Plot
In 1996, an experimental military program selects and raises a group of orphaned infants to be trained as highly disciplined, ruthless, professional soldiers. Recruits considered physically or mentally underperforming are culled and the survivors are turned into ultimate fighting “machines” with no understanding of the civilian world.
In 2036, Sgt. Todd 3465 is a hardened veteran and one of the original 1996 infants, but his unit is about to be replaced by genetically engineered super soldiers, designed with superior physical attributes and a lack of emotion, except complete aggression. Colonel Mekum, leader of the project, introduces his newest group to Captain Church, the commander of Todd's unit, who insists on testing the new soldiers' abilities against his battle proven soldiers. Mekum suggests pitting three original soldiers against one new soldier, Caine 607, who easily defeats the three. Cain bites down on Todd’s arm so Todd gouges out Caine's eye to break free before falling from a great height. The body of a dead soldier cushions his fall, and he appears to be dead. Mekum orders their bodies disposed, declaring them obsolete, while the remaining older soldiers are demoted to menial support roles. For carelessly losing his eye, Cain is demoted to take point.
Todd is discarded on Arcadia 234, a waste disposal planet. He limps toward a colony whose residents crash-landed there years earlier; as they were believed dead, no rescue missions have been attempted. Todd is sheltered by Mace and his wife Sandra. Though they try to make him welcome, Todd has difficulty adapting to the conflict-free civilian community due to his hyper-vigilant military conditioning. While Todd develops a silent rapport with their mute son, Nathan, who had been traumatized by a snakebite as an infant, he soon begins to experience flashbacks from his time as a soldier and mistakes one of the colonists for an enemy, nearly killing him. To make matters worse, in a later conflict with a snake, Todd forces Nathan to face it down and strike back to protect himself. His parents disapprove of the lesson, unsure of how to deal with Todd.
Fearful, the colonists expel Todd from the community. Experiencing strong emotion for the first time, Todd is confused when, overcome by loss, he cries for the first time. A short time later, Mace and Sandra are almost bitten by a snake while they sleep, but they are saved by Nathan, who uses Todd's lesson. Now understanding the value of Todd's lesson, they seek him to reintegrate him into the community, but the other members resist.
On a training exercise the new genetically engineered super soldiers arrive on the garbage planet. Since the world is listed as uninhabited, Colonel Mekum, at first unaware of the colonists, still determines them and any violators as legitimate targets. The soldiers spot Mace and kill him just after he finds Todd. Though out-manned and outgunned, Todd's years of battle experience and superior knowledge of the planet allow him to return to the colony and kill the advance squad. Realizing that an unknown enemy force might be confronting them, Colonel Mekum orders the soldiers to withdraw and return with heavy artillery. Using guerrilla tactics and exploiting their procedures, Todd outmaneuvers and defeats all of the remaining soldiers, including his nemesis, Caine 607, whom he barely defeats after vicious hand-to-hand combat by using guile.
Panicking, Mekum orders the transport ship's remaining crew, composed of Todd's old squad, to deploy a portable doomsday device powerful enough to destroy the planet. He then orders the ship to lift off, leaving the squad behind. Hearing an order to leave his men behind, Captain Church objects, Mekum shoots him in cold blood. Before take off, Todd appears and with one stern look at the situation, causes his old comrades to silently side with him over Mekum and take over the ship. They throw Mekum and his aides out then evacuate the remaining colonists. In a panicked attempt to disarm the Doomsday device, Mekum accidentally sets it off, killing him and his aides. Todd pilots the ship from Arcadia just ahead of the shockwave and sets course for the Trinity Moons, the colonists' original destination. He picks up Nathan and points to their new destination, while looking out upon the galaxy.
