The Aurora Conspiracies- Volume One

by Sam Nash

  The inside was like no other train she had ever experienced; a plush modern interior with comfortable armchairs, each swivelled to the direction of travel or to face the fixed table between them. Wall sockets, laptops and printers, lined one end of the carriage, while the other looked more like a dining car from the Orient Express. As Mary boarded, a man in matching livery greeted her.

  “Would you care for some tea?” He said, all teeth and hair gel.

  “Absolutely. And keep it coming. Thanks.” She was directed to one of the armchairs where a laptop connection to Yelena was already established. Mary spied her red headed friend on the monitor. “Where am I going? Can’t be the Ministry of Defence building, we could have driven there.”

  “Back to your favourite place, GCHQ Buckinghamshire.”

  Mary’s heart solidified. The one place she had fought tooth and nail to avoid, and she was hurtling there at a colossal speed. There was no way out. They had Dan secreted in their Tactical Room, surrounded by armed guards and barbed wire. That, Mary could see from the video link. MI6 were similar to the Canadian Mounties; they always get their man, or woman in this case. She inhaled profoundly. One problem at a time.

  “What’s the latest news on Las Vegas?”

  Yelena signalled to someone off-screen and then returned her attention to Mary. “We are not yet sure. We are a bit short staffed since Flynn’s disappearance. I have had to draft in a new techie onto my team.”

  “Hmm, I think I can help you with that issue, although you should be sitting down to hear what I have to say.” Mary drank the rest of her tea, using the time to frame her explanation regarding Flynn’s death and subsequent burial in Alexi’s freezer. However, the information was phrased, it pointed to the same conclusion. Flynn was selling information to any group prepared to pay, most likely data regarding Parth’s discovery of people with similar abilities to Mary, and for that Alexi took his life. It may not have been his hand on the trigger, but it was on his orders that Flynn was silenced.

  “I am sorry for your loss, Yelena. I know that he was a part of your team for a long time.” Mary watched her friend for a reaction. There were no tears, no noticeable signs of upset. Whether or not Yelena had mastery over herself or thought less of Flynn than she anticipated, Mary could not tell.

  Her entire response amounted to two words; “I see.”

  The carriage steward deposited a tray with more tea, and breakfast pastries far exceeding the standard of the average British Rail fare. Mary thanked him, and balanced a croissant between her bandaged hands, taking large bites to satisfy her hunger. “I’m sorry,” she tried not to speak with her mouth full, “But I am starving. I’m still on Californian time.”

  “We will make sure that there is more waiting for you when you get here.”

  “Hmm. Great. What’s happening with the cabinet re-shuffle? Have they put that Defence Minister bastard behind bars yet?”

  The former minister for the Environment and Rural Affairs bobbed into view. Mary almost choked.

  “If you are referring to my former colleague, then he has been suspended pending investigation. I have the helm now. You will be a valuable addition to this little team, Mary. Glad to have you on board.”

  Mary glowered. “I have not agreed to anything, madam secretary, and you cannot force me to assist.”

  “We shall discuss your involvement after this current threat is neutralised.” The new Secretary of State for Defence peered down her nose at Mary on the screen.

  Mary slammed the lid of the laptop shut, cutting her off. “She can sod off, for a start.” Her escorting agents struggled to keep their faces straight. The steward made no attempt to hide his amusement, snickering as he retreated from the carriage into a small preparation area at the rear of the train. Eating the rest of her breakfast, Mary contemplated her fate.

  By her fourth cup of tea, an idea coalesced in her pre-frontal cortex. One that could potentially deliver both her and her brother from an isolated life of service, trapped in a secure government base in the heart of the British countryside.

  Their exclusive train slowed but did not stop at Milton Keynes, trundling through the industrial and warehouse districts and out into the Buckinghamshire fields north of the town. Within a few minutes, they slowed once again, allowing a speedier train to hurtle past, rocking them all in a unified sway. Mary heard a clinking noise, as the track linkages altered and the diesel engines strained and lurched in a forward motion once more. Veering away from the main line, their locomotive pulled them around a steep bend bordered either side by a thicket of trees. Leaning to squint out of the windows, Mary jumped backwards as the carriage entered a close walled tunnel. Her ears popped and buzzed with the pressure changes. One of the accompanying agents spoke quietly to Mary.

  “I must remind you that you are bound by the terms of the Official Secrets Act, which prohibits you from exposing anything you may see, hear or surmise while you are at GCHQ Bucks, and…”

  “And you can sod off too. I am fully aware that I have signed my soul to the devil. This is not the first tunnel entrance I have been through at this place, although in retrospect, I should have known that there would be an underground railway connection directly from London. Are all the government bases linked to the rail network?” The agent took another breath and paused with his mouth agape. Mary rolled her eyes. “Never mind. I don’t care.”

  The engine trudged along and drew to a full stop at an underground platform. Mary swiped the last of the pastries from a platter and thanked the attendant as she disembarked. Two uniformed officers awaited them, one a woman, brandishing a handheld metal detector. She brushed it against Mary’s body, front and back and declared her clear for entry.

  Following the other agents, Mary ascended via the elevator to the surface and walked into the floodlit grounds, less than a hundred metres from the pyramidal building, where tactical command waged war. An agent waved her towards the concrete ramp, past the drainage pond to the reception area.

  “I know where I am going, thanks all the same.”

  Dan waited in the lobby, pacing his giant strides across the polished flooring to gather her up in his arms. “I am so happy to see you.” He lifted her from her feet, burying his face in her hair. “I’ve been out of my mind with worry.” Mary grunted from his constricting hug, enduring the painful constriction of her injuries. Dan let her go, stepping back to examine her face. “What did they do to you?” His countenance morphed from elation to pity and then to anger. He touched her forehead and her cheek with such tenderness, Mary could feel the corners of her eyes burning.

  “Don’t be nice to me. I can’t lose it now, we have a terrorist to stop.”

  Dan slipped his arm over her shoulder. He lowered his voice, bending closer to her ear. “The new Defence Secretary wants to see you immediately. Are you up to it?”

  “Take me to her, Dan. I’m warning you, this could be a blood bath.”

  They walked in silence, along a corridor of locked doors and shuttered internal windows. Every office was empty. All agents had scrambled to assist in foiling the terror plot. The Tactical Room was just as oppressive as she remembered. The giant screen of electronic snow gave the darkened room enough illumination to highlight the computer terminals lined up in serried ranks facing the back wall. Yelena rushed with outstretched arms, until Mary pushed her back with her bandaged hands. Their friendship and Mary’s trust had eroded beyond hugs and platitudes. There were too many unanswered questions; a suspicion which festered in the pit of her stomach. Mary was still not convinced about the Russian born MI6 agent’s loyalties.

  The older woman in the blue suit beside her, dispensed with pleasantries and took control. “Yes, good to have you back, blah, blah, now can we get down to business?” The new Defence Minister, strutted over to Mary and pushed the spectacles up the bridge of her nose. “We have Dr Arora’s old lab back in commission for you to use and…”

  “He’s not here, is he? Yelena, tell me you
did not bring Parth into this?” Mary held her palm up to the politician, and over talked her. She snapped her attention to the red head with the St. Petersburg accent.

  “No, rest assured, he is not here, but we do need your help. I have called in every favour I can to get US cooperation but without evidence they will not act against a senator who has considerable clout at the White House. We sent a team of our own into the New Jersey compound, but it was locked down. They couldn’t get eyes on the underground bunker that you mentioned. None of our checks have managed to link Bonovich to Alexi at all. How did you make the connection?”

  Mary folded her arms and exhaled slowly. This could be her only chance to secure her freedom. She looked at Dan, then Yelena and finally raised an eyebrow at the minister. “I have a few conditions that I want agreed and put in writing, before I can assist your efforts.”

  The minister laughed, turning on her block heels towards the main screen.

  “I am perfectly serious. I know precisely what you expect me to do, and what you plan to do with me afterwards. I will not be your puppet, madam secretary. Think carefully about what you are asking.”

  “Oh really, Ms Arora. And what would that be?”

  “You cannot get the support of the US military or even their intelligence agencies. They are too busy treating the Las Vegas blackout as an isolated incident. You know how dangerous Alexi can be, and you would rather he was neutralised to save further high altitude EMP attacks. You cannot kill a civilian on US soil without massive diplomatic fallout. Therefore, you expect me to enter his mind, stand down those teams poised at his command, and then force him to kill himself.”

  The minister paled. Her dry mouth made a smacking sound when at last she did speak. “You may have anticipated our mission, but we cannot have you doing just as you please…”

  “Madam secretary, if I can control a terrorist three thousand miles away, imagine what I can do to you.” Mary watched the woman judging her tone and stance. Every muscle in her body conveyed her conviction. As if she needed more, Mary added, “you could drop me in the deepest darkest dungeon, and I could still infiltrate your mind… make you swallow rat poison or walk in front of a bus. I won’t, but I could.” She indulged in a moment of victory. Her power over them absolute. “Now then, call your legal team in here. We don’t have a great deal of time before Alexi strikes again.”

  Despite some initial posturing, the Defence Secretary crumpled in submission. Having Mary on side would allow her career to soar. She too knew when to strike, and when to lay down arms and wait patiently for better opportunities. Within fifteen minutes, Mary had dictated her terms of service. They included extraction and a full pardon for Lachie, Oona and the rest of the team barring Judith. In Mary’s words, “That skinny bitch can rot for all I care.” The minister had one or two concessions of her own, but Mary agreed to a compromise. The printed agreement was signed and notarised, and then taken away for duplication and filing.

  “Right then.” Mary said, taking centre stage in front of the viewing area. “Luca had an invoice for five hundred weather balloons. That shouldn’t be hard to track down, get your techies onto that. He was also generating huge quantities of hydrogen at his winery. Follow the shipments of gas cylinders and you should track down the launch sites for the nuclear materials. At least in the US anyway.”

  “What do you mean? You think he will target other countries too? How do you know this?” Yelena glared at Mary, urging a response.

  Mary looked at Dan. The siblings continued the discussion privately, via a telepathic link. “Should we tell them about Grampy’s journal, and his premonition about the Eiffel Tower, the London Eye and other targets?”

  Dan’s breathing quickened. He recalled the threats their grandfather had issued to Yelena before his death. “No, if we can stop Luca and Alexi, other nations will no longer be at risk. Pip did not trust Yelena. We shouldn’t either.”

  Mary nodded. “I could be mistaken of course. It was just a feeling I got while I was rifling through Luca’s study. Wouldn’t it be wise to get your Five Eyes surveillance systems, Echelon and Tempora searching for communications about balloons, altitude and detonations in the ionosphere, as a precaution? If Alexi has teams stationed across the western hemisphere ready to plunge us all back into the dark ages, I guess your home nation would be in a particularly strong position to take over, wouldn’t they Yelena?”

  “Now look here, Mary. You cannot go throwing unfounded accusations at our top people. Save your vitriol for your lover.” The minister’s retort stung. It crystallised her inadequacies. Her judgement of character had failed her on every level for years. Marrying the terminally deceitful Parth, her vacillating trust of Alexi and her complete fascination of Luca and his environmentally conscious crusades. He had enveloped her into his private life so fully, it was inconceivable that someone so righteous, with gifts so similar to hers, could orchestrate such a heinous plot. Mary felt suitably chastised. She took a seat in the viewing area and allowed Yelena to lead once more.

  “Mary is correct.” Yelena said, offering an olive branch. “We should send out the alert.” She nodded to an Asian lad with a teal blue streak dyed into the front of his jet black hair. Mary surmised from Yelena’s treatment of him that he must be Flynn’s replacement. His fingers danced across the keyboard and the main screen refreshed until it showed horrifying images.

  “Ma’am.” Tech boy said, tapping Yelena on the arm. “Satellite’s within range now. This is live.”

  A few more taps and the images magnified. The minister walked closer to the monitor. “What am I looking at Quan?”

  “I believe the large fire in the centre is The Bellagio, ma’am.”

  “Pan across towards the east please, Quan.”

  The famous ‘Welcome to Las Vegas’ sign hung askew from its pedestal, every lamp and bulb blown. Several buildings and a few cars were ablaze, dotted across the outskirts of the city. Long lines of stationary or crashed vehicles blocked their highways. There was no access for emergency services to get to those hurt when their electrical circuits fused, causing engines to fail. Some bodies were thrown clear at the time of impact. Others had dragged themselves to the roadside, and there lay dying slow and agonising deaths from their injuries. Others used the chaos to loot the casinos and shops. Glass shards and broken electrical equipment littered the streets. Trains of shopping carts piled high with groceries and bottled water snaked through the abandoned cars. Gangs formed protection details for the spoils, their sub-machine guns cocked and held at shoulder height. Security teams were overpowered. Many lay dead at their posts, their mangled bodies drenched in spattered blood and tissue.

  Everyone watched in silence from the Tactical Room. This was but a taste of what was to come. The minister held her hand up to the back of her head. “Now I see why they call it the wild west. How long has it been now… twenty-four hours… less perhaps? Where are their military units? Who have they drafted in to keep order?”

  “It will get worse when the sun sets.” Mary muttered, articulating what they were all thinking. “I hope you have plans in place for when it happens here.”

  “Rest assured,” the minister gloated, “our vulnerabilities have been assessed and our main assets protected. Nevertheless, we must stop these attacks at their source. Show other would-be terrorists that we are on top of this threat.”

  Mary listened to her claims and decrypted their meaning; the royal family, the House of Lords and those in parliament would be protected first, military installations second, and the rest of the population could fend for themselves. It was not a surprise.

  “Let us take this one step at a time. You say that their base of operations is that compound in New Jersey, yes?” The minister’s and all other eyes focused on Mary.

  “Well, yes, but by now, Alexi would have teams of his personnel stationed near cities all over the place, waiting for the go order… that is unless the charges attached to the balloons have timer switches to c
oordinate detonation.”

  “Let’s hope that is not the case. Can we have the air force seek and destroy the balloons mid-air?”

  Yelena piled into the conversation. “Not unless you want nuclear fallout raining down on civilian populations.”

  “Mary, we have no other option, you must neutralise him now.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Dan followed Mary out from the Tactical Room and into the side room that was once her husband’s makeshift laboratory. The reclining dentist chairs gleamed under the strip lighting.

  “Are you sure you can do this?” He closed the door behind them and sat in the chair at the side of the room.

  Mary clambered up on to the central seat. “What choice do I have?” She knew what he meant. Her lifetime of pacifistic beliefs and vegetarianism would be blown to kingdom come. She had killed people before in self-defence or through Alexi’s trickery, but this was premeditated murder. Would she have nightmares over his death in the same way as the others? Had her innate faith in human kindness degraded so completely that killing no longer gave her pause for thought.

  Dan sensed her conflict. “He is not an innocent victim. He has killed hundreds, harmed thousands and is set on a course for total destruction of western civilisation.”

  “I know. And we don’t have time for debate. Are you coming with me?”

  “Yeah, I promised Yelena that I would update her on your progress, or if you get into trouble.”

  Lying back in the seat, Mary closed her eyes and hummed her tune. It took only one verse of Let it Be, to wrench her consciousness from her weary body. She hesitated for a moment to shelve her emotions, and then she flew high into the atmosphere, beyond the clouds to where she could see the curvature of the Earth. It was a magnificent sight. The blinding glow of sunlight as it fell beyond the horizon, picked out the swirls of cloud covering mountain ranges in the distance. Mary took a direct route straight to New Jersey, across the wide expanse of the Atlantic Ocean.