After his conversation with The Chief, Osmosis decided to walk back over to the command tent. He needed to try to get The Chief to take action against what now Ozzie referred to as terrorists. When Ozzie arrived, he found The Chief arguing with the cells in charge of the Bomb Squad team.
"No we can not just blow open the doors! They'll kill off the hostages if we try and take action!"
"Chief, we can't just stand here and do nothing! People get killed in this business but if having a few get killed to save a few billion, then I'm for it."
"I understand that but as of now we have no idea who is even up there and what their true intentions really are."
"Well then, I think that it's time we found out." Ozzie interrupted, walking over to the table.
"Jones, I thought I told you to stay put."
"Well I'm tired of waiting Chief. I agree with the Bomb Squad guy."
"I do too Jones but I don't think that the time to act is at hand."
"When will it be then, huh? When will it be? Do we have to wait for them to start killing off the hostages or would you rather wait until Leah and the Mayor are dead too?"
"Jones!" The Chief yelled, slamming his fist down on the table. "I am in charge here and if I say we're not going to try anything now then we ARE NOT!"
"Alright Chief, alright, we won't try anything, at least not yet."
"Good. We'll wait a little bit longer and if we don't find out who they are in the next few hours, then we'll try something."
"Fine." Osmosis said with a sigh. Ozzie pulled up a chair, put his feet up on top of the table and began to wait.
The Mayor's Office 4:45 PM
"As of now, Frank PD has not released any further information on the situation still going on at the brain. The information that authorities have given us is a very small amount. FPD believes that the group of ten germs, possibly viruses have taken over the whole upper section of the brain around the Hypothalamus, including The Mayor's office. There are approximately 22 hostages including The Mayor and his aid. Names of the hostages are to be released at around 5:00 PM." The NNN announcer said.
"You ready Thrax?" Xion asked from behind his computer screen.
"You bet." Thrax replied.
Thrax was standing in front of a black background that had been hung on the wall behind him. He was standing in front of a camera that was hooked up to Xion's computer.
"Are we all hooked up Xion?" Draco asked from behind the camera.
"Yeah. I'm all set to intercept NNN's TV signals. After I press this button we have five seconds before all of the TV screens and radios in Frank are tuned into our broadcast."
"Great. Let's do it."
"Quiet on the set!" Demo shouted while pointing a gun at Tom Clonic and Leah.
"Here we go." Xion said, pressing a button on his computer. "Okay, Thrax you're on in five, four three-" Xion finished the rest of the countdown with his fingers, mouthing the numbers two and one.
"Good evening Frank." Thrax said into the camera.
When the cells in Frank saw Thrax or heard his voice, Frank nearly had a heart attack. Except for the highways, almost all of the activity in Frank had stopped. Inside the command tent, The Chief had spit out his coffee and Ozzie had fallen off his chair.
"I'm sure that all of you cells have been listening to the news and are aware of the situation going on inside the brain. At the moment, I am broadcasting from inside The Mayor's office. Myself and a team of nine elite viruses have taken over and are in complete and total control. I thought that Frank would like to know what he is now up against. I have made myself public for that reason. You fools thought that your "hero" Osmosis Jones had killed me." Thrax waved one of his claws back and forth in the air. "You were all wrong. All Jones did by letting me fall into that beaker of alcohol was make me stronger and more powerful than before. Oh and Jones, just to let you know, I kept my promise to you."
Back at the command tent Osmosis mouthed the word "No." and stared at the screen in terror and surprise.
"That's right Jones. You remember my little promise, don't you?" Thrax said holding up his bracelet and squeezing the DNA bead that belonged to his latest victim. "That's right Jones, I did it. I killed Shane."
Inside the command tent, Osmosis Jones screamed as several tears began to roll down his face and onto the ground. Ozzie put his hand up against the TV screen and it slid down as his body went to the floor. "You bastard." He said through the tears. "You bastard."
Inside Frank, nearly every cell began to cry for Shane.
"But that was in the past." Thrax went on tossing his bracelet up in the air and catching it. "As of now I'd like to play a little game with the FPD. I'm going to give them two hours, say the next two hours to make a move on us or I'll kill twenty of the hostages. Until then, adios amigos." Thrax grinned and then went off the air.
"Bravo, bravo." Draco said, clapping for Thrax. Xion and Demo were doing the same. "Magnificent performance baby."
"Thank you." Thrax replied, taking a bow. "And what did our audience think?"
"You're a sick bastard." Tom Clonic said from his chair.
"Flattery will get you killed Mr. Mayor." Thrax replied with a grin. Thrax then walked over to Leah and stood next to her. "What was your opinion on my performance baby?"
"You're.., You're…just playing with them." Leah stuttered. "You're going to kill everyone anyway. You're just playing with them."
"So true and I'm really enjoying this game. Especially because, we're winning." He hissed into her ear. "The game's not over yet but for now, it's the other player's turn and all we have to do it sit back, relax and wait for them to make their move." Thrax said, walking back over to the couch and sitting down.
Draco was standing behind Xion and looking over his shoulder as he showed her the security cameras on the upper floor which have now been turned on.
"All's quiet commander."
"I can see that but it's too quiet for my taste. They will try something soon. Keep monitoring their communications Xion. Tell me if anything comes up."
"Will do commander. Will do."
Draco walked to the middle of the room and put her hand to her earpiece as the rest of the team reported in.
Command Tent 5:02 PM
"You okay Jones?" The Chief asked, putting his hand on Ozzie's shoulder.
"Yeah. I'm okay, just saw something on the floor, that's all." Osmosis said getting up off the floor and wiping his eyes. "I just can't believe that Thrax is alive."
"I know, none of us can."
"Are we going to try and blow the elevator doors now?"
"Yeah Jones, we are. Get me the Bomb Squad."
Moments later the FPD Bomb Squad arrived inside the command tent.
"Okay boys and girls. We're going to have to activate those bombs somehow so we can blow a hole and gain entry to the second floor. Any ideas?"
"I do." The Bomb Squad leader said.
"What is it?" The Chief asked.
"I can stick a remote detonator to the bomb on the outside of the door. When we blow it, it should set off a chain reaction and blow all of the bombs inside the doors as well. We won't loose any men this way."
"Yeah but we will loose hostages." Ozzie commented.
"I know that." The Chief acknowledged. "Thrax is pushing us to take action and you and I both know that hostages will die either way. I think that they will kill less if we try and make a move instead of waiting out the two hours and watching them kill twenty."
"I guess so but to me it sounds like Thrax isn't the only one in charge. That woman you spoke too said that she was the leader right Chief?"
"Yeah. What are you getting at Ozzie?"
"Well all I'm trying to say is that we know Thrax and what he is capable of doing but we know nothing about the woman. What if she decides to kill off all of the hostages anyway even after we accept and carry out Thrax's threat? I mean to them the lives of a few cells mean nothing."
"That's true Jones."
"And we don't have any idea what kind of relationship these two have. Is one commanding the other or are they working together on this one?"
"I don't know Jones but if we don't try something we may never find out and we have to get back in this game because as of right now, the viruses upstairs are holding all of the winning cards."
"I know." Ozzie replied, shifting his attention to the Bomb Squad Leader. "When can you blow it?"
"We can do right now if you want Mr. Jones."
Osmosis looked at The Chief and he nodded his head. "Do it."
"Yes sir!"
The FPD Bomb Squad headed back towards City Hall to set up and execute their plan.
"You'd better go with them Jones."
"Right Chief."
City Hall, Elevators 5:15 PM
"We're all set to blow." The Bomb Squad Leader said to Jones, handing him the remote. "All you have to do is push that button."
"All I have to do is push the button." Ozzie repeated.
"Yes sir but I would recommend you stepping behind this barricade before you do so."
"Right." Ozzie said walking behind the blast barricade. "Fire in the hole you big viral bastards."
Osmosis Jones pushed the red button on the remote control and the remote charge exploded, taking the other explosives on the elevator doors with it.
Sector 1- Elevators 5:15 PM, 10 seconds prior
Zen was standing by the elevator doors checking the ammunition on his assault carbine when the doors blew. Zen was sent backwards into a wall as pieces of the elevator doors came upon him. The large pieces came first, then the small. Zen was hit hard with one half of the elevator door before the blast reached the rest of the explosives. He ducked down and put his arms over his head. The piece of door in front of him acted like a shield, protecting him from the second, third and forth blasts. The only damage he sustained was from the first explosion but Zen couldn't tell how badly.
He stayed behind the door until the final pieces of shrapnel and debris had landed on the floor. Zen kicked the door away and looked down at himself. The lower half of his body was fine except for the fact that his combat suit was burnt and had tiny pieces of shrapnel all over it. Zen's chest area was okay except for maybe a few bruises. His left arm was fine except for a few cuts and scrapes but his right arm had taken a lot of damage. He couldn't move it at all, it was all bloody, and had pieces of the elevator door driven into it. He hadn't sustained any burns except for on that one arm. He put his left hand to his forehead and found blood when he took it away. Zen couldn't see anything out of his right eye except for red. Zen closed his eye, picked up his M4, and put his left hand over his right arm. Zen then walked over to the hole that used to be the elevator and looked down the shaft.
Elevators 5:17 PM
There were four teams of heavily armed Special Forces officers stationed and ready at the base of each elevator shaft. After getting the okay from Ozzie and the Bomb Squad crew, they began to ascend the shafts via grappling hook. In the second elevator shaft, the team saw a green germ, bloodied and beaten by the explosions, standing at the top of the shaft.
Sector 1, Elevators 5:18 PM
Zen saw the ascending team and grinned.
"Take this you little fuckers." He said vengefully, taking a hand grenade off his combat suit, pulled the pin with his teeth and tossed it down the shaft. Zen stood back from the shaft and shielded his body with the broken elevator door. There were screams from the second shaft as the grenade went off and killed everyone inside. The blast ripped through the two adjacent shafts killing most and injuring a few that were in it.
Zen dropped the door, grabbed his wounded arm and trudged to the end of the hallway to the door that would lead him to Sector 2.
Sector 2- Subconscious 5:22 PM
When Spike heard the blast from inside Sector 1, he came running, weapon raised, to the door. After inserting a special card that would temporarily disarm the bombs on the door, he entered. When the door opened, he saw Zen staggering towards him. Zen had blood streaming down his face and one eye was closed. Zen's right arm was dripping blood onto the floor.
"Zen, what happened?"
"Those bastards blew the doors and I was caught off guard." Zen replied, wincing a little bit. "How bad does it look?"
"Pretty bad. I'm going to take you to Sector 5 so that Rip and I can fix you up."
"Sounds great."
Spike put his arm around Zen to give him a little support as he led him to Sector 5. The door to Sector 2 closed and the bombs reactivated after Spike reinserted his card.
Sector 5- Mayor's Office 5:30 PM
"Spike, what's up?" Draco asked speaking into her headset.
"Sector 1's been breached commander and Zen's been injured."
"What?" Draco asked with concern.
"Yeah, his arm's all torn up. He can't move it. He can't see out of his right eye and his forehead's been cut open. I think that Rip and I can save his eye. His arm will heal on it's own."
"You think he'll be okay?"
"He should be fine. Rip and I have set up a makeshift infirmary in one of the offices. Rip's in there now working on Zen."
"I'm coming down there." Draco said, cutting off the communication. "I'm going down to the offices."
"What happened?" Thrax asked from the couch.
"Zen was injured when the other team made their move Thrax." Draco said with a serious expression.
Draco turned to Xion.
"Why didn't we know about this?"
"We knocked out the cameras in that area during our initial attack and the FPD wasn't using any of their communications devices so I was unable to monitor them."
"Fuck." Draco said angrily. "I'll be back in a little bit. You three stay here and watch those two. I'll deal with this matter on my own so no one do anything. Understand?"
"Loud and clear." Demo acknowledged.
"All of you?" Draco said sternly, glaring at Thrax.
"Yes." Thrax replied.
"Good."
Draco then stormed out of the room.
"I think you made her mad Thrax." Demo said.
"Me?" Thrax said innocently.
"Yeah you?"
"Now how did I do that?"
"You pushed the FPD to make a move that we couldn't see. That's what you did."
"I, uhh, damn, I guess I did, didn't I?"
"Yeah. Look, Thrax, there's something that you need to understand about us before you decide to give another order."
"I'm listening Demo. Spill it."
"Stryker Team Alpha and its members mean a lot to Draco. To Draco, we are her family. She loves every one of us like brothers and we love her like a sister. If anything happens to one of us, she takes it hard. Can you understand that?"
"Yeah Demo, I can."
"Great. Now all you have to do is apologize to her."
"You do understand that I'm not good with apologies?"
"Well you're going to have to get good at them, and fast too. Keep in mind Thrax that although she's mad at you, she still loves you. Try using that to your advantage."
"Okay. Oh and Demo."
"Yes?"
"Thanks."
"No problem."
Elevators 5:37 PM
"Aw shit." Ozzie said aloud. "Drix, call for the EMRs!"
"Gotcha Jones."
Osmosis pulled his walkie out of his pocket and hailed The Chief. "Yo Chief, you there?"
"Yeah, I'm here. What's going on Jones?"
"Well Chief, we've lost at least three of our teams. Most of them are dead but some are injured. Drix is sending for the EMRs now."
"Did we get through?"
"Yeah, we blew ourselves an entrance way."
"Great. I'm going to send three more Special Forces teams down to your location. Don't move in until we see how Thrax and the other viruses react to our actions."
"Copy that Chief."
"How'd we lose those three teams?"
"I dunno. There was a big explosion that ripped through three to the elevator shafts. After the EMRs clear out the bodies, do you want me to send in the Bomb Squad to check out what caused the explosion?"
"Yes. That's a good idea but make sure that no one is up at the top of the shaft before you do it. Got it Jones?"
"Yeah I got. Osmosis Jones over an out." Ozzie said, turning off his walkie and putting it back into his pocket.
Sector 5- Office Block and Temporary Infirmary 5:40 PM
When Draco burst into this section of Sector 5, she was greeted by Rip and Spike.
"Rip, Spike, where's Zen? How is he? Is he going to be okay?" Draco said with a hint of worry.
"Whoa, slow it down commander." Rip replied.
"Sorry."
"It's okay."
"Zen is doing well and he is going to be fine." Spike said reassuringly. "Rip and I managed to save his eye. He won't be able to see out of it until we take the bandage off in another few hours. As for his arm, it'll be in a sling for a few days but it should heal just fine."
"That's good to hear. Can I see him?"
"Yeah." Rip said, leading Draco to one of the larger offices.
When Draco entered, she saw Zen lying on a couch on the other side of the room. There was bandage on his forehead and over his eye. His arm was also wrapped up in bandages and was currently in a sling. Rip closed the office door behind Draco.
"Hey Zen, how ya doing?" Draco asked pulling up a chair beside the couch.
"I got those bastards for you." He replied with a smile.
"Who?"
"The jerks who were climbing up the elevator shafts after they blew them open. I dropped a grenade down the second shaft. The blast should have taken out the first second and third shafts."
"Rip and Spike said you would back to your old self in a few days."
"Draco." Zen said putting his hand on hers. Draco closed her fingers around his hand.
"Yes, Zen?"
"Don't blame Thrax for what happened to me. It wasn't his fault."
Draco was silent.
"And don't blame yourself either. If anyone should be at fault, it's me. I wasn't paying attention to what was happening around me or in this case, below me. So in a sense I just got what was coming to me." Zen said with a chuckle.
"Zen…"
"No. Don't try to convince me otherwise. You and Thrax are the best damn commanding team I've ever seen and I mean it. I'd follow you to hell if I had too. This is Thrax's first experience commanding a team in the field so cut him some slack. You made mistakes as a rookie, in fact, we all did." Zen took a deep breath and then continued. "Just try and forgive him."
"I already have Zen. I already have and you're right, it wasn't his fault." Draco looked down at the floor. "I shouldn't have gotten so mad at him."
"I'm going to try and get some rest now commander, you know what to do."
"I do and have a good rest Zen."
Zen waved his hand at Draco in reply as she walked out the door. After she had left he closed his eyes and drifted off into a deep sleep.