Sorry for the slow update. Here is the new chapter with our good-guy 'antagonist' Jake Adams.

Funny how the role reversal is working out. Arthur, while protagonist by technicality, is a villain in nature, while Jake is hero in nature but antagonist by the frequency of this appearance and such...

Anyway, next few chapters will be about Arthur's evil forces fighting Jake's teams, the Taskforce 999.
(This includes a slight crossover with Crysis series, Company of Heroes series, CNC Tiberium Wars and CNC Red Alert 3)

Thanks for reading!

Chapter 25

Earth

Russia

Hours after the defeat of Taskforce 999 by El Sokauron

As Jake Adams stood there beneath the darkening sky slowly changing into crimson twilight in the ruins of the Russian factory where he and his team had laid down a trap for the mysterious terrorist 'El Sokauron', codename 'Chaos Lord', he could do nothing but sigh in a dreadful sense of defeat. He could see the dead and the wounded being carried away by the Russian military whose soldiers and medics swarmed over the wreckages that had been scattered all over the area.

The armored vehicles, so easily trashed and broken by the terrorist's hands, have been strewn about the ground, and the Russian military had escorted a dozen scientists trying to figure out how he did it. Jake had seen how the monster did it. He saw how the 'Chaos Lord' tore apart the tank with his HANDS! Jake sighed when his radio squelched twice then paused and squelched once more.

"Lighthouse, this is Witchdoctor. The mission is a failure." Jake spoke into the radio.

"You can say that again." Someone replied from behind Jake.

Jake turned around, and saw a man in US Army fatigues. The man had dark-brunette hair half turned grey and silver, but his arms were thick and well-muscled, making him look younger than his face with deep lines told. The man limped, as if his right leg was a burden. Jake knew what it was, and was surprised at the fact that the man could walk.

"Colonel." Jake nodded in recognition.

"Captain." The colonel replied.

"You know it was you who promoted me to a Major not few days ago." Jake chuckled darkly as he turned his gaze back to the ruins.

"Well, I still need some time to get use to you being a Major."

"Yeah." Jake muttered in agreement.

In fact, he felt strange about it too.

"So, we've failed." The colonel stated calmly.

"I'm guessing you have seen everything from afar in the safety of your command vehicle?" Jake raised an eyebrow as he gently rebuked his commander.

"Hey, mind the attitude, Major. It's not like I can fight with this leg. Hell, I wish I could be out in the field with you guys, but even with this new baby, I can't keep up with you youngsters anymore." The colonel defended himself, pulling up the right leg of his pants to reveal a highly mechanized prosthetic leg that gleamed in dark metallic paint.

Jake nodded. He knew that there was no real point in his rebuke. Colonel Malcolm Hayes had been a great warrior once, but ever since that operation in Syria, he was forced to sit behind a desk, running the operations rather than leading them. His right leg below his knee was lost, and he was no longer combat-worthy. Jake knew of it all, and though he regretted his careless and spiteful words, he could not take it back.

"Sorry."

"Pay it no mind, Major."

But Jake was angry. He was angry to have lost men, and he was angry that many had died at the hands of this lunatic. Jake sighed once more as he thought back to when he first met the 'Chaos Lord'.

FLASHBACK!

Earth

USA

LA

Hours after the bank robbery

Jake was helpless. He could do nothing but stand and watch as the charred remains of the LAPD headquarters was slowly picked and searched by the firefighters who had given up searching for survivors and now focused on recovering bodies. At first, the emergency response teams tried to rescue whoever was alive, but the explosion and the resulting fire had been too intense, and mixed with toxic gas from various petro-chemical products being set on fire had a detrimental effect on the few survivors who managed to climb out of that hell.

"What am I suppose to say to Amanda and Sharon?" Jake whispered to himself as he fondled the silver-cross that Jim the captain of the SWAT team had carried with him.

Amanda was Jim's beloved wife of twelve years, and Sharon was the child born out of wedlock between them, and when Sharon was two years old, they had finally tied the knot, with blessing from all parties. Jim and Amanda had lived a beautiful life, and their teenage daughter Sharon had been going through her adolescence without too much problem. Jim had been in the Army before his tour was up and he turned a cop. Jake and he had gone through the basic training together, and fate brought them back together.

Apart from Barry, Jim had been Jake's closest friend in the force. It wasn't that Jake was sociable, but there was an air about Jake that others were slow to trust. Particularly at first, Jake was silently ostracized for his military-bearings that went overboard a little too often. He was often investigated for cases of Police Brutality against gang members and such. It was Jim who helped Jake through such tough times using the memories of his tour in Afghanistan and the severe PTSD that he had suffered through after the tour.

Now, Jake had to tell Amanda and Sharon that their loving husband and father had been killed by a psychopath in a tin-can suit that bounced off bullets like he was being shot at by peashooters.

It wasn't only that Jim was killed by some sort of 'raygun' but there was more to Jake's self condemnation. He was helpless as a series of devastating and random bombing around California happened because he had failed to stop the madman. The destruction included the HQ of the LA's finest. That which was once the proud home of many hundreds of police officers who have worked there, protecting the public with their toils and sweat, had been turned to ashes and charcoal. They were supposed to protect the people from bombings and crazy psychos with 'raygun' shooting at them or chopping them with glowing swords. Yet, the police had failed. Jake had failed them.

Jake's feet brushed past the object that used be his own table, not turned charcoal that turned into a small pile of ash. Sighing, he touched the drawer only to have it crumble into black ash.

"Damn!" He grumbled as he picked up a small metallic case.

Opening it carefully, his face was quickly filled with chagrin as the photos shattered into tiny bits at the exposure to the air.

Suddenly, his phone rang, and it was from a number that he did not know.

"This is Detective Adams. Who is this?"

~Witchdoctor, this is Screwdriver. We need to talk.~ The voice said, making Jake instinctively stand to attention.

"Colonel. It has been a while, sir." Jake answered.

~It has been a while indeed, son. I hope you have been adapting well back into the civilian life?~ Jake's former commander asked.

"As good as can be expected. Look, colonel, I am not really in a situation to speak right now. We've just been..." Before he could finish speaking, the colonel interrupted.

~You've been bombed.~

"Yes, sir."

~Unlike you, I'm neither retired nor being planted as a sleeper agent. I'm jacked into a lot of things including the bombings in southern California and that the crazy-ass bank robbery that you were involved in.~ The colonel continued. ~You should not have risked yourself like that. The eggheads at DARPA won't like it.~

"Yes, sir. I understand, but my partner..." But Jake could not finish the sentence. It wasn't like him to answer back like this. "I understand, sir."

~Look, this line is not really secure. I have been ordered to reactivate you and bring you in for a debrief.~

"Debrief, sir? Is it about this 'El Sokauron' guy?" Jake asked.

~I'm afraid it is, Witchdoctor.~ The colonel called Jake's call sign again. ~I have a team from NSA coming to pick you up. Ident code is 'It's Cold Today', and the counter-sign is 'Bravo Bravo Window'. Do you copy, Witchdoctor?~

"I copy that, Screwdriver."

It was only hours before several men in suits came along.

"So, where are you guys from? CIA? FBI or the International Counter-terrorism Taskforce?" Jake casually asked, carefully inserting the password into the conversation.

"Actually, Big Bad Wolf sent us." One of the agents said, and Jake relaxed.

Earth

USA

Area 9 – DARPA's Secret Base/Lab

Several days after the bank robbery

"Gentlemen, let's start the briefing, shall we?" The President said.

Jake stood at the side of the conference room behind Colonel Hayes who sat at the side of a long table where other members of this briefing sat. At the end of the table was none other than the President of United States of America, guarded by a dozen Secret Service agents positioned around the room. Along the sides of the table were the National Security Advisor and the Secretary of Defence, and the directors of CIA and FBI. A five-star general, whom Jake identified as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was there also, sitting across Colonel Hayes. Briefing them all was a lab-coat wearing scientist with a pair of thick rimmed glasses and retreating hairlines. Jake knew the man. The scientist was the administrator for the DARPA's most secretive divisions.

"Yes, sir. Doctor Tinswood, if you please?" The CJCS answered and looked at the Dr Tinswood.

"It's good to see you again, Mr President." The scientist tried to make a small talk, but no one was in the mood for it.

"Doctor, we are not here to exchange pleasantries. Begin the briefing." The POTUS chided the scientist, and so rebuked, Tinswood clicked the remote in his hand to change the wall-screen to the next picture.

Jake gritted his teeth as the photo of 'El Sokauron' appeared in the middle of the screen, where the photo was obviously taken at the scene of the bank robbery.

In El Sokauron's hands were the glowing sword and the 'raygun' that killed so many. Jake hated the guy, but he knew that challenging this psycho was not going to be easy because of the weapons, and that thick armor that bounced off bullets.

"As you all know, this individual known to us as 'El Sokauron' has set off a series of bombings across southern California including the HQ of the LAPD, and he has committed murders of many police officers of LAPD. The reason that all of you," Tinswood's eyes grazed over those gathered, including Jake. "have come here is that your normal channels came up with nothing regarding this individual, and only here at DARPA that you expect to find some ridiculous but correct information and theories about this... murderer."

The POTUS nodded.

"That is indeed why we have come here, Doctor. Now, the NSA, CIA and FBI and so many others have searched and failed, and I am hoping you have some... plausible theories." The President said.

"Yes, Mr President, we do have a theory." The scientist declared.

"Then tell us, Doctor."

Tinswood nodded to his assistant, who quickly handed out briefing materials to those involved, including Jake.

Tinswood clicked his remote again, and this time, the screen split between the photo of El Sokauron and a picture of a plastic figure mounted upon a circular pad decorated with dirt. Jake thought that the two pictures looked very similar. In fact, it was like someone had made a plastic figurine of El Sokauron.

"This is a 'Chaos Lord' from a tabletop game called 'Warhammer 40K', made by a gaming company 'Games Workshop' in UK." Tinswood stated, and he paused for the meaning of his words to set in.

"Wait... What?" The Secretary of Defense stuttered.

"Are you telling me this god-damned terrorist is a guy in costume?" The National Security Adviser shouted.

Jake was flabbergasted as well. Then again, he could see the resemblance between the armor and weapons of El Sokauron and the plastic miniature that was compared to the psychopath.

The room was quickly filled with murmurs of men, whose mind could not accept such ridiculous theory. They began to read through some of the pages, and that just made them angrier.

"Doctor, I'm sure the US government does not pay DARPA its secret funding so that you could tell us this kind of sick joke." The CIA director growled.

However, Tinswood was not fazed.

"I understand that this sounds ridiculous, but it is actually a very plausible theory," He claimed. "Particularly so since we have dabbled in the Dimensional Barrier technology."

The President paled.

"What are you saying, Doctor? This is our fault?" He spoke in low voice.

"We do not know that yet, Mr President."

At Tinswood's answer, everyone looked at the POTUS. He sighed and looked at the scientist again.

"Doctor, I think you need to explain your theory from the beginning... including the Dimensional Barrier project." The President said, gesturing his Secret Service agents to leave the room.

"Has anyone heard about the idea that a great idea comes from a sudden vision, a flash of ideas that spark off so much?" Tinswood asked, but it was a rhetorical question. "It happens to be true to some degree. What these brilliant minds such as Mozard or Picasso created were pale shadows of what they had heard or seen through the dimensional barrier."

Tinswood spoke as if everyone knew what 'dimensional barrier' was, but he had been doing this for a long time, and knew to explain.

"Now, there is a theory in physics that tells us that there are infinite numbers of parallel dimensions that exist, separated only by dimensional barriers that differentiate them." He spoke, but people still did not understand.

"Alright... hmmm." He placed the remote on the table. "See this remote? Now, the dimension we currently exist has the future where I do this."

He moved the remote a little forward.

"However, when I decided to move this remote, there was a possibility that I could have moved the remote another way, like this."

He moved the remote back and to the side a little.

"When I made this decision to move the remote a certain way, the decision has thousands of possibilities, but only one is seen by us, and that is the dimension we live in. However, at the same time, entire parallel dimensions are formed where I moved the remote in another way or tilt the angle a little or even where I fumble. Each of those possibilities creates a parallel dimension."

Now, people began to understand a little, though they were still not quite ready to believe Tinswood's explanations.

"Of course, all this was only a theory until about twenty years ago. Approximately twenty years ago, we have theorized that with enough energy and technology, we could pierce the barrier between parallel dimensions. We were given the funding and support for this experiment because we convinced the administration at the time that we could grab some advanced technology from parallel dimensions with more advanced technologies." Tinswood explained. "We've managed to thin the dimensional barrier enough to observe the other side, but we realized that we could not pierce the barrier itself unless we have powerful-enough psionic energy, which no one in current human evolution can produce."

"What have you learned from the project?" The President asked.

"We've gone through at least twenty such parallel universes until the time we have ended the program, and they include some that have come to exist as various games and comics and novels."

People gathered were surprised.

"Do you mean... You have seen those science fiction technologies?" The CIA director asked in surprise.

"Yes, director." Tinswood nodded and clicked the remote to show a personal armor in split screen, compared to another suit of armor.

"This is the 'nanosuit' from a game called Crysis series, but this other armor is the armor that we have developed over the last ten years or so, after observing the parallel dimension." The scientist pointed to the screen. "It is but an example of many things, including some of the technologies we now use in smart phones, our defense systems and such."

Now that he has explained the relation between the dimensional barrier theory and the military applications, the men around the conference room began to nod.

"That sounds good. If such are military application, I would like to restart the program. Why was it shut down?" The President asked.

"Unfortunately, Mr President, it is not advisable to restart the program. On our twenty first encounters, we began to see some negative effects of our intentional thinning of dimensional barrier. Also, on that experiment, we also encountered a character from comic books called Doctor Stephen Strange, the Sorcerer Supreme. Upon our research, he happened to be the most powerful magical being from a comic books. The info on Doctor Strange is on page twenty five," Tinswood explained as he pointed out the page in the report. "and as you can see, Doctor Strange is not someone to be trifled with."

He waited for a moment for everyone to read about Strange.

"He warned us that a universe like ours is called a Hub Universe, where we are connected to many different parallel dimensions, which means that thinning the dimensional barrier like we have done so... could have some catastrophic... consequences."

"Such as this 'El Sokauron', doctor?" Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff asked.

"Yes, and he could be just one of many beings capable of piercing the thinned dimensional barrier."

"If El Sokauron is but the beginning of a flood of such evil and terrifyingly powerful beings, we are not ready for it." The seasoned general commented, and he was supported by the National Security Adviser, and this made the POTUS frown.

"Is there anything we can do to protect ourselves from further invasions, doctor Tinswood?" POTUS asked, and Tinswood nodded grimly.

"We have managed to stop further degradation of dimensional barrier, though we cannot do anything about the dimensions we've connected to twenty years ago. In any case, we have managed to acquire a number of technologies that would help us against El Sokauron or any other dimensional invaders." Tinswood quickly explained. "One of those defenses are already in place, and our Captain Adams here is not only here as a witness but also as an example of our Creation of Advanced Soldier Program, also known as CASP."

POTUS flinched before staring at Jake, and Jake felt uncomfortable. It appeared that POTUS knew what Jake was.

"You brought a psionic into the same room as us, doctor? Do you know the kinds of secrets that must not be known to anyone else could be stolen by that man?" POTUS' voice began to rise.

"Mr President, I assure you that Captain Adams has no telepathy or mind-reading capability, and his ability of limited prescience can only be activated into useful level with the proper equipment, sir." Tinswood quickly intervened.

POTUS calmed down a little, but kept a wary eye upon Jake.

"Very well, doctor. If you have brought Captain... Adams and Colonel Hayes into the briefing, then I assume that it means that the defenses you are talking about involves the Taskforce 999." POTUS said, his eyes narrowing with dangerous gleam. "You have long lobbied for the full activation of Joint Taskforce 999, but your request has been denied thus far... However... in the face of such... such monster as this El Sokauron... I shall have to reconsider my previous decision."

"Thank you, Mr President."

"Go on with the briefing about the dimensional barrier and this El Sokauron. We will talk about the 999 after."

"Yes, sir."

The briefings and discussions continued throughout the afternoon and into the evening. The President and other important members of the government took dinner breaks and such, and Jake slipped out to take a breather. He went to a vending machine and put into some coins for a can of soda. Then something made him turn around.

"Mr President, sir!" Jake quickly stood to attention and saluted his commander-in-chief.

The President looked at him for a while, then let out a sigh.

"At ease, Captain."

Jake did so, but his form remained perfect even in his 'at ease' posture. Shaking his head lightly, the President bent down, reached forth and grabbed Jake's can of soda.

"I am sure I have hurt your feelings back there, Captain."

"No, sir! I am fully aware of exactly how dangerous it is to have a mind-reader in the room with the POTUS, sir." Jake answered, hoping his answer could satisfy the man.

"Yeah... Exactly, Captain Adams. It was not about you being a psionic. I apologize for the remark." The President apologized, and Jake was stunned. "I am a man of open mind, and unlike my Republican predecessor, I am acutely aware of what it means to practice tolerance. I see you being psionic as merely like having blue eyes or curly hair, a simple mutation that is inherent in all mankind."

"But, with all due respect, sir, it is not the same." Jake answered. He didn't like where this conversation was going.

"May be, but I'd like to think that you and your fellow psionic soldiers are still human, and still capable of being human." The President said, his voice driving deep into Jake's thoughts. "In being human, we are all same, Captain Adams. I hope you remember it when things become bad."

"Thank you, Mr President."

"Oh, here's your soda."

After the President was gone, Jake stood there, his gaze on the unopened can of soda in his hand. It was minutes later that Colonel Hayes had come out from the room.

"Jake." The Colonel called, and Jake turned to his superior officer.

"Sir."

"You are officially being recalled and returned to your former unit at the Joint Taskforce 999. We are getting the teams back together." Hayes said with a smile.

"Teams, sir? Just the Alphas or the Betas as well?" Jake asked.

"Beta teams are also being assembled. The NP (non-psionic) troops are also being fitted."

"Marines and Rangers?" Jake asked, knowing what kind of elite soldier are given such advanced technology.

"They can't handle this. We are getting some Seals and Spec Ops guys." Hayes commented, making Jake nod. "As for you and your teams, we are reactivating the HOG."

HOG was the acronym for the Hyper Oxygenated Gravity chambers, and it referred to a special training rooms in the DARPA lab that Jake and his teammates had been experimented upon and then given the powers that he had now. The training inside was excruciating, but combined with drugs and other technologies, Jake and his team became more deadly than humanly possible.

"For how long?" Jake asked.

"Well, hopefully the enemy will give us some breather according to Dr Tinswood. El Sokauron may have some trouble conjuring forth more of his troops any time soon, and we have however long that may be." Hayes said. "We are trying to retrieve the rest of the team back together, but that's going to take a few days. Let's just hope..."

Before Hayes could finish his sentence, his cell phone rang. The colonel looked at the caller with a frown before taking the call.

"This is Colonel Hayes. What?"

Jake narrowed his eyes at Hayes' reaction.

"Shit!" Hayes swore as he ended the call.

"What is it, sir?"

"We've received words that El Sokauron is on the move. He has been stealing military hardware across the planet."

"Military hardwares, sir?"

"They are preparing a briefing back at the base." Hayes answered. "I think you need to get yourself something warm to wear."

"Sir?" Jake asked in puzzlement.

"The analysts think that Russia will be hit next. I'm sending you there once the briefing is over."

Jake cracked a smile.

END OF CHAPTER 25