Origins of the Prime

by Christopher Vale

  Five minutes later the helicopters hovered over a small patch of open ground, the one hole in the thick canopy just barely on the southern side of the border. Long Ropes were lowered out of the helicopters and one by one the Marines exited by a process known as fast roping—sliding down the ropes to the ground below. As he landed, each Marine quickly moved to the perimeter to secure the drop zone and out of the way so that the next Marine could slide down.

  Tom pointed at Axel, indicating that he should go first. He nodded, gripped the rope, wrapped his leg around and slid down, dashing quickly out of the way upon landing on the ground. Tom then pointed at Rolf who did the same, with Arnulf attached to a harness on his back. “Ladies first,” Tom smiled at Dawn once Rolf had gone. She returned his smile, but he could see the nervousness in her eyes. “It will be alright,” he said. “It’s just like doing it off the training tower.”

  That was only partially true of course. The tower stood still instead of bouncing up and down like the helicopter. As Dawn began to slide down the rope, the helicopter suddenly jerked up with an air current and she slipped, sliding down the rope much faster than she had intended. She let out a scream, certain she would soon hit the ground, but was surprised to find herself in Rolf’s enormous arms.

  “I’ve got you,” he smiled at her. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

  “Thank you, Rolf,” she smiled and gave him a light kiss on the cheek. He blushed as he gently set her feet on the ground.

  Tom followed and was the last man on the ground. Everyone watched as the crew chiefs of each helicopter pulled the ropes back inside. Soon the helicopters flew away and they were left in the middle of the Vietnamese jungle.

  Lieutenant Lance was soon at Tom’s elbow speaking into his ear. “We should get moving, sir,” he said. “The longer we stay in the drop zone, the better the chance we’ll be discovered.”

  “Roger that, Lieutenant,” Tom said. He turned to his team. “Is everyone ready?” he asked to nods. “Good.” He gave Lt. Lance a thumbs up and the Lieutenant dashed away to get his men on their feet. Soon the Marines had formed a long column with Team Blitzkrieg plus Arnulf in the center, where they could be more easily protected.

  The jungle was thick and hot and the movement was slow and deliberate. A fire team of four Marines was sent ahead of the platoon to ensure they did not walk into an ambush or stumble into half of the North Vietnamese Army. They were crossing into North Vietnam after all and nerves were high.

  Traversing the jungle was misery and Dawn’s sympathy for the men and women fighting the war grew exponentially. The plant growth seemed almost impenetrable, the air was thick with heat and humidity and the bugs were worse than anything Dawn had ever experienced. She swatted at mosquitoes that she amusingly thought might be mistaken for small crows back in Washington.

  After walking for what seemed to Dawn like an eternity, the signal finally came from the front to halt. The signal was passed down the column for Lt. Lance to go to the front. He asked Tom to join him and they moved to the front of the column while the others took a break.

  Dawn sat down on the dead leaves, twisted the top off her canteen, and brought it to her lips drinking deeply. She smiled at Rolf. The big guy was having a much harder time than she was moving through the jungle and the bugs were driving him crazy. He kept swatting his gigantic palm at them all the while shouting at them to leave him alone. Axel had to keep trying to calm and silence him. Axel applied more bug spray to his brother’s clothes.

  “Drink some water, Rolf,” Axel said. “It’s hot, you need it.” Rolf nodded and did as instructed. Axel then turned to Dawn and squatted down beside her. “How are you holding up?” he asked in a low voice.

  “I’ve been better,” she said while trying to force a smile.

  “Me too,” Axel said as he wiped the sweat from his brow with the sleeve of his shirt. “So what’s worse, traversing the snows of Siberia or the jungles of Vietnam?”

  “Vietnam, hands down,” she chuckled. “I don’t remember bugs in Siberia.”

  “Yeah, these things are horrible,” Axel agreed as he swatted more away.

  “Give me Russian soldiers any day.”

  They heard Arnulf chuckle. “You would not say that if you had ever really fought the Russians,” he said.

  “Shut your mouth,” Axel said. “Don’t speak unless spoken to, got it?”

  “As you say,” he said and then turned away with a smile.

  Axel turned back to Dawn and could tell by the disgust on her face that she did not want Arnulf there any more than he did. She placed a comforting hand on Axel’s arm and her expression turned to one of sympathy. He smiled a thanks at her.

  Suddenly they heard footsteps coming quickly down the line and turned to see Tom hurrying toward them. They stood as he approached. Tom’s eyes were bright. “It’s really here,” he said excitedly.

  “Of course it is here,” Arnulf scoffed. “Did I not say that it was here?”

  Tom and the others ignored the question. “Lt. Lance is going to have his men secure a perimeter and wait while we go inside.” The others nodded. Then Tom turned to Arnulf. “Are you sure you know how to get us inside?” he asked.

  “Yes, I am certain,” Arnulf said as he pushed himself to his feet and replaced the forest green hat upon his head.

  ***

  Axel stood in awe of the large, stone temple that seemed out of place in the thick jungle. The trees and vines had done their best to reclaim it, and tree roots grew down one entire side, but this was unmistakably an ancient temple. Very ancient.

  Tom glanced back and forth at the others as they stared in wonder until his eyes stopped on Arnulf. “Well, lead the way Colonel,” he said as he slung his rifle over his shoulder. Arnulf smiled and then took a step forward.

  Axel, Dawn, Tom, and Rolf followed Arnulf up the stone steps and into the temple as the Marines secured the perimeter. It was dark inside and everyone quickly produced a flashlight. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary, just another temple, an impressive one, but a temple nonetheless.

  They soon came to a large chamber, decorated with several statues and carvings. “Well, this is odd,” Tom said as he shone his light around the room.

  “What is?” Dawn asked.

  “These appear to be Aztec carvings,” Tom explained as his light moved along the wall. “And those are Assyrian.”

  “Aren’t these Egyptian Hieroglyphics?” Axel asked and Tom spun to see a portion of the wall illuminated by Axel’s light.

  “Yes, they are,” Tom said as he crossed the room toward them. “This is uncanny.”

  Arnulf chuckled. “If you like that you’re going to love this,” he said with an almost wolfish grin. Everyone turned to see Arnulf shining a light on an enormous stone statue of Anubis, the Egyptian god of the underworld. Arnulf smiled at Rolf. “Rolf, see if you can push that statue to the side.”

  Rolf glanced at Axel who nodded. Rolf walked over to the statue and then leaned down placing his shoulder against it and pushed with all his might. The giant statue slowly slid across the floor, but revealed nothing but a wall with three more ancient symbols. All lights shone upon the wall as everyone stepped closer, examining the three symbols.

  “I don’t get it,” Axel said.

  “Tell me, Herr Flemming, where do these symbols come from?” Arnulf asked Tom.

  Tom stepped closer and examined them. He ran his fingers lightly over them. “I don’t know,” Tom said. “I’ve never seen them before.”

  “Neither had I,” Arnulf smiled. “In fact we had some of the greatest archaeologists in the world examine them, and no one could tell us what they meant or where they came from. Except that one man had seen that symbol in Egypt.” Arnulf pointed to one of the symbols on the wall. “He said when he found it in Egypt it had seemed completely out of place. Another had seen this symbol in South America,” Arnulf said as he pointed to a different symbol. “The symbol between those two had been seen in a book
of pictures of ancient Scotland. It was carved onto a large stone that could be seen on the coast only when the tide was low.”

  Arnulf smiled and then pressed the stones upon which each symbol was carved. As he did so the symbols he touched illuminated and then all of the symbols on all of the walls in the chamber illuminated. Suddenly, the wall Arnulf had touched, parted in the center like a giant puzzle piece each side sliding out of the way to reveal a hidden passageway, illuminated by soft glowing lights and more symbols. Everyone except Arnulf exchanged surprised glances.

  “What is that?” Rolf asked Axel in a low voice.

  “I’m not entirely sure, buddy,” Axel replied.

  “Follow me,” Arnulf smiled as he clicked off his flashlight and stepped into the secret passage walking briskly through it.

  Tom turned to the others. “I’ll go first,” he said as he unslung his rifle. “Axel you bring up the rear.” Axel nodded. Tom stepped into the passage, his rifle at the ready, followed by Dawn then Rolf and Axel. The walls had a slight glow to them and appeared to be made of some sort of extraterrestrial metal, but also appeared to be almost organic in its composition. Rolf ran his giant fingers along the walls as they walked along.

  “Rolf, don’t touch it,” Axel cautioned him. “We don’t know what it’ll do.” Rolf nodded as he pulled his hands back from the walls.

  The passageway sloped downward and Axel realized that they were moving underground. Eventually the corridor emptied into a room with a domed ceiling. Not like the chamber of ancient stone walls above ground. This room was like something from a futuristic space movie. “I feel like I’m on the set of Lost in Space,” Dawn said.

  “Yeah, except this place is in color,” Axel replied.

  Like the passageway, the walls were made of extra terrestrial metal and covered in illuminated ancient symbols, which cast a soft white light throughout the room. In the center of the room was an island that appeared to be a large, solid table or counter or something, that Dawn—for a reason she could not explain—believed to be a sort of computer work station.

  “What is this place?” Tom asked as he spun gazing at everything in wonder.

  Arnulf smiled. “We theorized that it was a place where the base could be accessed.”

  “Accessed?” Axel asked.

  “Yes. Accessed,” Arnulf replied without any further explanation.

  Suddenly, everyone turned back toward the passage as they heard the distinct sounds of gunfire. A lot of gunfire. It was clear that the Marines securing the perimeter outside of the temple were under attack.

  Chapter 18

  “Give me a light,” PFC Wayne said to his buddy Parker as he placed a cigarette between his lips while waving bugs away from his face. Parker reached into the front pocket of his flak jacket and produced a lighter which he flicked open with a spark igniting an orange flame. Wayne leaned over to insert the tip of his cigarette into the dancing flame when suddenly a gust of wind blew the flame out. Wayne cursed as Parker flicked the lighter again, once again igniting the flame. Another gust of wind blew the flame out again, but this time when Wayne’s eyes leapt up to Parker, he saw his friend gripping his throat, blood spilling out around his fingers as Parker gasped for air. The cigarette dropped from Wayne’s lips and a shout for the corpsman began to rise in his throat, but before it could escape he felt a cold blade puncture his windpipe. Both Wayne and Parker fell over into the wet grass, dead.

  Staff Sergeant Clark made his way through the jungle circling the stone temple, checking on each man and ensuring the perimeter was secure. Sergeant Hart and Corporal Fisher glanced over their shoulders when they heard the rustle of brush to see Clark coming toward them.

  “How are your men?” Clark asked as he knelt down beside the two squad leaders.

  “Set. I’ve got first squad covering the right flank,” Hart said as he waved his hand over the area his men were responsible for securing.

  Clark’s eyes leapt to Fisher. “We’re set on the left Staff Sergeant,” Fisher said.

  “Alright. And second squad’s got center,” Clark said to himself more than to the two men with him. “I’m gonna check the lines. Make sure everyone is good with water, food, and ammo. Redistribute as necessary.”

  “Roger that,” Hart said as he pulled a cigarette out of his pack and offered one to Clark and Fisher. Both declined and Clark rushed off into the bush.

  After the Platoon Sergeant left, Hart glanced at Fisher. “Jesus, I hope we’re not out here all night.” Fisher just stared at him. Hart smiled. “What’s with you?” he asked, but Fisher continued to stare blankly at him. “Stop that!” Hart said as he reached over and punched the Corporal on the shoulder. Fisher fell over onto the ground and Hart knew immediately that he was dead. His eyes went wide as he dropped his cigarette and brought the butt of his rifle to his shoulder. Hart’s eyes quickly scanned the jungle. As he turned his head to the right he saw a red blur before everything went black.

  Staff Sergeant Clark moved through the brush toward the line when he felt something slam into his back, knocking him to the ground. He pushed himself to his feet and glanced forward. In front of him he saw a woman in a red suit, a yellow hammer and sickle emblazoned on her chest. “What the hell?” he asked himself. He quickly raised his rifle and got off a burst of fire causing the woman to run. She dashed away so fast, Clark had no idea where she was. “Perimeter’s been breached!” he shouted. Suddenly he felt a slamming pressure at the back of his neck before his head was removed from his shoulders.

  PFCs Kent and Barton sat in a hastily dug fighting hole watching the jungle around them. They heard a burst of gunfire and a moment later a red blur flashed by in front of them. “What the hell was that?” Kent asked as he brought his rifle to his shoulder.

  Barton slowly shook his head from side to side. “I have no idea,” he said nervously. The blur flashed by again and both men raised their rifles to fire at it. Then they heard other rifle fire coming from down the line. Then more. Suddenly, they heard a loud stomping which shook the ground as one might expect if an elephant were charging. They turned to look straight ahead and saw a large mountain of a man, about the size of the one called Rolf that they had accompanied out into the jungle. The giant charged toward them and both men quickly raised their rifles and flipped to full auto, releasing a hail of bullets. The giant raised his arms to protect his face, but otherwise was unfazed as his armor protected him. The chambers of their rifles empty, Kent and Barton scrambled to remove fresh magazines from their ammo pouches. They were not fast enough and were crushed by a massive war hammer before they could reload their rifles.

  “Machine gun!” Lance Corporal Murdock shouted as he watched Kent and Barton get pounded into the ground by a freakishly large man just twenty yards away from him.

  “Where?” came White’s familiar voice to his left.

  “There!” Murdock shouted as he pointed back over his shoulder as he and his buddy Castle climbed out of their fighting holes and scrambled back behind the line. He could hear the loud stomping as the giant ripped through the jungle charging toward him and his friends. Then he heard the familiar clunk clunk clunk of the M-60 machine gun as it opened fire.

  Murdock and Castle stopped running and fell to the ground taking up firing positions on their stomachs, adding their rifle fire to that of the machine gun as the giant continued to charge. Murdock snatched a grenade from his vest, showed it to Castle, yanked the pin free and then chunked it at the oncoming giant. The grenade exploded a couple of yards in front of the giant sending him stumbling backward.

  Murdock and Castle smiled at each other when they saw the giant on the ground. They pushed themselves to their feet and were raising their rifles to their shoulders when a red blur dashed past them. The air was filled with red mist as both men fell over dead.

  White saw the red blur and opened fire with the machine gun. Then his jaw dropped open as he watched the giant push himself up onto his feet. How had he survived the grenad
e? White swung the machine gun back to the giant and laid on the trigger. He opened his mouth to scream as the bullets flew forth drowning out the sound from his lips. White’s ammo belt ran empty just as the giant began to charge him again. White glanced over at his assistant gunner who was sliding another belt into place, but there wasn’t time. The giant had reached them. First, he snatched White up out of the fighting hole and flung him out into the trees. Then he slammed downward with his giant hammer, crushing the assistant gunner’s skull.

  Lt. Lance exchanged glances with Corporal Winston who crouched beside him, the radio strapped to his back. Lance snatched the handset away from Winston and held it up to his ear. “This is Whiskey Foxtrot! We are under attack! Over!” he shouted into the handset. He received a static filled response. “Say again, over!” he shouted. He listened and then shouted into the handset. “Requesting extraction!” he shouted. He listened to the response.

  Lance pressed the call button and was about to speak again when there was a gust of wind and the radio cord came off in his hand. He glanced down at it and saw that it had clearly been severed. The lieutenant dropped the now useless handset into the grass at his feet as his eyes met those of Winston. Both men leapt up and sprinted toward the entrance of the temple. Suddenly, Winston fell with a cry and Lance stopped to help him up. When he did he saw a beautiful young woman in a red suit and a red mask, a sword in each hand. Lance began to raise his rifle, but before he could, the swords flashed and he fell onto the ground beside Winston.

  Alena knelt down in the grass beside Lt. Lance as blood spilled out. He stared up at her, his eyes wide and his lips trembling. She took his hand in hers and he squeezed it tight. “I’m sorry,” she whispered and he nodded as he coughed up blood. Then he fell still and Alena knew he was gone. She stood up and glanced down at the dead bodies of the lieutenant and his radio operator. She looked up to see Alexi walking toward her from the jungle, and wiped a tear away. She knew that if Alexi realized killing these boys upset her, he wouldn’t want to kill anyone. Unfortunately, they were at war and killing was necessary.