In the year 2053, Bryan Mills, a retired army vet, and his daughter Kim are residing in Oregon National Park, off the grid. Growing up Bryan had a rough childhood and an even worse young adult life. At the age of 15, both of Bryan’s parents traumatically passed away. Following their death, Bryans life changed for the worse. Bryan began fighting and doing drugs, doing anything to numb the pain he felt and was not able to cope with. At the age of 18, an army recruiter discovered Bryan and managed to persuade him into enlisting. During his deployment, Bryan saw a lot of death and horrible events that disturbed him to the core. However, he managed to put those feelings aside and climb the ranks of his unit, resulting in him becoming commander. During his time as commander, Bryan created a GPS programmable drone that is able to track movements and capture images. However, what he didn’t know was that his creation would later be used against him. Traumatic memories and feelings have always crept up on Bryan, but it had become too much three years into being commander. With no way out he left the army with a drone, which he knew was illegal.
Currently residing in Oregon National Park with his daughter Kim, who had had two years post run-away, Bryan always felt the hunch someone or something was following him. Kim was a smart girl, who had just turned 13. Her childhood was majorly different from her fathers, and Bryan made sure no one caused her any harm. Growing up Bryan taught Kim how to hunt, fish, and live on only what the wild could offer. They had been bouncing between National Parks and Oregon was their favorite place. Both of them spent their days practicing wilderness techniques and routes they would take if they were ever discovered. Bryan made sure that Kim understood that life outside of the park was not a life she would want and a life that had left her father scarred. Despite Bryans encouragement to have no interest in the outside world, Kim always dreamed what it would be like to live in a house rather than a tent.
One afternoon during their daily fishing trip, Bryan heard tree branches moving when there was no wind. He immediately told Kim to run and they both took off on a different path that would lead them together in the middle of the park. Bryan got to the spot first, as expected, they did this everyday and he was always first. However, he couldn’t help but feel something was completely wrong. Should he have gone on the same path with her this time? Mid thinking, Bryan heard another noise. He took off in the direction of the sound and found Kim staring up at something in the sky. Bryan couldn’t believe it, it was a drone. The same model of drone that he himself had created! It was just hovering there, analyzing, taking pictures of their surroundings and of their faces. Bryan grabbed Kim and started to run, the drone followed. Bryan knew that the sensors in the drone allowed for it to follow their exact movements since it had already captured pictures and their location. He didn’t know what to do or what to think, why now? How did they find him? He decided to hide Kim in a hole in a tree and keep running. He thought that the drone would follow him and not worry about Kim. He was right, every turn he made, it was there, following and capturing pictures of him. After about 5 miles of running, he assumed, Bryan noticed that the drone was gone. Where did it go? He asked himself. Losing that thought in a second when he remembered Kim was in the tree, he took off in her direction.
Twenty four hours have passed since the incident and Bryan doesn’t know what to do. They had taken Kim, he was sure of it, she wasn’t there when he returned. He wasn’t able to close his eyes once all night without seeing her in a terrible situation he couldn’t even put into words. Every possible thought and conclusion was running through his head. While pacing back and forth, Bryan remembered his drone that he took with him. He knew this was what was going to find Kim and give him the exact address of her location. He just had to wait for the other drone to come back so that his drone could follow theirs.
Bryan had been waiting two days, which felt like an eternity, until he heard something in the distance. He immediately turned on his drone and ran into the tree line. Staying very quiet, he lifted his drone into the air and began walking throughout the forest searching for the enemy’s drone. His drone made the signal that it had captured an unknown object in the distance, but the drone had already seen him and his drone. The opposing drone took off in the distance, however, Bryans drone was following right behind. He had already programmed the drone to track it back to where it came from and when it reached there, he would somehow find his way there.
After a long wait until the drones reached where he wanted them to go, Bryan had managed to walk 2.5 miles and steal a vehicle. He had the exact location of where Kim was, now all he had to do was come up with a plan to get inside and get Kim. ETA was 1 hour drive from the National Park, a lifetime away… He managed to get there, not remembering most of the drive, as he was zoning out thinking of all the ways this could go wrong. Sneaking over the gates of the perimeter, he managed to sneak past a guard and get inside. Everything was technical, computers everywhere, drones in pieces being worked on in every room. He noticed his old office, the newest drone was being created inside. The AAI RQ-7, which is 15.5 million dollars and can travel at 81 mph. Bryan kept going, looking in every room for Kim, until he found her. She was laying in a bed and she wasn’t moving. He immediately began performing CPR and checking her pulse. Nothing was working and Bryan didn’t know what to do. Everything began to spin and his vision started to blur, then everything went black.
Kim was asleep when she heard screaming, it was her father, again. This happened every night, and every night it was harder for her to wake him up. She began shaking him, screaming “dad” over and over again, that it was just a bad dream. After about 10 minutes, her father woke up. This time it was different, he didn’t say anything, but he looked so scared and began hugging me. He kept repeating how sorry he was, that this was no way to live and how he has betrayed me. He told me the world wasn’t a terrible place, that terrible things just happened and he didn’t know how to cope with it. He promised we would enter the real world tomorrow.
Corrigan, Fintan. “How Do Drones Work and What Is Drone Technology.” DroneZon, 1 Oct. 2020, https://www.dronezon.com/learn-about-drones-quadcopters/what-is-drone-technology-or-how-does-drone-technology-work/.
In this source I learned why the drones can fly as high as the trees and what makes them so accurate at tracking. Drones using cutting-edge technology like infrared cameras, GPS, and lasers are used in UAVs (consumer, commercial and military UAV). Drones are controlled via remote ground control systems (GSC), often known as a ground cockpit. Most unmanned aircraft are made of light composite materials to conserve weight and boost maneuverability. Because of the composite material’s strength, military drones can fly at extremely high altitudes.
Morel, Pierre, director. Taken. 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, 2008.
Taken is a movie that came out in 2008. Throughout this movie Liam Neeson is in search of his daughter Kim who was kidnapped. Although, in this movie, Bryan is a sharp shooting killer, who is capable of almost everything. This character, characterizes the main qualities of a father who would stop at nothing to help and find his daughter Kim. Bryan overcomes his own emotions in order for his daughter could have a better life rather than live in constant fear.
Wood, Reesa. “The 5 National Parks and Monuments in Oregon (& What to Do at Each!) • Small Town Washington.” Small Town Washington, 28 Mar. 2021, https://smalltownwashington.com/oregon-national-parks-monuments/.
National Parks have always been an interest to me and this source includes images and facts about each, as well as what opportunities they have to offer. This is a great setting for someone who would be able to live on their own in the wilderness.
V., Rob. “12 Military Drones Employed by the US Military.” Operation Military Kids, 18 Mar. 2021, https://www.operationmilitarykids.org/military-drones/. This source gave me a list of the top 12 best drones, plus how and what makes them the best. I used the AAI RQ-7, I used this drone due to the information included. Such as the speed, range and the dimensions.