devonne, I have the lucky job of placing the explosives strategically around so that they explode and release both our god and the reincarnated." "Ok Susan, I'll provide backup support while you sneak around and plant the bombs." "Thank you Devonne." "Alice, go ahead and place yourself in a hideaway position." "Ok Suzie." "On my signal we start our plan." Both Devonne and Alice reply with a quick ok glance, as they get to there positions. 
         Susan gives the signal and Alice opens fire first. As Susan runs towards the places she planned on, the floodlights do a 360 and almost spotted Susan making the run. She ducked behind a pile of rubble. After a second to catch her breath she springs out and darts towards the fence placed by the Outsiders. She climbs it almost with ease, lands on her feet and charges towards the giant wall that hold there god. She reaches the wall in a matter of minutes without being noticed. She plants the charges about quarter way up it and moves to the next wall. 
        To be continued in the final installment of Dogma Syndrome...