CHAPTER 3: Unfortunate Events

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The usual, I don't own any PE characters. All other people are my pals from the PE2 board. I'm not saying this again.

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The members of Philantropy watched the army of SNMCs draw closer.

" How the hell did they find us? " HengkyGun asked.

" The reason's behind you Hengky. " DKB said. Everyone turned and looked at Aya.

" Me? "

" Yes, you. I was an idiot for not realising they'd put a tracker device on you. "

" I'm so sorry. "

" No prob. Look we've got 10 minutes before they get here. I've got an idea. Matt, Rebecca follow me. " DKB ran out the door followed by Karpah and HeavenKnight.

" Are they gonna be OK? " Aya asked.

" Yeah, we've been through worse. " Lyingbastard said.

Meanwhile, outside the base....

" So, Larry what is you're plan? "

" You'll see. Ok here's the place." DKB opened the rucksack he was carrying, and pulled out some C4.

" Ok, I'll plant this, you guys cover me. "

" Sure! "

Back inside the base...

The rest of them watched the progress on the monitor.

" What is he doing? "

" He's planting C4 to blow them sky high. "

Back outside...

" Ok, done. Let's head back in. " And not a minute too soon. They saw the army coming nearer. Suddenly a scream filled the air. Larry and Matt turned around and saw Karpah being held hostage by a strange man.

" Hey you bastard, let her go! " The man looked similar to a man DKB had seen on file, No.9. Except this one had an even bigger Gunblade and advanced armor.

" Mwa-ha-ha, sorry kiddies I can't let you go. " The man had a mocking tone in his voice. HeavenKnight pulled out his M4A1 and took aim.

" I wouldn't do that. You might puncture you're pretty lady friend here. "

" Lemme go, or I swear I'll castrate you with a rusty pen knife!! " Karpah had gotten over the surprise and started kicking and thrashing.

" Ooh, I like 'em feisty. " The man was clearly enjoying this. DKB stepped forward.

" Are you that no.9 guy I read about? "

" Close, bucko. I'm No.10! I've been sent by Queen Eve to stop you meddling rebels. But, I also have a personal score to settle with you. You should remember me as wwf2000."

" No, it can't be... " DKB looked shocked.

" Oh, but it is. After you left me to rot, Eve found me. As you can see she gave me a new lease on life. Now, I will kill you and all my former friends. Mwa-ha-hamwa-ha-ha. "

" No, you won't! "

What makes you think you can stop me! "

" Check you're pants. " No.10 turned around and saw his pants were on fire. Promptly, he dropped Karpah. The army was almost upon them.

" Matt-Karpah, move. I'll take care of it. " They both hurtled to the bunker entrance. No.10 stepped forward.

" A noble sacrifice, too bad it will be in vain. "

" Is that so. You know hat this is? " He holds the detonator up.

" You're death certificate. " He sneered

" Wrong, your life. " He pressed the detonator and every thing blew up with the 2 tons of C4 buried beneath the ground. Inside the base they felt the tremor of the explosion.

" Did DKB get clear of the blast?" SMOLDAR asked. Ryusei remained silent. Aya walked up to him.

" Well!? "

" I'm afraid there are no life signs within the immediate vicinity. "

The entire group remained silent...

The people inside the base kept staring, disbelieving at the screen.

" Damn, why the hell did he go and do that? " Aya asked.

" He's always been like that. Stubborn, but nice at the same time..." Aya didn't hear the rest of the words. She kept staring at the screen. That man... It brought back memories of the shelter incident, and that unholy laugh was just the same. He had to be a copy; the real No. 9 was swallowed up in the Shelter. She broke off her train of thought to hear Barra say: "... well Karpah, as the new leader what do you want us to do first? " Karpah was sitting in a corner staring out in front of her. It didn't look as if she heard Phil.

" Karpah! Snap out of it. You're the leader, so lead. " She stood up.

" Fine, go look for any sign of DKB. If you find anything, bring it back. I'm going to my room. " The meeting broke up. Ryusei went to his computer, while the rest of them headed to the surface, leaving Aya alone. Computer guy didn't look like scintillating conversation, so Aya went looking for Karpah. She found the girl staring at a picture of the entire team that must have been taken two to three years ago. She knocked on the door.

" Mind if I come in? " She looked startled and then smiled.

" Yeah, sure. "

" What were you looking at? "

" Oh, just a picture of us. "

" Hmm, must be great being the only girl amongst these guys. " Aya smiled mischievously.

" Oh, please. They're more like brothers than anything else."

" Mind if I see that picture? "

" No, not at all. " She handed Aya the picture. Aya recognised Matt, Phil and all the rest except there was one guy there who she didn't recognise. She asked Karpah who it was.

" Oh, that's WWF2000. "The name sounded familiar.

" Didn't that guy who captured you say his name was WWF2000? "

" Yeah, he used to be a member of Philantropy until he went MIA. "

" He seems to hold a vendetta against Larry. "

" Yeah Larry was on the mission with him, when he went missing. I don't know what happened. " Suddenly the intercom sounded. Karpah answered it.

" Yeah? " SMOLDARS voice sounded over the intercom.

" Sorry boss, we couldn't find a trace of him. " Karpah went pale against the black shirt she was wearing.

" OK, you guys can grab a bite, then go to sleep. " She shut off the intercom.

" Well, I'm gonna try to get some sleep. Goodnight Aya.

Later that evening....

Suddenly the loudest alarm in the place went off. The alarm meant someone had broken into the leader's room in the bunker. In three seconds everyone was up and had their guns with them. They stood outside the door to DKB's room.

" OK, everybody. On three. One. Two. Three!!" They kicked open the door and rushed inside....

" Ok, you guys go in. Aya and me will cover you. "

" Sure thing Karpah. " HeavenKnight readied his M4A1 (Bayonet attachment) and said: " Ok, one-two- THREE! "

All the guys burst through the door while Aya and Karpah waited outside.

" Yaaagh!! " Suddenly all of the guys were blasted back out and lay in a crumpled heap on the floor. Karpah turned to Aya.

" Let's go! " They burst in and the light of Aya's MP5A5 fell on a figure standing by the bed.

" What the hell, can't a guy get a decent night sleep any more? " DKB was standing by the bed dressed in shorts and a T-shirt. Aya stared open mouthed while Karpah talked.

" Larry, you're alive! "

" Yeah, I am. So who told those bozos outside to break and enter? "

" The alarm went off. "

" I had to force my way in, my pass card burned away with my clothes. "

" Oh. "

" Look, let's all get to bed, I'll tell you the whole story in the morning. " Aya regained speech control.

" What did you do to them? "

" Don't worry, they should be waking up soon. I only blasted them with level 1 Plasma. Good thing I recognised SMOLDAR's voice, or I would have used Inferno. Now, let's all go to bed " Out in the hall, a few groans became audible. DKB smiled. Aya and Karpah went back to their rooms, passing the conked out guys in the hall. Aya slept for a few hours. When she woke up, she found that Karpah was gone.

Meanwhile in the kitchen...

" OK peanut butter and jelly sandwich, some Coke and a slice of pizza. Who said breakfast is the most important meal? It's the midnight snacks that count. " While DKB was eating his snack, he heard a scuffle behind him. On instinct he pulled out his PA3.

" Who goes there? "

" You know, for a leader you're really paranoid. " Karpah stood in the doorway. DKB lowered his PA3.

" It's the only way to stay alive these days. "

" I guess you're right. "

" So, can't sleep either? "

" I keep thinking about how I would be leader if you didn't come back. "

" Not fun, is it? "

" How did you survive that explosion? "

" I'll tell you tomorrow. Would you like a snack? There's still some of HeavenKnight's haggis left. " She pulled a face.

" Just joking. Have some pizza instead... "

Next morning....

Everyone was up early. Even Phil, who usually had to be dragged out of bed. They were all sitting around when Larry entered.

" Ok, I trust all the bruises are healed? You probably want to know how I survived that explosion. Well, after I pressed the detonator, I used my mitochondria to form a shield around me. The majority of the force was absorbed, but there was still enough to wind me. " Ryusei interrupted at this point.

" But, we didn't read any life signs on the computer afterwards. "

" I'm getting to that. After the explosion, No. 10 headed towards me. I used the last of my PE to stop my heart, so it appeared I was dead. He went away and I waited till nightfall to sneak back in. My clothes had burned away along with the key to my room. I blew open the lock and went inside to sleep. That's when you lot came in. Any questions? " HengkyGun stood up.

" I got a question. Was dead reckoning ever alive? "

" I'm not even gonna answer that. " Ryusei came running from his computer.

" D, I got a transmission for us. "

" Put it on. " Suddenly a women of about twenty appeared. Aya was shocked. It was Eve. She was older now and looked like Maya when Aya confronted her.

" Greetings rebels. "

" What do you want, you overgrown insect. "

" Ooh, insolent aren't we. Well, that's fine. I have a message for you. I want you and Aya to give yourselves up. "

" Why would we do that? "

" Oh, I have ways and means. " The screen changed to show Karpah and a man Aya recognised as Rupert trapped in a cell.

" It's a trap. Barra go check Karpah's room. "

" I already did there's no one there. "

" Damn! "

" You see. Give yourselves up within Twenty-Four hours, or they die! Ha-Ha- Ha. " The screen went blank...

DKB stared at the screen long after the image had disappeared. The other guys were talking, actually gabbling was more the word.

" What'll we do? " Ryusei asked.

" Get that giant slime ball on screen again. " Ryusei played around on his computer. Eve's image popped back on screen.

" Hmm, isn't this nice? "

" Cut it. I'll make you a deal. Aya and me will give ourselves up, " here Eve started smiling. " next week. "

" Oh no. We're not negotiating here. You come within twenty-four hours or they die. "

" Look, if we don't show up and you kill them, your only ace is gone. I won't let one of my friends die, so you know I'll come within one week. " Eve had a considering look on her face.

" Fine, even if you try something it won't do you much good. I look forward to meeting you in person. " The screen went dead. DKB turned to the crowd.

" Emergency meeting! I hate to say this but there's a traitor here. "

" That can't be right. " Hengky said.

" Oh yeah, then how did they smuggle Karpah out without setting off the alarm? Look, it's been a long day. Have some dinner and go to sleep. I'm going to my room to work out some plans. " Here everyone broke up. Aya had her dinner (Leftovers from the pizza) and then went to the room she shared with Karpah. It was too quiet so she went to see what Larry was up to. She found him sitting at his desk, looking haggard and tired. He looked up as she came in.

" Hey. "

" Hey, what are you looking at? "

" Nah, just a picture. "

" Can I see? "

" Yah, sure. " It was a picture of him, Karpah and HeavenKnight.

" Are you and Karpah close? "

" Kind of. " seeing the look in her eye, he hastily back-pedalled. " Not like that. She saved my life once, that's why. Ever played MGS2? We're kinda like Fortune and Vamp. "

Meanwhile in Eve's base....

Eve was staring at her communicator, watching her faithful spy make his report.

" They seem to be planning a massive offensive against the base. "

" Massive? Puh-leese. What kinda attack can they plan? "

" It would be wise not to underestimate them, my lady. "

" Yes, well I don't actually care what you think. Just do your job. "

" Yes queen. " The screen went dead, while eve chuckled to herself.

" Next week I'll become a mommy. Mwa-Ha-Ha.

Down in the basement...

" Damn, I'm gonna kill that lousy lying scum bag. " Karpah had woken up out of her drugged sleep.

" Glad to see I've got company. " A man stepped out of the shadows, and Karpah recognised him as Rupert.

" Why are we here? " She asked.

" To act as bait, to lure you're friends here. "

" I thought you died in the explosion of the MIST headquarters. "

" Nope, they preserved me like Aya in a stasis chamber. "

" We gotta get out. " Karpah began ransacking her brain trying to think of a solution....

Back at Philantropy HQ- six days later...

" OK, we plan a diversionary operation. Me and Aya will go in and rescue Karpah, under the guise of surrendering while you guys also break in to search for Karpah in case we fail. Now, Barra and HeavenKnight are our demolitions team. You guys plant C4 under the base and detonate it when we're out. If any of us aren't out within 12 hours you will be assumed KIA and the place will be blown up. " HengkyGun put up his hand.

" Then who's the diversionary team? "

" I left that as a surprise. Ryusei, on screen. " Ryusei switched on the screen and two very familiar faces popped up. DKB smiled…