by Jan Domagala
“What?” Hardy asked, reading from his expression anxiety about something other than the present situation.
“I’m getting something from the computer. I’m reading some reports that have been logged in from the lab area. They’ve manufactured a serum and administered it to five soldiers and are in the process of manufacturing it in large quantities,” he said as the look of concern grew into one of deep resignation. He knew what he had to do and his escape plan had just been put on hold.
Hardy saw his expression change and knew what was coming.
“We’re not going are we?” she said.
“I can’t allow them to make more serum. I have to destroy it,” he said with finality in his voice. His expression told her that he meant business. He had his game face on and was as determined as she’d ever seen him.
“What do you intend doing?” she asked.
“We have to get back to that lab and destroy all the samples of the serum, and to do that we need another diversion to draw all the guards away from that area,” he replied. He went silent as his mind raced, analysing the problem he’d just outlined.
“Whatever you choose we’d better do it quickly, because considering what’s already happened, their security will be on high alert. If we don’t do something fast, we won’t be leaving this place at all,” she replied.
He looked her straight in the eye and said, “So be it. That serum is not leaving this place while I’m alive.” She knew from his expression that he was determined, that if necessary would commit his life to the task ahead and he expected the same commitment from her.
Thoughts ran through her mind then, thoughts of her future, her career, raising a family, seeing more of the galaxy, becoming someone people could look up to and leaving her mark on the history of the Confederation. In that instant she knew that it could all end right here, right now. None of her dreams could come to pass except perhaps the very last. She would indeed leave her mark on the history of the Confederation but it would be an invisible one. These missions are invariably unreported in the annals of history but rather left to the vaults of secrecy.
First and foremost she was a Marine and upon taking the oath she realised that at any moment, in any mission, her life could be forfeit. It seemed to her that time could be now.
With the final resignation that comes with the knowledge that this is it, this has to be done, no matter the cost, she responded with a nod of her head.
“Okay, let’s do this,” she said and he knew he could count on her.
* * * * *
Norsky had no idea where Stryder and Hardy would be, especially as the alarm had been raised. The base was in lockdown and they couldn’t make it to any of the exits. One thing was certain, when he found Stryder he was in for a fight. It still worried him, the power of the man and how he’d taken care of him so quickly and easily.
As he was searching for him another idea was circulating inside his brain, one that could give him the edge or at least a fighting chance when he came into contact with Stryder. When he heard the fire alarm raised and learned of the location, the idea turned into a last minute solution, a desperate one but a solution nonetheless.
Stopping in his tracks he turned and headed for the main lab.
* * * * *
Stryder and Hardy were about to leave the janitor’s closet when he glanced up towards the ceiling.
“What?” asked Hardy when she saw where his gaze was focused? Right above their heads was a vent in the ceiling giving access to the shafts connected to the life support system.
“If we can fit inside there we can travel through this complex without them knowing where we are, straight to the main lab,” Stryder said.
“Okay, let’s do it, it’s gotta be better than running around out there getting shot at by every guard in this damn place,” Hardy replied, as she gauged the size of the opening hoping that the ducts behind the vent were large enough for them to crawl through.
Finding something to stand on he reached up and pulled the vent out of its recess with considerable ease then passed it down to Hardy. Within a few seconds he had pulled himself up and into the hole. Looking down and smiling he said, “Grab my hands and I’ll pull you up,” as he reached down towards her with both arms outstretched.
She joined him inside the vent amazed at how easily he had pulled her up. “Which direction?” she asked, a little disoriented in their new surroundings.
“That way,” he indicated with a nod of his head.
“How can you be so sure?”
“I don’t really know but it’s like I’ve got a GPS fix and I know exactly to the inch where everything is inside this whole complex. Don’t ask me how and I’m not even gonna try and think about it, just going to go with the flow and be thankful it works,” he replied.
She smiled and said, “Okay, after you then.”
* * * * *
Norsky reached the main lab just as General Solon was leaving. Watching him turn the opposite corner he waited until he was out of sight then entered the lab.
The three Marines who had been ordered to remain behind and protect the lab looked up as Norsky entered. Even though they recognised him they were too slow to react as he brought up his Magerov P9 and shot them all in the head, each one sent flying backwards his head destroyed in a spurt of blood.
“Give me a dose of the serum, now!” he said turning to the lab tech nearest to him who was cowering in abject terror. This was not what he had signed up for. The research was what he loved but just lately things had got way out of control and here he was in fear of his very life, threatened from every quarter, or so it seemed.
“Okay, just don’t kill me,” the lab tech said his voice high pitched and shaky from terror. He reached for an injector gun and administered the serum to Norsky.
“How long before it starts to take effect?” Norsky wanted to know.
“Quite quickly,” replied the lab tech, realising it was not what Norsky wanted to hear from the scowl he received. “It depends on the subject. Look, this part isn’t an exact science. We’ve not had time to run the proper control tests so we’re guessing most of the time,” he admitted hoping his words would stave off any retribution.
“Give me some idea then?”
“The first batch produced results after as little as a few minutes, but I can’t be certain.”
“That’ll have to do,” Norsky said, then as he prepared to leave turned to the lab tech and said, “What has the General ordered you to do?”
“Get another batch ready for mass production,” the lab tech blurted out.
“Get on with it then,” Norsky said before leaving the lab.
* * * * *
Unerringly Stryder guided them to the main lab area taking less time than they had first imagined. The ducts were quite spacious and had afforded them enough room to crawl through unrestricted. When they arrived, Norsky had killed the Marines and they watched as the lab tech administered the serum. Hearing every word, they remained hidden behind a vent in the roof until the renegade captain had left in search of them.
“Well, that was interesting, to say the least,” Hardy whispered when the coast was clear.
“Yea, in helping to solve our immediate problem he’s given us something else to worry about,” replied Stryder in the same tone of voice. “C’mon, let’s get this done before anyone else comes in to complicate matters.” He turned around and kicked the vent free so he could jump down into the room.
“Oh shit!” the lab tech exclaimed when he saw who it was.
Covering the inhabitants of the room with the assault rifle in one hand, Stryder reached up to help Hardy down with the other.
“If you want to get out of this with your skins intact I suggest you leave right now,” Stryder said to the frightened lab techs who were only too pleased to be given the opportunity to escape.
Once the room had been evacuated Hardy asked, “What do you intend to do now?”
“Destroy this seru
m and any means of replicating it in the future,” he replied as he looked around the room for the best means of accomplishing that task.
“How?”
“Fire is usually the best method. We set fire to this entire complex and destroy all evidence of the programme and the serum, everything, and then we get the hell out.”
“Well, let’s just hope that the knowledge isn’t still with those lab techs you just let go,” Hardy said.
Stryder glanced at the door they had just run through and realised his potential mistake.
“We’ll just have to hope they were working from notes rather than from memory or knowledge they already had.”
With that he set about erasing the records of the research in the main computer whilst Hardy went to where the samples of the serum were being replicated and increased the temperature in the chamber to dangerous levels. Within a few short moments the remaining samples were destroyed and all that remained to do was destroy the equipment.
“All done?” he asked when Hardy came to stand next to him.
“Yes, the samples are destroyed; we just need to destroy their ability to replicate anymore,” she replied urgently.
He got up from the computer terminal and, picking up his assault rifle, sent a few well-aimed full power plasma bolts into the equipment around the room. After a short while the room was in a blaze from all the explosions erupting as a result of his shots.
As they watched the fire engulf the room, taking with it the Alliance’s last chance of replicating the serum, they made their way to the exit.
“C’mon let’s get the hell out, those plasma bolts will alert someone to what’s just happened and bring the guards down on us,” Stryder said. The two of them ran from the room, that part of their mission completed.
“How are we going to get out of here?” Hardy asked once they were free of the main lab.
“We need a different route that will bypass the guards surrounding us,” replied Stryder thoughtfully.
“Well, if you’ve any suggestions you’d better make them fast because I’ve got a bad feeling that those guards you mentioned are gonna be all over us real soon,” she pleaded.
Stryder’s eyes glazed over, all colour bleaching from them for just a second as he accessed the files from the computer pertaining to the blueprints of the complex through his NI; areas he knew nothing about.
“I think we may have something,” he said as his eyes regained their natural colour. Hardy didn’t say anything, as she had never seen that phenomenon before when he used his NI in that way.
“This way,” he said and led her down a different part of the complex towards the lower levels, going deeper inside instead of towards the exits. Pulling up short she stood, unsure of what to do. Stryder turned to face her and said, “You wanted a way out around the guards, and this is it, but you have to trust me.” Holding out his hand to her he waited for her decision.
She looked behind her to where the obvious exits were. They were close but probably blocked by most of the security staff expecting them to go that way. If she followed him farther into the complex what would she be going in to? Only he knew.
Stryder waited for her to make her mind up. He needed her to be with him and not to question every decision he made, so he waited.
There really was no choice for her, he had been right on all the decisions he had made so far, so she just had to trust him once more. There was no way either of them could make it out of the complex alone but together they had a chance, a slim one, but a chance nonetheless, so she chose to go along with him.
With a sigh of relief he watched as she came towards him. He knew she would follow because as she had decided, there was a better chance for them together than alone.
As he turned back to face the way they were headed he was suddenly halted in his tracks by the voice of a guard who appeared from around the corner aiming an assault rifle in their direction.
“Freeze! Stand where you are!” the guard shouted.
23
Matt Hawk had made all the necessary calls. He’d brought General Sinclair up to speed on what was happening and what he hoped to achieve and had received the man’s blessing.
Once that was done he went directly to the morgue to retrieve the NI from Doctor Randolph.
“Here it is but I’m not sure it’ll do you any good. It was close to the damaged area of the brain, what was left of it,” Randolph said as Hawk entered the morgue.
“Thanks, Doc, it’s up to me now to see if I can extract any data from it,” Hawk replied gratefully.
“You can use that terminal over there; you’ll need the nanoscope anyway to be able to read any data from something that small,” Randolph said, indicating the terminal in question next to a piece of equipment that resembled a proton microscope.
Placing the slide with the Neural Interface containing all the encoded data into the nanoscope, Hawk waited while the information was downloaded onto the hard drive. Some of the data was corrupted due to the damage from the plasma bolt but there was some he could use. After a while he had what he wanted, the call logs. Scanning through them he found what he was looking for, the record of the call to Captain Nokorovic who Norsky passed the NI tracking codes to. Nokorovic was an aide to General Solon himself.
Turning to the ME he said, “Thanks, Doc, I’ve got everything that I need.” He left the morgue and headed straight for Gemmell’s office. This news he wanted to deliver in person.
“Sir, I think we may have something,” Hawk said as he entered the office. Gemmell looked up from his screen saying, “Okay, tell me.”
Hawk hastily went through everything he’d done with the NI to extract the data and his conclusions.
“And that helps us how?” Gemmell asked.
Hawk smiled. “Well, sir, I played a hunch and while I waited for the ME to extract the NI I placed a call to our closest monitoring station to Alliance space. As you know they monitor the comings and goings of all their top brass much the same as I’m sure, they do with us.”
“Go on,” Gemmell said, still not exactly sure where this was heading.
“Sir, the tracking codes were passed on to Captain Nokorovic who is listed as an aide to General Solon himself,” Hawk said his smile still in place.
“But how does that help us in our present situation?” Gemmell asked.
“Shortly after the codes were passed on, the General made a trip to a small planet where they have a research facility. Now why would the man in charge of the Alliance Special Forces go to a research facility do you think?” Hawk saw the realisation dawn on Gemmell’s face.
“He’s gone to oversee what they can extract from Stryder,” he said, adding, “Where’s this planet?”
That’s when the smile faded from Hawk’s face a little.
“It’s Toldax, sir, well inside Alliance space, they chose well.”
“Right, well we’ve come this far and just because the destination is a little tricky doesn’t mean we give up, there’s just too much at stake here. I want you on the first available transport to Celeron where you’ll rendezvous with General Sinclair. We can commandeer a freighter from local sources and refit her with stealth shields for your trip into Alliance space. We’re going to do this Captain.” Gemmell’s enthusiasm was rising and contagious. Hawk had thought that once the destination was known the plan might have been vetoed and yet there he was standing in the office of his superior officer hearing that the plan was going to go ahead.
“Thank you, sir, I’m on my way,” Hawk said as he turned to go.
“Good work Matt, and bring them back. Okay?” Gemmell said with a smile.
“You can count on it, sir.”
“Your travel arrangements have been made and your transport is waiting in orbit as we speak. There’s a shuttle powered up ready for take-off on the rooftop landing pad,” Gemmell said. Hawk realised then that he’d had more faith in him coming up with the goods than he had himself. He left the office and headed straig
ht for the elevator that would take him straight to the rooftop landing pad and his next mission. He dared not fail for too much was at stake. Not just the lives of the two soldiers he was going to help rescue, but possibly the lives of countless others including innocent bystanders who might get caught up in the conflagration should the Alliance manage to reproduce the serum that made Stryder so important to both sides. He didn’t know what that was yet but he did know it must be important to warrant all this attention. The responsibility of the success of this mission therefore, lay squarely on his shoulders. If he failed now then everything he feared would come to pass.
So, no pressure then!
* * * * *
Stryder had to make his move and do it fast. He brought up his own assault rifle and fired as he moved to the side.
The guard tracked his movement and opened fire at the same time.
Stryder’s burst of plasma fire raked across the guard’s chest sending him flying backwards whilst the guard’s salvo went past Stryder harmlessly.
Hardy saw the movement, brought up her assault rifle and fired at two more guards as they appeared round the corner. Their attention had been on Stryder. Hardy’s burst of plasma fire raked across their bodies sending them crashing backwards, their limbs askew as their torsos were blasted open by the salvo.
“C’mon we haven’t got much time,” Stryder said as he got up and continued down the corridor.
“Where the hell are we going?” Hardy asked, the recent bloodshed already a distant memory.
“Grab as many battery clips as you can,” Stryder said as he raided the dead guards’ pockets for more ammunition.
“That doesn’t answer my question,” she said as she stooped to the task as well.
“We’re going farther into the complex,” he said.
“I can fucking see that Kurt!” she answered him angrily. She was getting rather pissed off at his apparent reluctance to inform her of anything.