HIGHER TECH (Complete Novel)

Chapter 5 -First Operations

      Arnold stood beside the military base that used to be his home. It was time to field test his weapon. He could see the barracks through the chain link fence. He thought about the people in them. All idiots like he used to be. Misled and oblivious.

      He quietly knelt down on one knee. He raised the weapon to his shoulder. He said, "Ten-foot broad-beam." He looked at the weapon's display. Everything was correct. He aimed his weapon at the first group of buildings to his left. Activating the trigger and holding it down, he slowly rotated his upper body to the right. The beam swept across all the buildings. When he took his finger off the trigger there were no buildings. The whole exercise was completed in less than five seconds. Smiling, he got to his feet and disappeared into the night, off to his next target. This one would be more difficult. The government building downtown. He would have to get close enough and not be seen. He wasn't worried though. The military had taught him all he needed to know in order to accomplish this task.

      The main objective of these two operations was to send a message. A strong one. As soon as he accomplished this next detail he would lay low for a while. Following that, his subsequent operations would have to be well thought out and flawlessly executed.

* * *

      Agent Mark Samuels sat in the meeting room waiting for the others to arrive. He was told to be there at 10 am. It was now 10:05. This was the sort of thing he hated. He always wanted to be in the field. Nearing his third decade of work with the agency, he had seen plenty over the years. Forty-nine years old, he was starting to feel the toll of his career. He felt it in his knees and shoulders every morning. The door opened.

      "Mark, I'm glad you're here on time. Sorry I'm late. Crazy things are happening out there. We have our analysts trying to piece things together. Do you know anything that I should be aware of concerning these attacks?"

      "All I know is what I heard from the news on the way over here. There was an attack on the Jackson Senate office building downtown and the General Hansen military base."

      "Yes, it's true, but what is outstanding about these attacks is they happened quickly within three hours, without anyone suspecting anything and also the degree of devastation."

      "What do you mean by degree of devastation?"

      "Well, the military base has almost nothing left of it to speak of. Almost all of it has been disintegrated including the people. It is situated near a hill. Now, part of that hill is destroyed as well. Whatever weapon was used was nonexplosive. It caused the vegetation to vanish in a puff of smoke. The ground and rock of that side of the hill is now a hardened molten mass. So, now do you know why I called you here?"

      "Yes, but the director said that he doesn't want me in the field anymore Jonah. I'm supposed to be settling down for early retirement."

      "I know that. This however, is a special circumstance. The director has given me approval to reassemble Hard Force. So, get your buddies together again for one last assignment. If I know you Mark, you don't want to retire anyway."

      "You're right about that Jonah, but I can't speak for the rest of the team."

      "Sure you can. You're their boss. They always listen to you."

      "Yeah right. It's not that simple, but anyways, what will our mission be?"

      "Who."

      "What?"

      "Who. Find out who did it. There are no leads whatsoever."

      "When I find out who it is what do I do with them?"

      "You will have permission to remove all threats as usual. You will also be supplied with new armor and weapons. So you need to assemble Hard Force right away and begin training with these so that you are completely familiar with them."

      "Okay, I'll get these things done." Getting up out of his chair he continued, "We will stop these guys."

      "If anyone can do it, Hard Force can."

      Just before he left the room he replied, "I wish all of the team felt that way."