Rogue Nation

Chapter One

I woke up in a cold sweat, all my muscles hurting.
I had the same dream again... What was it about? I could never remember.. It just left me with a feeling of intense exhaustion.

I threw the covers off and walked down the stairs.

My dad looked up from his newspaper. "Hey, Michel."  The news played in the background. It talked more about the virus getting worse in New York.

"Hey dad. Did the news say anything new?"
"Nope, they are showing less and less of New York but the death toll is getting higher, it's getting too out of hand. The North East might not be safe soon." His voice was grave.

We were both silent. After thanksgiving and Black Friday, a bug starting getting people sick.
And people started to freak. The president even talked about it.

But that was weeks ago.

The US military had moved in. They tried to build a zone to quarantine it.

But now, New York was a war zone.

Rioters had started to take over.

Our house was pretty far west but even we were stocking up on supplies. My dad broke the silence. "Our department has contact with our building in Manhattan. They probably got moved out but it just goes to show how bad it is..."

I nodded in grim agreement. I needed to skip breakfast, because I felt fear or panic from the pit of my stomach. "I'm going to get ready for school... "
I tried to tell myself that It has to get worse for it to get better, but... How much worse?

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"How did you do it?"
I turned to see my friend Daniel, who had extremely long hair for a guy, but he was pretty cool. "Do what?" I asked.
"Get 40 pull ups on the bar?! Last year you could barely do 15"
"I don't know, puberty?" I took a apple and a milk from the lunch line.
He started to pick up an apple but he dropped it. I grabbed it out of mid air and handed it back to him.
His expression was of pure wonder.
"What?"
"Nothing... Well don't you .."

Right then my watch started to vibrate, like a phone left on a table. I look down to see my watch illuminate a orange ring around the outside of the circle. Its glow overtook me like a hypnotic trance. My mind raced through memories I never knew had made their way into my mind. I felt sick, but I pushed it down.

Daniel tapped me on the shoulder. "Dude, you're holding up the lunch line.... You okay, dude?!"
A reflex made me swat his hand away.

"I... I need to go." My voice became cold.
I rushed from my high school cafeteria, my feet never having felt so light. Adrenaline pumped through my veins at a million miles per hour. My training started to kick in.

My home was at least 4 blocks away from the school, but I ran all the way there, and my lungs barely burned. My father and my mother were both at their jobs, so I had the house to myself.

I opened the door and walked straight into the kitchen. Pulling out a kitchen knife, I headed straight for my room. I ripped off the cover to my bed and start to cut open the bottom corner of my mattress.

There laid a semi-small green crate. The top had a symbol spray-painted on top. A large orange circle. In black font read:
'Strategic Homeland Division'
I let out a slow breath, and opened the box.

Inside were four things: a pistol, an earpiece, a leg holster for the pistol, and finally, a note to my family.

I picked up the note. It mostly said something along the lines of "please don't
worry about me, I'm doing my job." They would still worry but I needed them to know I wasn't running off for no reason.

I clipped on my holster to my leg, and slid the pistol into the holster.

I picked up the earpiece and tapped my watch.
A perky voice answered,
"The Pentagon speaking." Probably a secretary.
"Go secure." A bead of sweat slid down my forehead.
A pause went on the line.
Then a gruff voice answered. "Code." Plain and simple.
"This is Omega Delta Juliet Bravo. Code: 'Division'"
The voice answered. "A car is on it's way. You will be debriefed at the landing strip."
The line went dead.

I set the note on my bed and made my way downstairs. Opening the door, I took one last look back.

I saw myself, a black haired pale kid who would always get picked last. I saw a kid who struggled with equations and push ups. I saw a kid who spent every Christmas here, with a loving family.

But now, the US needed me. Cold and fully trained. Ready to cut off my family, so I could protect everyone else's. If the nation was broken enough to seek the third wave, I would be ready.