Robot apocalypse - Orange County

It was an early summer morning in Orange County, ca. A cool ocean chill filled the beach front condo. The alarm clock was buzzing at 6am, but I was already wide awake and lacing up my shoes for an early morning run. After 15 years as an outside contracted personal trainer and martial arts Sensei, my early morning exercise routines have become more than a routine and more like woven into my DNA. My name is William, but everyone calls me Chief ever since I can remember. Im not sure where it all started. Maybe its because of my training styles & techniques, or maybe it started before this time in my life. I always wear military issue clothing to complete the nickname though. Today was no different. Sipping a well prepared protein shake for fuel while powering on my laptop to sync my Zune player I noticed that the screens were scrambled on both my mp3 player and laptop. A bit irritated because this seems to be happening more often I powered them off and attempted a reboot. The Microsoft reboot notification began to chime in while simultaneously the ground starts to rattle at my feet. My nerves began to kick into overdrive thinking its another southern California tremor, only I was caught off guard by how quick it went from rumble to explosion! The explosion completely blew open my 2 bedroom Condo on the Newport Beach! I was thrown by the blast from outside into mid-air from my living room into the kitchen counter shattering the coffee maker & blender that sat side by side! Making every attempt to get off the ground and shake off the confusion from the concussion blast that just threw me at least 20 ft I stumbled thru a ravaged pathway that used to be my hallway. Attempting to make it to my wife and 3 year old daughter my vision was blurry & fading in and out with haziness. Light reflections began to take recognizable shapes allowing me to gain some focus back. My eardrums were ringing with no distinctive noises surrounding me. Everything started to come into focus at once and I immediately came to the realization that my master bedroom and my daughters room are completely gone. Desperation & despair started to engulf my entire being while I started rummaging thru the rubble looking for any signs of survival. Nothing...? My body gave into a humbling spiritual weakness and dropped me to my knees screaming at the top of my lungsGod No!! Why?! My tears welled up and started pouring down my face like a broken water damn. Falling to my hands for support I saw my

daughters confirmation rosary buried under the rubble ,the sounds from outside were becoming more apparent. I looked up to see what used to be an intersection now littered with broken concrete, fallen buildings, mangled cars, one gigantic hole in the ground and people screaming and running for their lives! Some were trapped under rubble, while others lay lifeless on the ground. Houses are either on fire or nothing but piles of wood, plaster, & concrete. Everyone is full of blood & dirt. One child standing alone in paralyzing fear soaking in tears. I spotted my neighbor, Steve, trying to pull himself free from a van that had been tossed onto his legs. A young man came running to his rescue. At least that's what it looked like to me. The young man grabbed Steve by his head and twisted like it was a bottle cap, popping his head right off. I almost couldn't believe my eyes. Everything seemed so unreal. The young man's head made a complete 180 degree turn and looked right at me. My body ran numb with fear as the red & green marking on his face became recognizable?!" Lz " The trademark symbol for a new technology company named "Living Zeal". The symbol was everywhere over the past 3 years. This company popped up in the civilian sector with android style robots that served humans in domestic duties. Most recently Living Zeal moved into the military sector & apparently something has gone very wrong. The android made a flying leap in my direction rotating it's body counter clockwise 180 degrees in mid air to line it's body with it's head. In a split second it was almost on top of me. Instinctively my martial arts kicked in and my quads flexed and pushed me to the left with a roundhouse right footed kick to counter the attack. The android was quicker than I expected catching my foot with one hand in mid-kick. Countering again I jumped with my left foot rotating my body clockwise to allow my left heel to strike the androids chin breaking the grip on my foot. Almost without thought I continued his attack with a flury of one-two punches to the androids chin and chest. Nothing seemed to slow the android or affect it. With the swiftness of a feline the android gave a one handed shove to my chest and sent me flying backwards in a cat roll 30 feet or so. Struggling on all fours to get to my feet, I looked up to see what I thought was going to be my last sight. The android slowly walked to me and picked me up by myy throat. Gasping for air my feet were dangling a few inches from the floor. Flashbacks of my life started to play out like a movie reel. All of the

memories of my life came to mind. How I met my wife, the birth of our daughter, both of their smiles... "This can't be the end?" I thought SPLAATT!!... I fell to the ground with a green sludge all over my face. The android's head was missing and its neck was spewing out a green oil and sparks. As I wiped my face clean I noticed the helicopters flying in. The U.S. Marines were air-dropping in with foot soldiers, snipers & heavy artillery. Balancing the battle, the Marines started their offensive while the remaining public ran for shelter. A huge feeling of relief overcame me for a split second. "Thank God!" I sighed. Right then a passing soldier responded at the top of his lungs with an eerie smile "The day's not over sir! It's not even 7 am yet!" as he ran passed to join his platoon. I saw a young boy with filthy hair covered in ashes and dirt petrified with fear. I took him by the hand and reassured him that everything will be ok." I'll take care of you. Come with me." I tried to console him. Attempting to push back the memories of my losses my eyes began to tear up, but, the familiar sound of explosions put us both on the run towards the nearest Military Hummer. The Lz's are starting their push back and it doesn't look good...