I’m terrified.
In front of me is a relatively empty field. Surrounded by an old chain-link fence and filled with dead yellow grass. A few broken barrels are scattered about, but besides that it’s empty. Except it’s filled with hidden explosives... And I have to run through it.
“ If you can’t pass this simple test, you are back out there on your own. We don’t need useless runts here.” Sergeant Foss’s voice echoes in my head. “ In your pouch I gave you 7 pills, each has a different temporary genetic altering affect. Depending on your skill and the pill you choose you may survive this test. Except I won’t tell you the contents of each pill. Oh and don’t try to take more than one, because you’ll probably die or go into shock. Good luck.”
A bead of sweat spills past my glasses into my eyes. Looking down at my pouch I anxiously open it and look inside. Inside there are seven pills, each with a different color and letter. Suddenly I hear a female voice in my earcom. “ Getting cold feet Byron? Well you do look pretty funny with your newly shaved head. My dad has a habit of going all marine sometimes, I think he likes you.” If by like you mean killed, than he must love me.
Anna is Sergeant Joe Foss’s son. The daughter of a man with nine purple hearts, the most of any marine in history. Sergeant Foss had an underground bunker for this very situation, and is looking for other survivors and men to train (though I barely make the cut as “man” because I’m technically a teenager). His ambitious goal is to “restore humanity, or what’s left of it”. I’m just here for the shelter and food.
Looking down at the pills in my bag, I select the C one. It’s a yellow pill and reminds me of a vitamin c tablet. Closing my eyes I wait to see the results…
Ba-Bump…
Ba-Bump…
Ba-Bump..
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I feel my pulse quicken and grasp at my throat. Breathing the oxygen in deeply, A new world floods my senses. I look down at my arms to see them contract and tighten, and flex my hand to feel nails transform into points. The hairs on my arm slowly grow and thicken. Widening my mouth I feel my canine teeth elongate painfully.
“Raaaaaaaghhhhh!!!!!”
I roar into the sky, filled with sudden energy. I’m not sure what’s going on but if it gives me a fighting chance then it’ll have to do. My leg muscles tighten and I feel the sudden urge to run. Crouching down in a feral runner’s stance I suddenly sprint with all my might; my speed barely plausible. I feel each blade of grass clump under my feet and hear the sound of explosions behind me, barely missing me by just inches. Smiling I decide to increase my speed. Is this what gods feel like?
Forgetting the bombs, I taste the fresh air upon my skin, and the sunlight pouring down on me. Running at a high speed of over 50 miles per hour, my body reaches one end of the field to the other in a flash. Sergeant Foss is waiting at the other side. Suddenly I feel the urge to eat him.
Snarling I glare at him. “ Byron you must learn to control these urges. Taking these pills can increase your performance. But you also take on some of the other less liked traits of the animal. Right now you have adopted the genes of a cheetah, but only temporarily.”
Blinded by animalistic hunger and feral urges I lunge at him before I even realize it. Taking out a large baton, he proceeds to stun me with electricity. “ Ahh , well of course you wouldn’t be able to manage it in the first day. Good job on surviving the course kid.” With a humorless smile he bashes my head with the baton, causing darkness to overwhelm me...