The Orion Project - Part 1

Project Orion - 2027 A.D.

Peacekeeper 190 stood watch as the large steel frame in the center of the cavernous metal room was charged up. Across from him, Peacekeeper 380 was standing stock still, gripping his pistol. To his left, Peacekeeper 250 was shuffling nervously. Suddenly, his visor lit up as the base's AI Overseer, nicknamed 'Maria', tapped into his helmet. Her voice blocked out any other sound. "Good luck, 190." She whispered. He saw the other Peacekeeper's visors also glowing faintly blue, and knew that Maria was probably telling them something similar. Simultaneously, she initiated a countdown over that base's intercom. He could faintly hear generators powering up somewhere else in the compound. The huge steel frame, only a few feet away from him and his comrades, began to glow faintly. Sparks of electricity jumped between the two sides and the top of the frame. A humming sound, so faint he hadn't noticed it before, began to get louder. Maria tapped into 190's helmet again. "Remember," she said softly. "There's only a small chance that anything will come out of there. We're trying to make a window, not a door. If anything come through, Command thinks three Peacekeepers should be enough to handle it."

"Roger that, Maria." Said 190, who was now having to yell to be heard over the extremely loud humming noise. Electricity was now crackling back and forth between the walls of the frame, and a bolt arced out and diffused through the metal floor. A blinding light was forming in the center of the frame, causing 190 and his Peacekeeper brethren to stumble backwards. The ball of light expanded, filling the steel frame and nearly blinding 190, who put up an armored arm to shield him. Maria connected to 190's helmet again. "190", she said, "Be careful, the portal appears to be unstable!"
"What tipped you off?" Yelled 190. He glanced at his friends, who also were talking to Maria. "What do you want me to do?" Asked 190.
"Just be careful. I'm getting loads of data, so make sure you don't shut it off. It seems to be working though, so that's good."
"Roger that, 190 out!"
"Oh, and remember to-"
And then, with a bright flash, the portal exploded.

190's eyes flicked open. His visor was covered in some kind of blue paint, with white smears dotted in it. It took him a few moments to realize that he was staring up at the sky. He appeared to be flat on his back. He shifted his arms and legs to make sure nothing was broken, and then rolled over and pushed himself up. All around him was desert. He shook himself, certain that he was still unconscious. He wasn't. "Where the-"
"190, are you alright?" Yelled Maria.
190 almost jumped from the sudden break in the silence.
"I'm alright," he said, "What just happened?"
"I have no idea. I can't raise Command, or anyone, for that matter. I'm cut off from the rest of myself, so I only have a limited amount of data to work with."
"And...?"
"It appears the portal exploded."
"I realize that, Maria. Anything else I should know?"
"I'm trying 190. We could be in another dimension for all I know."
"That's not funny, Maria." 190 said with a smirk.
"At least I'm being positive." Maria said sarcastically.

190 accepted it. He was lost. He had been wondering around what was basically a huge barren wasteland for over an hour. Maria had tried to lighten the mood, but had eventually just stopped talking. His helmet's built-in AC system switched on soundlessly, cooling the air inside his helmet and then switching off again as he walked. His armor suit had, thankfully, also been built with a mini-AC system, which also quietly turned on and cooled him off. He was glad no part of his body was exposed to the outside air, as his visor's HUD told him that the temperature was over ninety-five degrees. Suddenly, in the distance, he spotted movement. He unslung his MK14 off his back and aimed down the ACOG sight. It was actually just a few vultures, clustered around something dead. He sighed and kept walking.

190 saw something dark in the distance, snaking along as far to the left and right as he could see. He looked through his MK14's scope and saw that it was a road, although it was in a state of severe disrepair. It was the first sign of civilization he had seen since... he wasn't sure what to call it. The accident, he guessed. Maria chimed in. "You should probably-"
"Already on it." He said, sprinting towards the road.

He realized that he was basically in the same situation again, except now he had a road to walk on. He guessed that it had been over three hours since the accident. Up ahead, he saw two large rocks, one on either side of the road. He decided to sit in the shade of one and rest. As he approached, two masked figures came out from behind the rocks and started slowly walking toward him.
"They look like trouble, 190. Better watch out." Said Maria.
"Excuse me, gentleman," 190 called out, "Could you be so kind as to tell me where I am?" The masked men looked at each other, and then at 190, then almost burst out laughing. In a flash, they both pulled out revolvers and aimed them at 190. "That's some nice armor." One of them said as they approached.

"Real nice." Said the other. He flashed an evil smile. This one had a broken nose, and looked like he was missing teeth. 190 started to speak, but the one with the broken nose cut him off by shooting him in the chest. 190 was knocked down by the impact, but his armor had deflected the bullet with only a scratch to show for it. The men seemed to think he was dead. That was their last mistake, 190 decided. He rolled onto his back and pulled both his Berretta's out of their holsters attached to his leg armor and took aim. Time seemed to slow down. The men barely had time to register the shock that he was still alive before he had squeezed both triggers, shooting one in the head and the other in the heart. Both were dead before they hit the ground. 190 stood up and holstered his pistols. "Their clothing is... interesting." Said Maria. 190 agreed. Both men were wearing basically rags. There faces and hair were unwashed and they looked like they had never bathed. Ever. 190 kicked one of the bodies out-of-the-way and continued walking.

From the top of a cliff, 190 lay flat on his stomach, surveying the town far below. If it could be called that. It was basically a shantytown, with houses and stores constructed out of metal scraps and bits of wood. "What do you think, Maria?" He said, very quietly.

"It's definitely civilized. I can see guards along the edge of the town, and it looks like people are buying from the shops. What do you suppose it is, though?" She said.
"No idea..." Whispered 190. "I don't know why people would choose to live out here. And I haven't seen any vehicles yet. Strange..."
Behind 190's head, the hammer of a gun was clicked back.

190 slowly turned around, to find himself staring down the barrel of a 308. Sniper rifle. Holding it was a woman, surprisingly, who apparently thought she could stand against a Peacekeeper. She had a dog by her legs that growled and bared its teeth at 190. The sun was almost directly behind her head, so it was hard to make out her features, but he could tell she was wearing a cowboy hat. He almost laughed. "Now, be very careful about this. See what she wants. Don't just use force." Whispered Maria.

"Too late!" Yelled 190, using his legs to trip the woman while he grabbed her sniper rifle and threw it over the edge of the cliff. She barely had time to put her hands up to shield herself from the fall. In a flash, 190 had pulled out his combat knife from its sheath on his right arm and held it to her throat. The dog had already run off. "Now," said 190, "You're going to explain some things to me."

190 threw another log on the crackling fire. He was sheltered in a small alcove in the side of a rock-face, huddled against the cold. Unlike for hot weather, his suit did not have a built in cold weather heating system. His HUD's visor readout showed the temperature at twenty-eight degrees Fahrenheit. He didn't have to worry though; the sun would be up soon. Across the fire from him, the woman lay on her back, unconscious. "You think that was a bit much?" Asked Maria. As soon as 190 had even mentioned some of the ways he could get information out of the woman if she didn't cooperate, she had fainted. "Maybe, maybe. I've seen worse." Said 190.

"Shush... she's waking up." Whispered Maria. Across from 190, the woman stirred. She let out a tired groan, and turned her head towards 190. Her eyes widened. Immediately, she leaped to her feet and turned around to run. 190 leaped over the fire and reached out to grab her, just a little late. She was already hard to see in the pitch black of the night. 190 turned on his night vision and started running. About thirty feet ahead, he could see the woman's back as she ran full sprint into the night. "She's extremely fast." Quipped Maria.
"She thinks she's running for her life." Said 190. He commanded himself to run faster, and sprinted forward.

The sun was coming up. 190 looked around, trying to spot the woman. Suddenly, in the distance, he saw her standing on the same ledge that he had observed the town from. She had something in her hands. 190 realized too late that she was holding a small bit of a broken mirror. She appeared to be trying to signal the town. It was up to him to stop her. He rushed towards her.

The woman turned and saw him. 190 paused, only about twenty feet away. Everything was quiet as they stood, watching each other. Then, she darted to the right, with 190 close behind her. 190 was puzzled. The woman continued running even though she clearly had nowhere to go. Even though the woman was fast, 190 was definitely faster. He was closing in. Closer, closer, 190 reached out to grab the woman, when she dodged to the left, and his hand closed around empty air. He was getting tired of this. He turned, surprised to see the woman already far ahead of him.

The woman slid down a steep incline, with 190 right behind her, kicking up dirt as he went. She reached the bottom and sprinted off, towards the far-off town. 190 jumped, landing on his feet and rolling. He sprinted after the woman, who had suddenly changed course, and run around the edge of a protrusion in the cliff face. 190 sprinted after her.

190 flattened himself against the protrusion in the cliff face, listening for any sounds from the other side. Hearing nothing, he readied himself to leap out into the open and give chase, if the woman was still there. Something seemed odd though. Why had the woman suddenly changed direction? He decided he had better be cautious. He pulled out his Berettas and took a breath.

With almost superhuman speed, 190 burst into the open and looked around. No one was there. The only thing in front of him was a gently sloping dirt path, with cliff walls on either side. Feeling stupid, he holstered his Berettas and started running up the path.

At the top, the path simply ended. He could tell that he was now on back where he started. He looked around. Desert stretched for miles in every direction. He sat down on a rock and accepted fate. He had lost her. Whatever happened now was his fault. His visor shone blue as Maria came online. "See?" She said superiorly, "You should have been gentle. You scared her, and she escaped." 190 froze mid-sarcastic reply. For the second time in less than twenty-four hours, the hammer of a gun was clicked back. A female voice said, "Stand up slowly." 190 obeyed. "Now turn around." He did. Shockingly, it was the woman, holding a double-barrel shotgun. Behind her, three men, all armed with hunting rifles, stood watch. So that was why she had turned around. She must have been signaling these men with her mirror, and when she saw them, had opted to run to them instead of the town. "Maria," he whispered, "Calculate my odds of dispatching all of them."

"Calculating..."
"Now," said the woman, "You're going to explain some things to me." She smiled at the irony.
"By my calculations, you have a ten percent chance of success."
190 smiled. He liked those odds.
"Let's start simple. Who are you?" Said the woman, pointing her shotgun at 190's face.
"Me? I'm actually curious about who you and your friends are, and where I am." Said 190, while he slowly moved his hands toward his pistols. He could see on the woman's face how confused she was by that.

"What? Actually no, never mind, I'm asking the questions here." She said. 190's gloved fingers were almost touching his pistols now. But something stopped him. 190 wasn't sure why, but he just couldn't bring himself to kill her. Perhaps it was her age. She couldn't have been much older than twenty. And he could honestly say that she was beautiful. To kill her would be like killing... he wasn't sure. He had never had a problem with killing someone before. For years, he had simply followed orders, resolving anything that required Peacekeepers to be resolved, from major hostage situations to preventing terrorist attacks to stopping a nuclear detonation in the capital, these were just some of the many things Peacekeepers could be called in to do. And he had done all of it without protest. Perhaps it was because before, he had been doing the right thing. Now, he was almost the villain. These people were definitely not bad. He dropped his hands to his sides. "Alright," he said, "I'll answer your questions."

It was clear they didn't believe him. Seeing no other alternative, 190 had opted to tell the truth, and it looked now like he might pay the price for it. 190 was on his knees, with his hands bound behind his back, the woman and three men huddled together a few feet away. Finally, after what seemed like hours, they broke up and walked towards him. The woman spoke first. "We don't believe you." She said flatly.
"Of course you don't, why should you?" Said 190.

"But," interjected one of the men, "We're going to bring you back to our town to see what our leaders decide." 190 looked up, almost not believing his ears. He had been prepared for death, and now, to be offered a second chance, was almost too good to be true. He almost jumped to his feet, ecstatic to be alive. A man grabbed him by either arm and started walking him towards the town, with the other man and the woman leading. Maria chimed in, pointing out how the subtle approach had gotten him much farther than what he had been doing. Perhaps she was right. Maybe he needed to learn to be more subtle.

The town was larger than it had looked from the cliff. Not much larger, it was still only about a dozen buildings, but still a difference. There was also much more people. As he was led into the town, everyone stopped and stared at him. He was reminded of when the Peacekeeper program had just been started. People had stared at the Peacekeepers then like these people stared now. It was clear he was being led to the center of the town. He looked at the various buildings they were passing as they walked down the main street. He saw, among other things, a large bar-like building, an herbal medicine store, and a small food store. The city was laid out with all the main buildings, like shops and market stalls, along the main street, and the places that people lived in-built around the edges. As they progressed into the town, they moved through a large market, and the crowd surged apart to let them pass. While seconds before the market had been loud and bustling, it was now dead silent. Everyone was staring at 190 as he was led by. "It's like they've never seen a Peacekeeper before." Observed Maria.

"I don't think they have."
The crowd in front of them parted to reveal the heart of the small town, the city hall. It was by far the largest building in the town, although that wasn't saying much. It was at most slightly larger than the size of a modern-day suburban house, though its layout was very different. 190 was led up the steps to the expansive porch, which looked like it wrapped around the entire building, from what he could see. He noted that the city hall was the only building with two stories. The man in front of him pushed open the large double doors leading into the city hall, and the woman walked in, followed by 190 and his 'escorts'. The first thing 190 noticed was how much cooler it was inside. The whole first floor was some kind of lobby and reception area. In the center, a grand staircase led to the second floor, which 190 was immediately led up, with the man who had been in front of 190 for the entire trip staying behind to talk to the lady at the desk and presumably keep watch. At the top of the staircase, there was a set of double doors, and side rooms to the right or left.

The woman opened one of the double doors and hurried them through, then followed them and closed it. A short hallway led to a single office door, with nothing besides a ruined couch and a cracked vase for decoration. The woman knocked on the door. "Who is it?" Called a voice from inside. The woman whispered something, and the door was opened. She disappeared inside for a few moments, then reappeared accompanied by a middle-aged man. 190 noticed that his clothes were much nicer than the rags that the other townspeople were wearing. "This," she said to 190, "is the leader of our little town. You're going to explain yourself to him and hope he doesn't have you executed." The man was wearing a white collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, with a silk vest, a red tie, dress shoes, and gray pants, like what you would wear with a business suit. His face reflected his age, and his brown-gray hair was slicked back. "It's a pleasure." Said 190 sarcastically.

"Likewise." Said the man, without a trace of sarcasm. He extended his hand to 190, before realizing that 190's hands were bound. He seemed embarrassed, and ordered his men to untie him. "Sorry for my bad manners. I'm Henry Harland, but you can call me Mr. Harland. Here, take a seat." He said, gesturing towards the couch against the wall. "So, what's your story? It's always a joy to hear the tales of the occasional traveler who stops by our town." 190 sighed and started talking.

"So do you believe me?" 190 asked.
"Well... your story is a bit...strange, but if you say it's true then who am I to argue?" Mr. Harland asked with a wink. As for if you'll be executed, which I'm sure you're wondering, he added with a glance at the woman, the answer is no. However, while I can understand your motives, we simply cannot allow you're kidnapping of one of our citizens to go unpunished. I think we should allow her," he said, pointing at the woman, "to think of a suitable punishment. Now, unless there is anything else, I'll be going."
"There isn't, sir." Said the woman.

"Good, carry on then, you know where to find me if you need anything." Said Mr. Harland, already halfway through the door to his office. 190 turned around to face the woman. "Look, I'm sorry about..."
"No need to explain, I'm sure you were perfectly justified." She said sarcastically. And with that, she turned and walked away, her neck-length brown hair swaying side to side slightly as she walked. Maria came back online right after the woman slammed the door on her way out. "So I see you got yourself out of that mess."

"Yes, thankfully. But we still need to get home somehow, wherever we are."
"I've been thinking about that, actually. You recall the goal of the Orion Project, to try to view into other dimensions. So what if... actually no, never mind. It was stupid."
"Go on, Maria, I'm not judging."
"Well, suppose-" Then Maria was cut off by a loud explosion, followed by several smaller ones. 190 heard people screaming outside. Mr. Harland rushed out of his office with a bolt-action rifle. "Whoa there, Mr. Harland. You could get hurt out there." Said 190, taking the rifle from his hands. "Just stay in here, I'll help handle it."

"You'd do that? Why thank you, how utterly selfless of you. I'll just lock myself in here then." He said, already backing towards his office door. 190 was about to say you're welcome when Mr. Harland slammed his office door shut. He could hear the sounds of multiple locks turning from inside. "I'll just keep quiet." Said Maria. 190 drew his pistols and ran down the hallway, kicked open the door and continued running down the stairs, taking two at a time. At the first floor, he found a lady cowering behind the receptionist desk, but other than that the place was empty. As he neared the door, he could hear gunfire from outside. He crept up to the door, and hearing no one directly outside the door, he kicked it open to see a scene of chaos. People were running into the various shops that lined the street, with guards scurrying to get in positions to defend the town. He recognized a few of them. The man who had led the way when 190 was being escorted was at the bottom of the stairs, taking cover behind a stack of dilapidated crates.

One of the men who had held 190's arms was dragging a wounded man by his arms into a store. The other defenders were trading gunfire with people in the distance. 190 holstered his Berettas and unslung his MK14. Carrying it in one hand, he ran down the stairs and ducked behind a barrel next to market stall. He took a deep breath, then put his rifle on to off the barrel and looked through the scope. The people attacking the town were just close enough that his ACOG sight was still effective. He targeted someone in his sights, but just before he squeezed the trigger the person's head exploded. He looked around for the friendly sniper; surprised to see it was the woman, perched on a nearby rooftop. She fired again, and another enemy in the distance went down. He wondered if she knew he was there, and was just showing off. His thoughts were interrupted when a bullet whizzed by his head, followed by several more, forcing him to duck back into cover. After about thirty seconds, he peeked around the barrel and aimed down his sight. The enemies were much closer now. He sighted one and pulled the trigger, who fell almost instantly. He shot him again to be sure he was dead, and then sighted the next one.

He ducked back into cover to reload. He realized, which he had not noticed before, that he only had a few spare clips of ammo for all of his weapons. When he had finished reloading, he set up on the top of the barrel again. The enemies were practically at the town, only about twenty feet from the border. Most of them were dead though. There were maybe ten, fifteen left. He sighted another one and pulled the trigger.

They had moved into the town. They could only have been six left, at most, and they probably all wanted to run away at this point. Fortunately, the town's guards had already moved all the town's citizens into the buildings along the main road. 190 slung his MK14 onto his back and pulled out his pistols. He ran to the wall of a nearby building and flattened himself against it. The guards also moved out of cover and started advancing into the edge of town. 190 slid along the building until he reached the edge, then he held his breath and listened for any sounds. Hearing none, he peeked around the corner. No one was there. Near the houses, a gunshot went off. "One down!" Called a guard's voice. He could see, between a gap in the houses and the other buildings into the expansive desert. Suddenly, one of the enemies broke and ran, and 190 had an almost perfect view as the woman sniped him. "Another down!" She called.

190 darted to the wall of another building and pressed himself against it. He could see the woman from this angle, covering everyone from her perch on a building's roof. 190 sneaked along the wall, again listening for any sounds from around the corner. Another gunshot went off near the edge of the town followed by two more. "Only one left!" Shouted a guard. 190 was about to move around the corner when he heard a footstep. He took a breath. This was it; this had to be the last guy. He looked back at the woman, silently covering everyone. If anything went wrong, he decided, she would be able to help him. He took another deep breath and paused. Then, with incredible speed, he swung around the corner, face to face with the surprised enemy. Time seemed to move in slow motion. He took aim, at the same time as the enemy. They both fired at the same time. The man was knocked backwards by the force of the two bullets, and was dead almost instantly.

190 was surprised to find himself also on the ground. He tried to stand, but an extreme pain in his side prevented him. He realized that he had been shot. Normally, his armor would have deflected it, but the close range combined with the man's high-powered rifle had enabled the bullet to just barely break through his armor and out the other side. He looked at the damage. It appeared he had been shot in just below the ribcage, maybe two inches away from missing him entirely. He heard running feet above him. The woman, you must have seen what had happened, was by his side. She tore off part of her shirtsleeve and held it to the bullet-hole in 190's armor. "Are you alright?" She asked.

"I've never felt better." 190 tried to say, but could only get to 'never' before being unable to speak from the pain.
"Shush." She whispered. "You're going to be fine. I promise."
"What's your name?" Asked 190. She put her finger to her lips.
"My name is Veronica." She whispered. She held her hand to the side of 190's helmet. The adrenaline from combat was wearing off. 190 put his hand on hers, then passed out from the pain.