*Author's note*

So sorry for the long hiatus. I truly didn't mean to make you guys hang like that. I hate it when Authors just abandon their stories without any rhyme or reason, but unfortunately real life work stuck its pesty demanding head into my writing schedule and 'effed it the hell up. So without further adieu here is the continuation to my sorted tale of Auggie's giant clusterf*ck mission.

This is the second parter to the last chapter. And we're entering the climax of the story here people!

Chapter 12

6 hours earlier...

The sound of the door slamming in the backround meant that he and this new man were now alone in the small room, he had a pretty good idea about what comes next...

The first punch was a heavy blow to the stomach which made Auggie collapse forward and the man released him from his grip letting him fall to the ground. Hearing the footsteps coming closer again, Auggie backed up as best he could but he was cornered and he knew it. This time it was a hard kick to his side curling him up into a ball until a pair of hands gripped at his shirt once again and threw him across the room and up against the far wall where he lay tired and disoriented.

This wasn't a fair fight. Under any other circumstances Auggie could easily take this man but not after enduring the last 10 days he had. He was exhausted both mentally and physically, was suffering from malnutrition, and to top off all the fun, was now nursing a throbbing sprained ankle.

'Oh good here he comes again' he thought, bracing himself for another round when a beep went off and the footsteps stopped in their tracks and changed directions. Auggie didn't know what he was doing but from the sounds of it he seemed to be scurrying around the room looking for something.

The man must have caught Auggie's look of sheer surprise and utter confusion because the next thing he knew he was being told, in English, that he was temporarily covering all the audio surveillance.

That peaked his interest. "who are you?" Auggie asked as he cocked his head to the side trying to figure this out. The man spoke English well enough but his accent was heavily Korean. ...so he must be one of two things; a North Korean dissident, or a South Korean intelligence officer under cover he thought. "who are you with?"

After thoroughly covering all mic's the man rushed over and crouched down towards Auggie who still laid on his side up against the wall. "Please Mr. Anderson we have very little time," checking his watch as he continued in a quiet but rushed whisper; "my name is Agent Kwan, I work deep cover for the NIS, as does the two agents who are currently in the tower feeding a loop through the surveillance video. That is the reason I beat you, I'm very sorry but we needed a couple minutes of footage that appeared genuine to anyone else remotely monitoring it. We have about 5 minutes before my men cut the loop so it doesn't become suspicious. Scream."

Auggie obliged and Agent Kwan banged his fist into the wall before continuing; "I believe I may be able to help you escape," he said as he reached into his pocket and pressed a small flat device into the blind agents hand. "that is a small detonator. Put it somewhere safe on your skin and do not remove the strip from the back until you hear footsteps approaching to come and take you to the conference. Once that strip is pulled..."

"I'm aware of the technology," Auggie assured him. As far as high tech was concerned this method of taping a flat adhesive-similar to a blood pressure patch- to your skin that encased a button directly linked to an explosive device is fairly old school.

Auggie screamed again and Agent Kwan smashed the food tray against the wall.

"good. Then you'll know that its linked to a chain of explosives I've already hidden in several places in the makeshift conference room they are setting up for later today. They are located towards the back and left and right sides of the room where all the building guards and soldiers will be standing while you and the girl make your broadcast. When you feel it is time, press the button and get down until I give you two pats on the shoulder and escort the two of you towards the escape route."

"Ok. I have a better idea, I'll give you a heads up; when you hear me say on camera "tell my sister not to worry. To ask that hero out" that's your cue to make your way to a safe-but nearby location seconds before I push the detonator."

Agent Kwan looked Auggie over and decided the man was capable of handling the task.

"Maybe you should spend the rest of the time pretending to beat the living shit out of me again," Auggie suggested, reading the man's silence as a finality to the conversation.

Agent Kwan happily obliged.

…...

5:30pm KST, (3:30 am EST)

Auggie hobbled out of his room as best as he could, his arm around his guide, Sung Jae-hwa for support. "Stop. This isn't going to work, Jae, can I call you that? are you even guiding me?" when he heard a grunt from the other man he continued, "you need to be paying attention to where your taking me, and you can't do that correctly if I'm baring all my weight on you. How far is the room your taking us to anyway?"

Whether it was guilt for what he inflicted on the poor man earlier or just trying to get to the room more quickly, Auggie didn't know, he was just glad when he felt a large stick pressed into his left hand a few minutes later while Sung Jae-hwa switched to take his right.

"Thanks." Auggie said, trying to mask the glee in his voice that he was just handed a personal weapon. They walked a little further until he heard the unmistakeable voice of...

"AUGGIE!..." Molly screamed as she rushed out of her room and towards him. She didn't mean to sound like a overly excited school girl- but after hearing what she heard from the room opposite her, she was just overly happy to see that he was ok...mostly.

"Don't hug me. It will hurt like a bitch," he said correctly anticipating her next move.

"sorry," she said as she stopped in her tracks. Seeing a bit of purple sticking out below the ripped neck of his shirt, she pulled it revealing a telling story of exactly what happened in that room. She was about to ask why? when her eyes caught something else, discretely, pulling the shirt down further she found blood... blood in the form of a message just below his collarbone on the left side that read;

'we have help. Follow my lead'

Her eyes snapped up to his immediately and she pulled the shirt back up with a light tap hopefully sending him the message that she found it.

Their brief reunion was cut short when they both felt the all too familiar feeling of guns pressed against their backs.

"please follow me." Yi Kyu-Min said as she led the prisoners and the heavily armed entourage that surrounded them into the room with the video equipment.

It was dark when they entered except for the well lit area with two chairs and a white backround and the camera tripod set up opposite the arrangement. The room itself, was large with high ceilings but still no windows.

There were already quite a few people in the room when they arrived. Some looked to be high ranking soldiers amongst the regular looking uniformed guards, others, dressed in business suits and would not have looked out of place if they had just stepped out of the business district in Manhattan. Recalling her image of the people on the streets earlier, these were far from normal North Korean civilians, no, these were part of the privileged few who came to watch the show.

Yi Kyu-min directed the two of them to their designated seats in front of the camera. As they sat side by side she brought over a set of large flash cards. "Molly, you read these," she said handing her a stack, "and August you read these,"

Really? Do these people communicate with each other at all... he thought. "ahhh Min, small problem there..."

Molly snorted trying to hold back her laughter, which in turn made himself laugh. Whether it was the lack of a proper diet, or stress, or the fatigue, this became a lot more hilarious than it obviously was and they both sat there cracking each other up.

Auggie's laughter quickly died in its tracks when probing hands begun touching his face "what the..."

"Its a makeup lady, rub it out," Molly said discretely as she watched Sung Jae-hwa occupied over in the corner filling her personal guide in on Auggie's situation.

Auggie knew exactly what she was referring too and grabbed at the front of his tee, "can you please stop. I look fine. All your going to do is make me more nervous, and ultimately more pissed off-looking on camera," he said angrily as he batted away the person responsible with his right hand and skillfully rubbed at his chest with the left in one quick motion.

"Mr. Anderson we want you to look your best in front of the camera. I don't want to make my associate return and hold you down."

"fine." Auggie said as he stopped fighting.

Molly watched the makeup woman as she began to pull Auggie's shirt down to mask the bruising visible on his chest. She held her breath until she saw the smeer of blood that once held a message blended into the rest of his colorful bruises.

"Mrs. Harker, you will now be reading the full message by yourself," said Yi Kyu-Min with a look of slight apprehension. "please. Do not stray from what is written, or there will be... consequences." Molly gave a nod of agreement to the older woman, and she turned to the group surrounding them and said something authoratative in Korean and began to brace prepare for the live broadcast. Turning back to Molly again she said "begin now."

Molly paused a moment, seeing the blinking red light; her only window to the world she was so desperate to get back to. Finally she gathered her strength and began to speak reading the words displayed with shaking hands. She had no idea what was going to happen, but she was pretty sure whatever it was was going to happen here, possibily at any second and it could either work or fail horribly. She didn't want her final words to be some stupid ransom that she was forced to recite. That was what scared her the most.

To Auggie, the seconds seemed to dragging to hours as he sat silently, poised and ready with his finger resting just below the spot on his thigh where he hid the detonator. He had figured he'd be sitting when they would be on camera and the most natural position would be with his hands atop his lap. He was waiting for just the right opportunity to catch them all offguard and was praying to a god- he gave up long ago, that Joan hadn't forgotten his old anagram system.

"As long as you agree to your end, we will not be harmed. On that, the DPRK give you their word."

Alright here we go he thought as the tone of Molly's voice settled into a lower, more resolute tone- instead of the high and shaky one she began reading with. She was coming to a close. He ghosted his hand directly above the button, his face: a wall of stone, while inwardly every muscle in his body was tense with adrenaline.

"This is a very simple choice; a device that you didn't find important enough to continue, for the lives of two of your country's citizens. Choose wisely-"

It was time.

He blurted out the message and then pressed down against his thigh while pushing Molly forward onto the ground with his other in one fluid movement.

Chaos seemed to be reining down around him as deafening noises and heat washed over him. Still splayed on the ground he reached a hand over to Molly, who was no doubt confused and terrified as all hell. Her shaking body confirmed this. Inching closer to her as another explosion flared to life at his left, he covered her as best he could before debris could hit her. He'd been through this himself before, but he would be damned if she had to suffer from it.

They laid on the ground like that for several minutes as time had seem to come to a standstill while the chaos continued. Agent Kwan wasn't kidding when he'd said a 'chain of explosives' -they obviously wanted to make sure that anyone in that room besides the both of them, were full and well terminated.

Dust was heavy in the air when the ringing in his ears finally receded enough to make out distinct sounds. Mortal screams filled the air along with the swelled moans of the building trying to hold its wounded foundation together, and the smell of blood and industrial ruin flooded his senses. Finding the ordeal to be momentarily over with he rolled off of a still crying Molly who had not yet spoken a single word. Only moments later the sound of footsteps crunching glass could be heard running towards them both.

"Come Mr. Anderson. We have to get out of here now. No time." It was Agent Kwan's hurried voice. He had come through for them. He had made it.