My Summer Vacation, by Sienna McKnight (aged 16)

By R.K. Syrus

A free introduction to the Apocalypse World and New Praetorians technothriller sci-fi series.

The world of the New Praetorians is introduced by three fascinating, interlinked tales beginning with Sienna McKnight’s fantastic trip from North Carolina half way around the world to the land of her birth which is chronicled in her essay “My Summer Vacation”.

New Praetorians World novels:

Apocalypse Israel: the 96-Hour War
Apocalypse Europe: the Pangaea Protocol
Apocalypse USA
***
NP 1: Sienna McKnight
NP 2: Shetani Zeru Bryan
“...an intriguing world of futuristic technology,
made more familiar by contemporary references.”

“Radiant descriptions also enhance the story.”

—Kirkus Reviews

• Language: English
• Publisher: R.K. Syrus
• Release date: Mar 17, 2021
• ISBN: 9781910890097

R.K. Syrus

A former journalist, he mostly comes out at night, mostly.

Book preview

MY SUMMER VACATION

R. K. SYRUS

CONTENTS

Books in the New Praetorians Series

Begin reading MY SUMMER VACATION

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The New Praetorians Need You!

Part of the New Praetorians Series

Copyright

This book is part of the New Praetorians series.

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Apocalypse series standalone novels

Apocalypse Israel, Apocalypse Europe, Apocalypse USA

New Praetorians serialized books

My Summer Vacation, Sienna McKnight, Shetan Zeru Bryan

My Summer Vacation

By Sienna McKnight

Grade 11 Cross-Disciplinary Extra Credit Essay in the Natural Sciences, Humanities, and Martial Arts

Cape Fear High School (Base Auxiliary)

Fayetteville, N.C.

This summer vacation, I traveled more than 7,000 miles away from home to the Central Asian country where I was born. After making my way through a radiation-scarred wasteland, I found myself a kilometer underground in a hot and humid cave. As I carefully slid my feet over bat dung that lubricated a fall into the bottomless crevasse and had my hands full trying not to die (and taking notes for this essay), I saw something that truly made me wish I had stayed stateside.

Without warning, high-intensity carbon arc lamps blazed to life. A hornet’s-nest buzzing accompanied the glare that filled a rocky chamber about sixty meters across. On the other side of the crevasse, a woman appeared. At least, she had the body of one. She did not need any weapon to be menacing. I did not take my eyes off the potential hostile. She had been waiting for us.

US Army Sergeant Bryan was behind me, inching his way around a fat stalagmite. He saw her too. Bryan’s feet stopped making wet-dung mucking and dried-dead-beetle crunching noises. Maybe his new highly advanced cybernetic eyes could make more sense of things than mine could in the dim light.

The woman had on what was either thick leather or form-fitting body armor. She held out a hand.

A greeting?

A warning?

More like Hush.

Her other hand tapped a remote. Music echoed between the fungus-covered rock walls and dripped from the ceiling. The woman nodded her head in time with the beat. Her expression you could not rightly tell, seeing as where her forehead would normally be situated there were two bulging dragonfly compound eyes.

Under those oil-slick shimmering orbs, her mouth puckered into three oozing orifices that looked like writhing suction cups. Inside of each of these, dozens of teeth gnashed.

Lastly, and most prominently, her nose was like a miniature elephant’s trunk. It waggled left and right with the beat of the music echoing through the cave, Aretha Franklin demanding a little Respect.

At this point, perhaps I should revert and discuss events leading up to this fateful encounter.

TWO DAYS EARLIER

My summer vacation had started totally differently.

As I habitually do on sunny afternoons in July, I was planning my electives schedule for the coming semester. In the midst of this aforesaid planning activity, a family friend from the Base knocked on the screen door. Sergeant Bryan, E-5, came in.

After encouraging me to study hard in order to gain admittance to the college of my choice (which would be the United States Military Academy at West Point), he broached the subject that had occasioned his visit.

How are your language lessons going?

My moms started me early learning about the cultural heritage of my birth country. I have been taking second language courses since primary school. Also these count as a full credit alternative to Family and Consumer Science (Blechh!).

Great, Dr. Rafiq’s a genius teacher, I said.

He teaches Indo-European languages at school and also tutors me for free.

Well, Sarge said, not many people know this, but Dr. Rafiq’s main gig is head of translation in Signals on the Base.

I can always tell when Uncle Bryan is leading up to something which in his mind might be controversial, because