Light and the tunnel

"What do you mean we cannot make it?"

"Sir, the human body would not adapt to the increase in dosage." Dhruv's voice hid the concern with a cover of respect.

"What do you mean our body cannot take it? I thought that was your area of expertise. Make it work somehow."

"Yes, Sir. Our team is aware of our expertise. But the human brain harvests more power and energy than the other systems. So even if the brain agrees, other systems might start rejecting the dosage. Which might be lethal to our men."

General Tench turned abruptly on the usage of word lethal. He stood like a boulder in front of the scientist. His work in marine added up more muscles and authority to his face than scars and regrets. His fifteen-years of service came to a halt when a group of predator aliens invaded the Earth. After his general's retrieval, his promise to him forced his fate to hold the fort, taking the place of the general.

"Lethal? Dhruv whatever is happening outside is life or death. Find some alternatives instead. How is the combination of abilities going?"

"Positive Sergeant. I am afraid we could not find any more permutation and combination of the abilities."

Bill Tench placed his hand gently on the twenty-nine-year-old bio-technologist's shoulder and pressed it as a sign of assurance. Then his lips pressed hard against each other disapproving Dhruv's explanation.

"Those extra-terrestrial creatures are ruthless. We have spent all the resources we could. We made guns, armours, robots and whatnot. Everything failed which puts us in a difficult situation now. The soldiers fighting out there with all those super abilities are our last hope. We need to give them better. Don’t give me a no for an answer. Clear, Dhruv?"

The relationship between Tench and Dhruv was more like a father and son duo. They neatly synced and interlaced with each other's emotions. Their commonality of not having any family background provided a way for their roots to penetrate deeper.  

Dhruv was able to calibrate Sergeants feelings but he knew in practical life the situation had left his hands, his team had reached a dead end. They found a myriad of gene pools, stimulating them, mutating in possible ways and providing the soldiers with special abilities. More in commoner's words, Superpowers. High strength, psychic abilities, super speed, healing power, telekinesis, high IQ, quick reflex, name everything on the superpower list, it was brought by the world's renowned scientists. Some even had a morphological change due to that. Still, they could not destroy the invaded alien species.

The arrival was dealt with patience and curiosity. Initial researches on the aliens and their spaceships were positive, but they retaliated quicker than a blink. The aliens set a warzone and turned the innocent civilians to ashes. Major countries like USA, China, Russia, India fought separately with their army power but it led to nothing. Soon they decided to join hands and put in all the world's money, squeezing every single human brain possible to kick them out of the planet. Irrespective of the differentiation, it was the human species vs the alien species.

If there is a group to eliminate the aliens, obviously there are groups to support the aliens. Initially, the supports and riots went up to the sky, but the extra-terrestrials had no mercy on them either. They too soon turned into ashes.

Bitter that the ones who were against had to face certain back-stabs that pushed them down to a horrific situation, a worse one. The human genetic codes were secretly transferred to the aliens by a fellow human being. Somehow the predators managed to mirror the DNA base, stimulating it against the humans, creating artificial human beings. They were named pH as in short for Predator Humans. Predator humans fought for the aliens eventually. The foreign species watched the rivalry unfolding against the same species. After that, chances of victory ceased, instead, the world fell into the trench of death deeper than before.

The continents came together and campaigned in several places. The armies came under a single roof naming themselves the Only Defence, OD. Several OD batches got butchered mercilessly in the battleground, still, they did not give up. Soon the refugee centre at the several parts of the world came to an end. Humanity's last hope was to strive in Turkey and San Francisco, the only refugee centres left in the whole world. Availability of food and water was not a big deal and the climate was soothing enough to survive.

The human geniuses also noted that the aliens are hunting only one specific species. Human beings. They were least bothered of the other species as if they finally identified the virus spreading across the planet.

The barriers broke between the continents, all the brain-work assembled together and gave a pure masterpiece in all the fields. Technology, health, bio-engineering, aviation, defence, all the major fields came in handy this time, watching each other's back and providing necessary support.

Sergeant Tench and his responsible behaviours lightened the burden of survival in Turkey.

"Which batch is going out tomorrow?" Tench asked.

"Mark 2216," Dhruv replied.

"How much more left?"

"Alarmingly, just fourteen."

"Fourteen? Jesus Christ. We did not even reach the core. Just fourteen more batches left?"

"Their fleet is getting larger and larger Sir. And they also found a way to mirror our genetically stimulated abilities. They are getting their way up, Sir."

"We can still do it. Split the batches and increase the number of marks. Do come up with something immediately. I will try to gain some time." Tench stroke his forehead smoothly with his fingers trying to remember something. "Any news from San Francisco?"

"No Sir, I hope not. I believe their last mark has already stepped their foot out in the battleground."

Tench inhaled deeply and prepared himself to leave.

"Sergeant. Do you think the walls will hold them up?"

Tench turned around and studied Dhruv's face. He chose silence as a benefiting reply. With that General Tench walked out of the laboratory

The consecutive days kept rolling in and out. The death toll raised. The tension increased, the pressure to thrive in the war and beat the aliens in this death-match ruled everyone's head. But even the united resources were not enough.

Tench found a strategy to gain some time as he promised Dhruv. All he could think was about the million souls that were protected behind those walls, scared to death. The last of the species. He had the responsibility to protect them.

But the aliens kept coming back. They evolved after each and every fight. It looked like they did not have any sort of emotions like humans. Even the pHs did not portray emotions. No pain either. They managed to knock all the possible equations for the humans to win.

Finally, there came a message for the San Francisco General Stephen. Their days are gone. It was nothing more than a bunch of heads drenched in human blood, tied together with a rope of hope there. Fear struck the souls and everyone inside the walls went rigid. San Francisco counted their last days.

The sight of the horrible gesture of invasion knocked the humans off their feet. Tench clenched his jaw and cried in defeat. But he never let down his hope to get destroyed. On the contrary, the rest threw their faith in the trash. Most of them left the facilities to be with their families to spend the numbered days with them happily. Sentiment. Some even tried to leave the refugee centre, in the name of hope.

Days rolled finally leading them to the arrival of the last batch, Mark 2230.

Dhruv knocked on the door and entered the surveillance room. His face was filled with defeat and regrets even before entering the battleground. His eyes scanned for the sergeant, once he spotted him, he walked slowly towards him as his hands shoved inside the pockets, a way to hide his tremble.

"Sergeant. The last mark is here." Dhruv's voice shook in fear.

The whole room turned towards Dhruv; all the activities stayed still. All eyes on him, but Dhruv did not feel anxious about it. He reached the fatal truth.

"Okay. Let’s go."

Tench walked out of the room without any hesitation. Dhruv followed sergeant out. His face filled with remorse.

"I have increased the dosage value." Dhruv broke the silence

"I thought it would turn lethal."

"Yes, it might. Since it is our last mark, you know. A leap of faith."

A smile curled on Tench's lips.

"Come on, let me give them a speech."

With a rush of surprise, Dhruv followed sergeant. I could never predict you. 

Tench watched the ODs equipping themselves. He walked in between the crowd eyeing each and every soldier who are ready to put up their lives in danger, for their species. The crowd soon disintegrated paving a pathway to the middle. Everyone turned and faced Tench.

General's speech.

"Soldiers." His voice resonated.

"You own the pride of being the last mark to step their foot on the battleground. Those predators out there, plucked our lives, our livelihood, our peace, our homes, our family, our loved ones and what else is left? Did we strike back? Yes, we did strike back. And we were on the winning spree! Unfortunately betrayed by our own. Pushed down to the chasm of chaos." Everybody frowned. " But we are not losing. Sow hope and remember your loved ones. Get your weapons loaded and aim at the goddamn predators' heads. Shoot them till they hit the ground. If your weapon goes missing, curl your fingers and clench your fist against those bastards’ jaws. Break them. Break them for breaking us into pieces. Tear them apart. We do not deserve this. Do we? For your families. For your friends. Go rip them inside out."

The echoes of cheering diverged around the facility. The tanks moved outside, guns reloaded and set on for shooting, ODs marched out the wall with hope and faith that they can return to see the smile of their loved ones. And holding on to the fact of them being their last hope for that.

The fight started to roll and blood spilled on both sides. Cries and grunts got carried away in the field. Lasers pierced through both the bodies; the blood of their own kind splattered. The soldiers fell, but something was different with this Mark. The one who fell rose again. Again, and again. To put a good fight back. Their eyes were filled with tears as they shot the laser into the predators’ heads, their heart fought for the sweet memories their brains held.

The days passed. Soon the kills increased and alarmingly humans climbed the ladder. They killed whichever foreign species came in sight of them. The fury was abominable. Fighting for the inevitable, love. The feeling after remembering their loved ones encouraged them to pluck the enemies' hearts with their own bare hands. Everything went smooth until more and more pHs came running down the space ships. After their previous job in San Francisco, they headed right to Turkey. The turn of events rolled upside down within a matter of time. But the soldiers fought till the last OD's head kissed the ground.

Dhruv hurried anxiously and reached the communication room. Tench was sitting there, alone, watching his men fighting for freedom. He sent his last team to their loved ones. He knew the bitter truth; they reached the end. But he denied accepting the truth.

"I heard our kills have increased by five times. A new record."

"Yes, it is," Tench replied with confidence. Not just confidence, it had its pride too. "That's my boys."

The radio crackled up to life. Tench flipped the switch on and went alive with his voice.

"Sergeant."

"How's it in the field?"

"I am the last OD alive. Everyone's dead."

Tench closed his eyes and pulled his tears back. His heart ached from the soldier's statement.

"But your speech. Goddamn, Sergeant. Even after days. It is filling us with hope. I promise I would at least kill a dozen of predators before I hit the ground."

Tench smiled, this time he could not barricade his tears. It flew downhill from eyes towards his cheeks.

"I wanted to tell you, something Sergeant." A pause. "It was a pleasure working under you Sir."

With that, the radio went cold.

"Is that it?" Dhruv asked. He was awestruck at the conversation. He swallowed the lump in his throat and sat on one of the tables.

"I suppose," Tench replied. His voice was subtle and painful. He wiped down the tears and got lost in his own thoughts.

"Woah. So, our OD will be dead soon. And we have no more defence set up against the predators? Damn this planet."

"Hope is a dangerous thing."

"Indeed, it is dangerous." Dhruv forced a chuckle.

"But it is vital." Tench watched through the giant glass pane. He witnessed a huge army marching towards the wall. Dhruv followed his gaze and looked at the alien species walking closer to their victory.

"Why do they hate us?" Dhruv asked.

Both smiled. "I think we know the answer," Tench replied. Calmness dominated his voice.

"Where did we lose Serge? We should have won. At least for the sake of those innocent children who would never see light henceforth."

Tench's eyebrows knitted together and listened to Dhruv with utmost concentration.

"I mean I know we were sold by our own species, but still we could have gained the leader board. Why didn’t we?"

Tench placed both the palms together and rubbed them softly on each other.

"Even with those powerful abilities, we couldn't do anything. Where did we go wrong?" Dhruv asked.

Tench smiled at the silliness.

"We accepted defeat even before entering the battlefield," Tench spoke.

"We lowered our guards and loosened our hold on hopes. We believed we were incapable to manage them. We ran behind superpowers. We never realised the true potential of ourselves. Tell me when was the time you lost your hope?"

"When we ran out of the mathematical combination of the genes." Dhruv warily replied.

"There you go. We lost right there." Tench grinned, but his eyes told a different story. "The superheroes we knew, had a broken past fuelling their inner selves to achieve something. Instead, the real-life human beings relied on external materials. Not their inner potentials."

"So you're saying if we believed in ourselves, we would've won?"

"Human emotions are much stronger than those weapons we created. Our belief should be on ourselves rather than the weapons."

The loud thudding noise gave a farewell to Tench's explanation. The wall was demolished to the grounds and the opponents walked past it like it was nothing.

"Tench. Do you mind if I hug you?"

Tench felt a father inside him instantly. He extended his arms wide open and received Dhruv's soul with him. With that human species inside the wall, became extinct.

Hope is indeed a dangerous thing.