Intersect

by M C I Hinchliffe

  The room was dimly lit and the extremities were concealed in darkness. With gun in hand, Katie entered the room. The door slid quietly closed behind her, sealing Katie in the room. As her eyes adjusted to the lack of light, she could discern a large chair on the far side of the room that was pedestalled upon a number of stairs. She cautiously approached the throne like structure and when she was within a couple of metres of it, the lights suddenly came on. The room was twenty metres across and forty metres deep with a low roof and edging the two longest walls, were a row of armed guards with their futuristic guns trained upon her. The guards wore a strange, dark grey armour that efficiently reflected the new illumination and upon their heads were similar coloured helmets that left their grim faces exposed. From behind the high throne stepped an ominous, horrific figure that dominated the scene. The individual wore a long black cloak that flowed as he walked and his bald head was not covered in skin, but in metal.

  "Welcome Agent Mitchell, we've been expecting you." Said the metal faced man.

  After the initial shock of his grotesque appearance, Katie found a morbid fascination with her capture’s bazaar face. As his jaw moved, she noticed the accurately formed teeth inside his metal mouth and the unusual, rubber like tongue. Inside the chrome metal skull moved two silver orbs that simulated his eyes and within the mechanical pupils were black holes as cold as night.

  Katie pointed the revolver at the metal figure. "Who are you? What are you?" She had a distinct feeling that this time she was in real trouble.

  "Let me introduce myself, I am Professor Bane." He said as he casually sat on the throne.

  "How did you know I was coming?"

  "My dear Agent Mitchell, I was the one who sent you hear. Every step you made, I knew about."

  "I don't understand?"

  "Maybe my friend Agent Jones can help you."

  A tall slim man with a gaunt face emerged from behind the throne.

  "Captain! What are you....what's going on here?" She lowered the gun as the appearance of Captain Jones totally baffled her.

  "Your so called investigation is no more than a ploy. An intricate part of my master plan and Agent Jones was very kind to help out."

  "What master plan?"

  "To capture your friend Williams and ultimately, to save the planet." Bane stuck his hand out to stop Katie's next inquisition. "Before you ask another pathetic question, I shall continue. Whatever suppositions you made in your investigation regarding Ryan Williams, I guarantee that they are wrong. There is no massive terrorist force being formed under the leadership of Williams, in fact it's quite the opposite. Why you could not find any record of existence prior to nineteen eighty five is because he didn't exist. Williams is not an Earthling, he is a Carillian. Born in the year three thousand and eight on a planet many light years away."

  Bane was right about one thing, she was definitely on the wrong track. Katie stood in amazement as Bane explained Ryan's origin, his amazing journey to Earth, and the formation of Intersect. The recruiting of the dead and Bane's rebellion of Intersect. It's was the most incredible story she had ever heard and most of all, she believed it. The strange happenings over the past few months finally had a feasible explanation. Everything fitted into place. Still there were some questions unanswered.

  "So, how are you going to save the world by capturing Williams?"

  "Simple, give the Warrians what they really want - Mister Williams! Why do you think he's building an army? He certainly wouldn't sacrifice himself, willingly."

  "You've tried once and failed, what makes you think you'll get him this time?"

  Bane let out a deep laugh. "My dear Agent, that was no real attempt to capture Williams. It was no more than a test to see if the prey was ready for the bait and the bait is you. Williams has become very fond of you, so much that he has risked his life once for you already and he will again."

  "Don't be so sure Professor Bane, he left me for good last night and I doubt if he would come for me now."

  "I know Williams very well and he will come for you. I'll stake my life on it."

  "Tell me Captain Jones, what's in it for you?" Inquired Katie with a distinct expression of disgust.

  A sinister smile came across his face. "The money! The professor has access to the results of every sporting game for the next thousand years. For my services, he will give access to some of these results, and in a few weeks I will be extremely rich."

  "Now that you know Williams's true worth, will you join us in our crusade?" Bane scrutinised Katie with cold eyes, he needed all the aid he could muster. Especially, such an attractive one!

  Katie dissected the situation in her mind and carefully studied the people before her, especially Bane. Despite the solidity of the facts presented to her and forthright man at the helm, something about the whole scene was retched. Whatever it was though, she couldn't put a finger on it. Whether it was Bane's disposition or that Captain Jones had used her, something was not right. No matter how foolish it sounded, Katie loved Ryan and she couldn't betray him. Besides, Ryan could never be as despicable as they described, it was inconceivable. The memory of their short time together was enough for her to choose sides. "You used me and made a fool out of me. No, I will not join you!"

  Bane's fist closed tight as his anger took hold. He hated when things didn't go his way and especially when someone defied him. "Then let it be so, take her from my sight and I will deal with her later! She has outlived her usefulness anyway."

  Two guards approached Katie from opposite sides. She raised her pistol and fired upon the guard on her right, but the bullet ricocheted off his armour. Realising that the only exposed part of his body was his face, she aimed and fired again. The guard fell to the ground with his face bloody and gored. Katie swung to fire upon the other assailant, but her weapon was knocked from her hand. She was seized by the large guard and dragged out of the room.

  Bane sighed. "What a shame to have to kill such a pretty thing." His expression changed from regret to determination. "Everybody to their stations, our quarry will be here shortly."

  ********************

  Ryan turned down the dirt road where Katie's car was abandoned. Charlie's last words about a trap echoed in his mind and he had to agree that the possibilities of Bane plotting to trap him were great. With the memory of Katie running around in his head, he plunged headlong into the unknown. Despite the risks, he couldn't leave Katie to the devices of that madman.

  A synthesised voice broke the silence of the Airlantis cockpit. "Warning. Infrared motion detector beams dead ahead, one hundred metres. Recommend evasive action."

  "Negative." Ryan said. "We're going in." he had no idea what lied ahead and even less of how to get inside Bane's force field. Only one idea came to mind: if this were a trap and he let his presence be known, Ryan hoped they would deactivate the field and let him in. If it wasn't, then they would come out shooting anyway, so he drove headlong into the detector beams.

  "Our position has been detected and our progress is being tracked."

  Ryan continued down the road until the digital map display on the console before him showed that he had reached his destination. He alighted from the Airlantis and stood before the great wall of rock where the road disappeared into. To Ryan, the rock face was like a symbol of Bane's achievement. His ability to turn cards in his favour, to change Ryan from his mentor to his subordinate and to dominate him like the wall dominates Ryan's size and might. He was now his tool and at his mercy.

  The rock wall opened up flooding the area with light. He shaded his eyes while they adjusted to the new brightness, then activated the A.A.E.E.V. suit and braced himself for an attack, but none came. He walked cautiously into the light, ready for anything. The main hanger was empty of soldiers and maintenance crew. Ryan expected a trap but in what way, he was unsure. He walked passed the large transporter and the fighters that Bane stole from Intersect at the start of the rebellion. When Ryan neared the end of the hanger, a voice startled
him.

  "Mister Williams, how good of you to join us."

  He looked up at a cat walk high above his head and saw a row of armed guards with their weapons aimed at him. In the centre was a large robed man with a metallic face. "Bane!"

  "What do you think of our humble abode?"

  Ryan's digitally enhanced voice echoed from the helmet. "I see your rebellion is going well. Your force field is quite impressive, how did you manage to conceal it from Mac's scanners?"

  "Oh, just a little modification I made to the original design."

  "I'm impressed!"

  "I would love to stand here and chat, but I am pressed for time. So let’s get down to business; surrender your arms!"

  "Where is she?"

  "If you are referring to Agent Mitchell, then she is in a safe place." Bane said with a smile.

  In a fraction of a heartbeat, Ryan had his laser machine gun pointed directly at Bane. With the accurate targeting system provided by the A.A.E.E.V. suit's helmet, Ryan could shoot directly at the only weakness of Banes's armoured skin, the pupil of his eyes. "Where is she, Bane?"

  Bane signalled to someone who was out of view, then two guards came from an obscured door with Katie held between and two laser pistols trained at her head. Katie looked at the dark armour-clad figure below in surprise.

  "Let her go and I will let you live."

  Bane's laugh was filled with mockery. "Do you think that I am that foolish? You may kill me, but your beloved Katie will have her head blown off. See if your thirty first century technology can fix that! Oh and if you’re thinking of killing the guards before they shoot, not even you are that good. You know I'm not bluffing. According to the history records, Agent Mitchell is already dead."

  Katie turned to Bane in astonishment. "What do you mean I'm already dead?"

  "Did I forget to tell you? Terribly sorry. Because of Mister Williams's intervention, your future has changed from a long and healthy life to a short existence; that is you died in the ally last evening. As far as the world is concerned, you are dead. You can never return to your meaningless life and not even the man that you continue to aid can help you!"

  Katie was desperate for Ryan's denial. "Ryan tell him it's not true. I'm still alive, I'm still alive!" Tears rolled down her cheeks in fear as this became her worst nightmare.

  In his anger, Ryan turn to the fighters behind him and aimed his weapon at the nearest fighter. With his right thumb, he pressed a button that said maximum then fired the weapon. A great beam of light leaped from the gun and struck the fighter, then he fanned across at its partner causing the two to erupt in a might wall of fire. The blast was so great that even Bane flinched upon the catwalk.

  Ryan turned back to Bane and aimed at him again, "Let her go Bane." Ryan spat.

  Amazingly, Bane's metal face contorted to an expression of anger. "Look to your left and right." Ryan mentally called up the peripheral vision display in his helmet to show him what lie on either side of him. Small images were reflected onto the inside his helmet and displayed two rows of armed men, numbering twenty each with their gun pointed at him. "Another outburst like that and you will be as dead as my men you killed in the ally. What I need you for doesn't require you to be alive or dead. Disarm yourself before I lose my patients."

  Now that he had entered into Bane's force field, all means of communication with the outside world had been severed. No Intersect troops could be transported inside to aid him, even his A.A.E.E.V. suit could not be deactivated. The only way of removing it now was a manual long and painstaking process. Ryan looked at the numerous weapons trained at him, then at the delicate tears running down Katie's face. Not even the Rings of Karn could save her in such a short span of time. Ryan had lost! He dropped the laser machine gun, pistol and removed his helmet. "I'm sorry Katie, but it's true. You win again, Bane!"

  Katie cried out to him. "No, Ryan no. Don't do it. Fight back you bastard, fight back. Say you’re wrong, say I'm still alive." Her voice faded into sobs.

  "Take him to the interrogation centre...." Bane said as he gloated in his success. Several soldiers seized Ryan and removed his watch, then took him to a side passage. "....And take her to the detention centre." As Katie was dragged away, Bane's triumph soothed his cold heart. Quietly he said to himself, "Finally, vengeance is mine."

  CHAPTER SEVEN - DELIVERANCE

  DATE - APRIL 11TH 1995 TIME - 8.35 PM

  LOCATION - SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

  Bane strode into the interrogation room where Ryan was being held. He was strapped to an apparatus that resembled a large electric chair, but the machine was covered in thick bare wires and digital energy metres. He was stripped of his A.A.E.E.V. suit and left in his silver and black uniform.

  Bane stood before Ryan with a stance of confidence. "Well Mister Williams, strange how fate deals an ironic hand. How does it feel to be strapped to a machine, not knowing your future? Much like I was for the first three months of my new life. If you can call it a life."

  "Bane, I did everything in my power to give you a suitable body, one that you could live a fairly normal life in."

  "You call this body even remotely normal?"

  "Amongst the records I discovered an experiment to regenerate tissue from D.N.A. cloning. If you give up your rebellion, I will have the doctors develop you a new body and you can be as human as anyone else."

  "Do not try to trick me Williams. Do you honestly think I would believe such lies? If you were able to rebuild my body properly you would have done it years ago."

  "I'm not lying to you, just re-join my cause and you will find out for yourself." Ryan considered what he was offering Bane. After what Bane has done he could never trust him again, even though he was telling the truth about the D.N.A. experiment. If Ryan could persuade Bane to surrender his arms, he could save much bloodshed. When the rebellion is crushed, the death of Bane would be inevitable. While he was alive, there would always be the threat of treachery and only a quick and painless death would assure the security of Intersect.

  Bane's silver-black orbs glared at Ryan. "I suppose you're wondering how I devised your capture?"

  "Yes." This was true, he wanted to learn all he could about Bane's devise so as to prevent any recurrences in the future.

  "When I was back in Intersect, I managed to break the access codes to the history files. While browsing through them, I discovered an incident in April, nineteen ninety five describing a cult suicide involving Joshua Goldberg and several others in my team. They were strangely burned to cinders and amongst the names an F.B.I. Agent was mentioned, Katie Mitchell. From this, it was easy to devise my brilliant plan to capture you."

  "But your first attempt failed."

  "Of course it failed, it was meant to fail. It was in the history records Williams, not even I are game enough to change history. Besides, it was a great way to test the progress of my plan and to see if the prey was ready to take the bait."

  "Bane, I'm giving you one last chance, give it up and spare all your lives."

  "You are in no position to make demands Williams and in a few moments, anything you could offer, will be mine anyway. Give me the access codes to Mac's higher brain functions and I will let you live."

  "Never, with that you could control Intersect. I could never let you possess such power."

  "In that case we will do it the hard way."

  Bane strode off, then reappeared in a control room that was separated from the interrogation centre by a transparent shield. In the control room sat two operators who continually monitored the instruments before them.

  Bane's voice sounded in the room through a loudspeaker. "This is your last chance to totally submit or I will have to subject your nervous system to an agony you couldn't possibly imagine."

  "You've heard my answer Bane."

  "Okay then, have it your way." Bane nodded to the operators and they proceeded to manipulate the controls.

  The machine omitted a strange hum and the wires pulsed with red ligh
t. Ryan's nerves began to tingle, then ache and finally shooting streaks of agony bombarded every nerve ending. Multiple muscle spasms inflicted his body as he lost control of his senses. Quickly, the pain stopped and Bane's voice invaded the silence.

  "Are you ready to submit?"

  Through stammering lips, Ryan replied. "No!"

  Again the pain struck him. His muscles fought against the straps, but to no avail. He was at the mercy of the machine. With every muscle spasm and flinch of agony, Bane smiled as his lust for anger and revenge were soothed. Once again, the infliction stopped.

  "Right now your nervous system is causing multiple spasms in reaction to the torture they have been subjected to. Soon your brain will no longer be able to function effectively and your power to control it will fail. If you answer my questions now I will stop the pain and save your sanity. If not, when your mind has been broken you will tell me everything anyway and you will spend what little life you have left, a vegetable."

  Amidst the violent jerks and cramps, Ryan fought to say one word, "Never!"

  Bane smiled again, then commanded the operator to continue.

  The onslaught of agony violated his mind and body again. He continually

  lapsed in and out of consciousness as the machine kept him coherent.

  Within his mind, two words reverberated from unseen lips. "Be true."

  Ryan considered that the existence of the Rings of Karn should remain a secret and only himself and Charlie knew about them. If such knowledge fell into the hands of people like Bane, there could be an attempt to take the bracelets from him and if they succeeded, the results would be catastrophic.