Only Human

Chapter 1: Earth

"Five..."
Mark sprints down the white-washed corridor.
"Four..."
Mark slams his hand on the door control.
"Three..."
Mark pounds the panel.
"Two..."
The door slides open.
"One..."
Mark leaps from the twenty-storey building.
"Zero... Well done Marcus."

The skyscraper explodes. Showers of embers rain down everywhere. Police sirens instantly sound in the distance. With a tremendous splash, Mark lands in Fergana Lake.

"Marcus, stop fooling around. The boss is expecting you back in five."

Mark groaned into his headset.

"Give me a break woman. I just jumped off an exploding skyscraper with zero-point-five seconds to spare."

"Precise. Didn't know you were the numeral type, Marcus."

"You don't know me at all. You just talk into my ear all the time. Really annoying by the way."

"Well, I know you have brown hair and blue eyes. I know you're tall and slightly broad-shoulders, likely in your teens. Also, you appear to be carrying a sniper rifle."

"OK, that's not creepy at all."

"Look behind you Marcus." Mark turned around. Standing on a pile of rubble was a moderately tall, skinny woman with blonde hair and brown eyes. In her hand was a headset identical to the one Mark was wearing. She stepped off the mound of rubble and held out her hand.

"Gareth Hudson, at your service." Mark grinned despite himself and shook the outstretched hand.

"You obviously know me, but who cares. Marcus Joss, at your service.

November 16 2056
New York
Earth
2125 Hours

To be honest, no one really expected Earth to become like this. Of course there were all the prophecies and the green teams all saying that we needed to save the Earth or... or it would become like this. Earth is now a black, rubble-covered hell-hole. It's hard to come across buildings that haven't burned down or been reduced to rubble. Most of Earth's occupants were criminals or people too poor to afford to leave, as well as the police force who made sure the criminals didn't escape. At the start, Mark wasn't a crime lord who jumped out of burning buildings; he was one of the people who were a few NWCs (Nation Wide Credits) short of hitching a ride. He soon made his way to New York, the centre of all crime and opportunities. The few police forces that remained there only arrived at major situations. Such as one of their main stations being blown up by a poor man forced into crime.

Mark kicked down the double doors. A startled policeman half-turned as Mark sprinted over and brought his knee up to his face. The law enforcer crumpled to the ground. Mark rummaged through his pockets and found a stun baton. He clicked the switch and an electrical charge ran through the 'blade' of the weapon. As it was night time, most of the officers were asleep. Mark crept past the barracks. Snoring echoed through the bare, white corridors, the perfect cover-up for Mark's footsteps. Two guards were leaning against a reinforced door having a chat, neglecting their duty. Mark grinned and gave the first one a good tap on the ass with his baton. The guard yelped and tumbled to the ground in an electrically-induced sleep. As the second one jumped off the wall and fumbled for his weapon, Mark threw his charged baton into his face. Unconsciousness came instantly. Mark sauntered up to the door, which was labelled ARMORY.

"Couldn't hurt," he muttered to himself. Mark fetched a key-card from one of the downed guards and slid it through the appropriate slot. He entered the room. He raised an eyebrow at the racks full of various weapons and devices. He cautiously lifted a long-barrelled gun with a scope mounted on the top. A sniper. He used the strap that was tied onto the barrel and the stock to stow it on his back. Mark glanced around and found a box full of grenades. He stuffed as many as he could into his belt. He found a large hand gun called a 'Desert Eagle' and shoved it in his pocket. Projectile weapons such as these were hard to come across, and considering his mission, they would become even harder to find. Mark heard footsteps down the hall and swore. The guards must be changing. Just as Mark was leaving, he spotted an odd-looking object. As he picked it up and studied it, he realised it was a time bomb. It had a small computer welded on the front of some kind of explosive. Mark set it for ten minutes and shoved it into a pile of vests. This place is gonna go boom, and that's a fact Mark thought to himself cockily. He rushed down the corridor, then paused as mission control spoke to him.

"I wouldn't go there Marcus," she commented.

"Why?" Mark snapped. Two more left turns and he would be free.

"Eighty armed officers are coming back from a raid. They're at the front door now." Mark swore again.

"You do know I've set a bomb for ten minutes, right?"

"Nine and a quarter," she corrected, "Make it count."

"Brilliant," he muttered. He glanced around, looking for some kind of map or landmark.

"Nine minutes."

"Not helping. Get some schematics or something."

"Schematics for a top secret police facility with six-hundred bit encryptions? Should be a walk in the park. That is, before all the parks became infested with every type of scum imaginable."

"Just do it!" Mark yelled.

"You do know these things are whisper sensitive, ay? Oh and, seven and a half minutes."

"I'm gonna explore a bit. Hurry up and get those maps."

"You got it, boss-man." Mark jogged around and eventually came across a roof access staircase.

"Hey, you got those plans?"

"Wait... one more... sec... got it!"

"OK, exactly how tall is this building?"

"Twenty stories. Why?" Mark left her to figure it out. "No no no no no. You can't survive a fall like that! And you don't have enough time to get up twenty flights of stairs!"

"Seventeen, actually."

"Four minutes." Mark ran. He stumbled and tripped, cut himself a few times, but kept going regardless. Mark climbed a steel ladder and before him was a stretch of corridor leading to a heavy door.

"Five..."
Mark sprints down the white-washed corridor.
"Four..."
Mark slams his hand on the door control.
"Three..."
Mark pounds the panel.
"Two..."
The door slides open.
"One..."
Mark leaps from the twenty-storey building.
"Zero... Well done Marcus."

The skyscraper explodes. Showers of embers rain down everywhere. Police sirens instantly sound in the distance. With a tremendous splash, Mark lands in Fergana Lake.

November 16 2056
New York
Earth
2200 Hours

After the building had finished crumbling in on itself, and the police station's reinforcements had arrived, Mark and Gareth started walking.

"Marcus... I don't think you realise the importance of what you have just done." Mark gave her a blank stare. Gareth continued. "I don't think you would've noticed, but that building was fitted with X90 AA guns. Boss has slowly been targeting specific towers like that one to create a clear zone where there are no AA defences. Do you realise what that means?" Mark considered it before giving his answer.

"It would mean that anyone who knew would have a free run to the atmosphere, and would be able to leave the planet. A jailbreak?" Gareth nodded eagerly.

"It won't be there for long, though. The police will notice soon and set up new defences. Marcus, this is our chance! Find a ship and go. Go as far as you want. Be free. I know I will." Mark nodded.

"I don't have a ship."

"Boss does."

"Any chance...?"

"I believe so Marcus. He will probably be grateful for your contributions." Mark smiled.

"Finally," he sighed.