Alex was starting to get bored standing in the long queue. He had been waiting for hours to get his assignment for the "special operation" that New Dawn was planning. He didn't care much about the details, he just wanted some action and excitement. He hated being idle and restless.
Since the "Annihilation" thirty years ago, the nations of Earth had fallen. New nations had been formed in their stead, and an agreement was formed among them, forming the new League of Nations, replacing the former United Nations. It was named after the historical failed entity of the same name.
He looked around and saw hundreds of other mercenaries like him, all wearing different kinds of armor and weapons, all powered by the core. They had all been given a notice, asking them to come to the New Dawn base in Destiny City, one of the largest and most important cities in New America. The core was the source of everything in this world, ever since the Annihilation, the day when a third of Earth's population was wiped out by a beam of light from the sky. The extensive use of core-powered technology advocated by New Dawn had inadvertently lead to the emergence of mercenary guilds. They battled extraterrestrial threats in exchange for resources. There were also independent mercenaries like Alex, or "The Core Crusader", as he liked to call himself.
Alex didn't understand much of what the notice had said, he didn't really care either. He was a mercenary for hire, following his own whims and desires. He had finished a hunt the night before in Brussels, the capital of the United Dominion of Europe, and was ready for some more. The Iron Dome wasn't impenetrable, it had it's weaknesses and it was very common for hostile forces to infiltrate it. The Iron Dome had been the only thing separating humanity from it's doom for the past three decades. It had been developed in secret by New Dawn, and deployed immediately after the Annihilation.
Alex snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a familiar voice booming from the speakers. It was Harvey Blake, the General Secretary of the League of Nations, and the chief supervisor of New Dawn. He had founded New Dawn as a branch of the United States Department of Energy, but after the Annihilation, he had transformed it into a paramilitary organization responsible for Earth's defenses. It had become a international group serving as the primary armed force of the League of Nations, while still conducting it's former research and development duties. Blake was also the one who had organized this special operation, which involved sending a squadron of mercenaries to Antarctica, where a portal to Jotunheim had been discovered. Jotunheim was the source of the trolls, mindless beasts that devoured life. The trolls had been attacking Earth for decades, but no one knew how they got here until recently. Earth had barely been keeping it together, being under attacks from two planets. Blake claimed that by destroying the portal, they could stop the troll invasion and strike a blow to Asgard as well.
Humanity had learned a lot about the situation they were in. Two alien races, the Aesir, and Jotnar, from two different planets were both contesting over "The Core". Netiher of the races had payed Earth a direct visit. Asgard's representatives had been the eerily beautiful valkyries for a decade until they were joined by forces of humanoid mutant soldiers that the valkyries referred to as the "Einherjar". Meanwhile the Jotnar were responsible for the troll infestation.
Alex listened to Blake's speech with boredom and contempt. He didn't care about the fate of humanity or the core or anything else. He just wanted to have some fun and kill some aliens. He did, however have another intention, he was going to travel to Jotunheim, leaving Earth behind. The operation only included securing the portal not venturing to the other planet but Alex had gotten bored of Earth. He knew he would get to kill formidable creatures on the other planets, the ones on Earth posed no challenge to him. He looked at his pair of core-powered pistols, smiling wickedly behind his mask, they were his favorite weapons. He called them Billy and Daisy. His mask and clothing, that covered all of his skin, hid his age and identity. He was 35 years old, but no one could tell by looking at him. He liked to keep people guessing and afraid.
He decided to spice things up a bit by starting some trouble with the other mercenaries. He pushed his way through the queue, shoving and elbowing anyone who got in his way.
"Hey, watch it!" one of them shouted at him.
"Why the fuck should I?" Alex replied sarcastically.
He reached the front of the queue, where a huge mercenary was standing. He was wearing heavy armor and carrying a massive core-powered hammer. He was very famous among the mercenaries, known as Hammerhead. He had earned his reputation by smashing skulls and bones with his hammer.
Alex pushed him aside without hesitation.
"Out of my way, big guy," he said mockingly.
Hammerhead turned around and glared at Alex with rage.
"Do you know who I am?" he growled.
"Do you know who I am?" Alex mimicked him in a high-pitched voice.
Hammerhead raised his hammer and swung it at Alex's head.
Alex dodged it easily and shot Hammerhead in the face with his pistol.
Hammerhead's head exploded like a watermelon, his brains dropping to the ground.
The crowd gasped in shock and horror.
Alex laughed maniacally.
"Anyone else want some?" he taunted.
Several mercenaries charged at him with their weapons drawn.
Alex welcomed them with open arms.
"I'm the motherfucking Core Crusader, baby!!!!" he yelled.
"What the fuck does that even mean?" a mercenary asked, genuinely mortified.
Alex shot most of them, that's all he could do, really. He sucked at physical combat but he had an acrobatic "shoot 'em up" fighting style, utilizing flips, jumps, rolls, and spins.
He shot a guy in the face, then jumped high up in the sky and flipped over, after that he spun around firing continuous rounds at his attackers.
Having a small stature, he was incredibly agile.
A woman screamed as he grabbed her by the neck and used her as a human shield against incoming fire, then fired a round through her torso blowing a gaping whole in it while also killing a mercenary in front of her.
He was, quite literally, having a blast
He was about to finish off the last of his attackers, when he heard a loud and authoritative voice.
"Enough!" the voice shouted.
Alex looked up and saw Commander Victoria Dawson, the commander-in-chief of New Dawn's expedition department. She was a tall and imposing woman, with blonde hair and piercing blue eyes. She wore a sleek and elegant core-powered suit that enhanced her strength and speed.
She looked at Alex with disgust and anger.
"What do you think you're doing, you lunatic?" she asked.
Alex shrugged.
"Just having some fun," he said.
"Fun?" she repeated incredulously. "You just killed one of our best mercenaries, and several others. Do you have any idea how much trouble you've caused?"
Alex shook his head.
"Not really," he said.
He was about to say something else, when he felt a hard blow to the back of his head.
He fell to the ground, unconscious.
He didn't see who hit him, but he guessed it was one of the New Dawn squad captains, who were in charge of leading the mercenaries to Antarctica.
He didn't really care either.
He knew he would wake up soon, and then he would have more fun.