Disclaimer: See Part I for the usual cautionary statement.
Author's note: This segment of the story is rather violent—that is the sole reason for changing the rating on this story. Please let me know what you think.
Memory Ronin
Part XVII
By Callisto
Walter's family hideout
Outside Providence, RI
Five days before the scheduled attack on Centre-Hamilton, Naizen gently touched Maggie's shoulder and said in a soft voice that he needed to speak with her in private. Looking up in mild surprise, Maggie assented and led the way to the back porch where they could speak without any of the family overhearing them.
"This is truly a beautiful country, Magdalena," Naizen said softly as he gazed at the vibrant colors of the trees affected by the fall season.
"Yes. This is one of my favorite times of the year, especially in this part of the country. You should see parts of California during the spring months, it's positively breathtaking," she responded. She was fully aware of the Japanese custom of exchanging pleasantries and small talk before delving into the matter at hand. Her contentment in being able to express her feelings for Jarod and being his wife gave her something she thought she had lost—infinite patience.
"I see that you and Emily are becoming friends; I am very glad," she said quietly.
"She is a very interesting person and has a kind heart. I am curious as to your motives for encouraging our friendship," Naizen said softly. He suspected the true reason but wanted to hear the explanation from her own lips.
"It's a habit of mine. I seem incapable of just leaving you alone. From the look on your face when I see you talking to Emily, the time has come for you to move on with your life," she replied obliquely.
Naizen smiled inwardly. It was as he suspected, she had decided on a replacement for herself in his life. He would have it no other way and was secretly heartened that Maggie still loved him well enough to choose a suitable partner for him. It was true that he had had enough of his wife and spent as much time away from home as he could stand since the result was separation from his son, Ichiro.
They stood in companionable silence for a minute before Naizen decided that he should get to the point of this tête-à-tête. "Speaking of moving on, I have received a phone call from my associates. It would seem that Mr. Lyle has finally found the thread left dangling in front of his face."
"Little brother is dimmer than even I suspected. How far has he gotten on the trail?"
"Our man in New York reported that Lyle was given the name of the lawyer whom your brother Ethan supposedly contacted. Apparently Lyle took the bait and is on his way to Southern California as we speak," Naizen answered.
"Perfect, have your people continue to string him along. By the time he realizes that his attention and services are needed on this coast, we will be long gone." Maggie said with satisfaction in her voice. "I'll let the others know that Lyle is one less headache we have to worry about. By the time we're finished with him, Lyle will wish he never saw an Asian." She smiled wolfishly at her friend and found he had a similar expression on his face. They would remain friends for the rest of their lives.
Once the friends reentered the house, they were greeted by Trent who informed them that the items ordered on the Internet had just arrived. They joined the others in going through the long list of items they would need. Included in the boxes were outfits that Maggie had insisted on obtaining. There were 4 outfits in all and Jarod watched with increasing curiosity as Maggie assembled a completed outfit from the various items she ordered. She presented Naizen with one of the outfits and Jarod watched as the other man nodded in satisfaction. The outfit included a thick, black turtleneck shirt, matching dark pants, a black nylon combat vest adorned with numerous pockets and loops designed to hold equipment of almost any sort, dark night goggles, thin black gloves, black ski mask and black light-weight boots.
Naizen took his uniform and disappeared for a few minutes then returned with a dark box of his own. "These were given to me by an old friend I met while I was in town with Emily gathering the rest of our supplies. He owed me a favor, so he traveled here from New York to make this special delivery," he said as he gingerly placed the large oblong box on the floor. He opened the box and withdrew an over 3' long black scabbard with the handle of a sword protruding from the end. A short tassel was attached to the end of the handle. He presented this to Maggie and with it a large leather pouch and a black cloth.
Maggie accepted the items and gently placing the sword on the back of the couch, she unraveled the cloth which revealed itself as a hood. Maggie grinned happily and said, "I finally get to wear one of these things. I've always wanted to use a Ninja hood but was too afraid I would look like an idiot."
Naizen grunted distractedly as he withdrew an identical sword and items from the box along with two sets of black shin guards. "We will have to practice a few times wearing the full outfit so there will be no surprises."
The rest of the family unpacked the other boxes and watched as Maggie and Naizen gathered their weapons and began to make plans for their part of the assault on the Centre.
Craig residence
Charlestown, RI
The intruder slipped into the semi-darkened single story suburban residence without any trouble. The alarm system protecting the house was easily circumvented and the intruder was now peering down a short hallway slowly inching towards the sounds coming from a television in a nearby room. If anyone happened to glance in the hallway they wouldn't have seen anything out of the ordinary. The intruder completely blended in with the deep shadows.
Once the intruder was satisfied with the sedentary movements of the two adults watching television, he crept unseen into the living room—a silver canister of what appeared to be compressed gas was in his hands with a rubber tube attached to the business end. During a loud commercial, the intruder opened a valve on the cylinder and the faint hiss of gas being released started immediately. A dark gas mask protected the intruder from any of the effects of the chemical. After a few minutes the welcome sounds of light snoring could be heard from the occupants of the room. Cautiously peering around a china cabinet the intruder saw a middle-aged couple slumped over in slumber—one on the couch and the other in a comfortable looking easy chair. The intruder let the gas continue to fill the room for a few more minutes before closing the valve on the canister. After replacing the cylinder in a dark backpack and rechecking the deepness of the couple's slumber, the intruder returned to the darkened hallway and opened a door.
The room was bathed in darkness. All was still as the intruder gave himself a few seconds to adjust to the dimness. The form of a small body asleep in bed became almost immediately visible from the moon's glow shining through the window and illuminating the bed. The intruder walked cautiously up to the bed and peered curiously into the face of the 3-year old toddler who was fast asleep. Very quietly the window next to the bed was opened and a small bureau moved from underneath it. Then gingerly the intruder/kidnapper pulled back the blankets of the bed and picked up the child. The small body was almost boneless in unconsciousness. The intruder gracefully walked up to the bedroom door and listened for a few minutes. Satisfied the adults were still fast asleep the intruder slipped out of the window with the child in his arms and into the night.
The Centre – Research complex A91
Hamilton, DE
The night was clear and crisp; the only sounds were the rustling of leaves in the surrounding foliage by an intermittent breeze. The outer visage of the Hamilton facility gave any unsuspecting observer the uncomfortable impression of casual malevolence. It was built on a much smaller scale than the Blue Cove site and also shared its rococo styling but rather than lending an air of nostalgia seemed instead to bring into sharp focus the decadence of the long dead era. At the same time the intruder in Rhode Island was gaining entry into the Craig home, Ethan was sitting nervously alone in a dark van watching anxiously as his two married siblings and a corporate lawyer lithely scaled an electrified fence with the assistance of a tree that had been striped clean of all its lower branches. The human chain they created reminded him of something he had seen in a circus long ago and they performed their parts seamlessly. Unable to sit alone without being able to see his siblings, Ethan drove the van to a rise that would give him a unique vantage point to observe the side of the complex the other 3 were attempting to breach. Ethan parked the innocuous-looking rental van freshly adorned with license plates taken from a similar model that had been left rusting in a decrepit junkyard, along the side of the road. Dressed in all dark clothing he walked to the parkway side of the van and lifted a pair of high-tech field glasses to better track his insane loved ones.
He was surprised to see them already hugging the gunmetal colored side of the building and moving quickly along the perimeter where they would gain entry. At this distance, Ethan was unable to tell which form was Maggie and which was Naizen. They both were of the same general build and height, Jarod was easier, he carried no weapons on his back as the other two instead he had a large heavy backpack strapped to his back.
Ethan felt his body tense as he saw two burly security guards slowly approach the group. Dark figure #1 motioned to the others they had company and the trio flattened themselves against the stone building. As the guards approached, they almost immediately spotted the intruders. What followed was something Ethan had often seen on television but never in person. Dark figure #1 stepped forward, while the other Dark figure stood close to Jarod. The fight was quick and lethal, almost exactly the way it is depicted in Asian action-movies—only in this case no one was getting up after a second wind. After the guard's bodies were piled on top of each other and out of casual visual range, the three intruders continued towards their point of entry. Once they reached it, Jarod dropped into a squat. Once he succeeded in unstrapping the backpack from his back he quickly withdrew a few electronic gadgets and started working on the door. The two armed dark figures took up positions on either side of him and slowly started to fan out and away from Jarod.
The two dark figures were soon out of Ethan's general visual range and he had to choose one or the other to watch. Their dark clothing made tracking their movements very difficult. Occasionally, Ethan would look up to check if he had attracted any unwanted attention but was reassured when he noticed that he remained alone on the street. He was relying on his inner sense to warn him if anyone approached.
He quickly lifted the field glasses to his eyes again and found the dark figure on the left of Jarod was peeking around the corner and spotted two guards walking towards him. Ethan watched as Dark figure #2 reached for the sword strapped to his back and unsheathed it. This fight was different from the first. In this combat the dark figure had a distinct advantage and made full use of it. Waiting almost until the guards rounded the corner Dark figure #2 gracefully stepped into view, wielding the thin, razor sharp katana and with two lethal strikes brought down both guards.
Dark figure #1 continued down the wall and also spotted a pair of guards approaching. This part of the plan was anticipated; Maggie had told them that the guards had a ritual of passing each other to insure all was quiet and secure. Tonight that wasn't going to happen. This fight was much like the first, quick and decisive. The dark figure put the two guards down with a deadly efficiency Dark figure #2 didn't possess and without using the sword. However there must have been some noise because four guards were rushing towards this dark figure. The Dark figure waited patiently for the guards to approach. Two of the guards rushed at Dark figure #1 who stood stock-still. Only when the men were about 10 yards away did the dark figure drop into an effortless squat and fire a silenced weapon bringing down the first two guards. The other two seeing the fate of their colleagues were unable to alter their own forward momentum. Instead they split up instantly and dove out of the way of the bullets aimed at them.
Seemingly unperturbed, Dark figure #1 holstered the weapon and with reflexes Ethan could only admire in their quick gracefulness, sped towards the guard on the right and delivered a lethal percussive strike at the guard's chest, breaking most of his ribs and driving the bone shards into his heart muscle causing him to slump over. Never pausing, Dark figure #1 grabbed the guard's shoulder and immediately used his body as a shield. The silenced bullets from the guard opposite riddled the body of his colleague. Dark figure #1 then lifted the dead guard's hand and pointed it at the shooter, killing him instantly. As the first Dark figure was busily dragging the body of the human shield into the shadow of the building, all movement suddenly stopped. Dark figure #1 started visually scanning the immediate area as though looking for someone when a figure approached. This guard was apparently confident in his abilities because he withdrew a long chain and flicked it viciously at the Dark figure causing the other to leap backwards to avoid being hit. The guard then held up the chain obviously readying himself to finish off the intruder by using the chain as a garrote. Dark figure #1 stood up and faced the guard taking a few steps backward and relieved some neck tension with a head roll. This seemed to anger the guard who charged at his adversary and indeed looked to be in a position to overpower the other who then somersaulted out of the way and using the momentum of landing upright, drew the sword in the same motion and used it to break the chain of the guard who had followed the Dark figure's progress and was continuing the attack. The katana's blade easily cut the chain and Dark figure #1 finished the fight with on decisive downward strike that made the sword appear to be slicing through empty air instead of a human body.
A light tapping sound came through on the radio. The two combatants were being recalled by Jarod who was signaling that he was finally successful in gaining entry. The threesome met up at the now unsecured door and by obvious prior arrangement, Dark figure #1 accompanied Jarod inside while the other kept watch.
The inside of the facility was bathed in a muted light, much like the Centre's facility in Blue Cove. Jarod, with the help of the highly classified blueprints he was able to find buried deeply in the Centre's main annex computer, headed in the direction of the principle labs used in bio-genetic research. Jarod was impressive with his extensive knowledge of Centre security protocols. He anticipated every camera and every angle they covered. Jarod would often pause then sprint feverishly to avoid detection, occasionally using a small gadget in his hand to shine an intense light into the cameras sensors, temporarily blinding them.
Jarod had not given his personal security much thought as he ducked and darted his way to his ultimate goal. Fortunately the two figures stayed together. Jarod's guard never left his side and appeared to be more like his shadow than another person. Once they had reached their goal, Jarod got to work. He shrugged off his backpack again and reaching inside of it he retrieved what looked like an aerosol can. Shaking the can, he set it down on the floor and pulled a pin similar to the kind found in grenades. Immediately a white fog enveloped the hallway revealing an impenetrable web of invisible laser sensors. Undaunted Jarod used some of the same tactics the Triumvirate employed in circumventing Centre-Blue Cove security during their attempted theft of the scrolls.
Once a hole was created in the web, Jarod gingerly stepped through it and started to work on the security protecting the door. A few seconds later, he and his protector were inside a large open area. It was clear this was a working lab and surrounding the main area were smaller labs and offices rimming the perimeter. Having memorized the blueprints, Jarod walked confidently to one of the doors and repeated the process he used in the hallway with another canister of laser revealing fog.
When both intruders were inside one of the smaller labs, Jarod pointed with a gloved hand to his right and his protector immediately started off in that direction. Jarod stepped up to a massive refrigeration unit built into the wall of the lab. Opening the door he began to scan the interior and found several vials and containers of genetic material. This was the mother lode he had been searching for since he realized the direction of Raines' unchecked obsession. On the other side of the room his protector was messily rifling through files and was moving on to another, smaller refrigeration unit. A light tapping drew Jarod's attention and looking around, his protector, using sign language indicated that more genetic material had been found. Nodding his understanding, Jarod squatted again and began to set charges specially made by Ethan to completely obliterate his portion of the building. Once he was finished and the timers set on both sides of the room, Jarod jerked his head in the direction of the door. His protector thought otherwise and instead opened one of the genetic containers and spilled the milky substance all over the desktop, insuring their ultimate destruction. When most of the containers had been treated in the same way, both intruders hastily left the lab and continued their progress throughout the building.
Approximately 30 minutes later, just as they were nearing their point of egress, Jarod had the opportunity to see what his wife and her lawyer had been practicing in secret. Two guards appeared out of nowhere and seemed intent on blocking their exit. Jarod's protector stepped in front of him in a protective stance shoving both of their bodies in a sheltered alcove as the guard's bullets pinged harmlessly near. Jarod sensed his protector's movement and with a flick of the wrist a metal star embedded itself deeply in the forehead of one of the guards.
Hearing the commotion, the second protector approached and using a downward strike, severed the spine of the remaining guard. The second protector looking to the right dove ungracefully to the left, hitting the base of a decorative pedestal pillar and landing heavily on the floor. Jarod's protector had already killed the other guard by the time the second dark figure hit the floor. There was another steel star protruding evilly from his forehead.
Ethan was becoming worried and the fact the trio was a few seconds overdue didn't help his nerves. He had yet to see them emerge from the building and seeing Dark figure #2 enter in haste worried him further. When at last they all emerged, he noticed one Dark figure supporting the other. At the fence, Jarod was supported solely by only one of the Dark figures; the other appeared to be in pain. The human chain was reconstructed but this time with the help of a thick rubber mat—a contingency measure. Their progress was much slower this time and when the wounded Dark figure dropped to the ground without getting up independently, Ethan ran to the van and started it up—the engine flared to life instantly and he drove as quickly as he dared to pick up the intruders.
Ethan had the van cruising slightly above the speed limit when a loud klaxon started wailing its warning for all those inside the facility to evacuate. It would only give those inside 15 minutes before the first blast detonated. An involuntary smile creased his face as he thought of the hours he dedicated, at Mr. Raines' behest, in learning all the in's and out's of bomb making. These charges he designed with special care, unlike Jarod's charges for the Pennsylvania site, these lethal bombs would bring the whole complex down. The warning klaxon was Jarod's idea; he didn't want any unnecessary bloodshed.
Jarod removed his black ski mask and immediately set to work on the injured member of his team. He gingerly unwrapped the body from its protective vest and cut through the tightly weaved black cotton of the turtleneck, revealing a male chest experiencing labored breathing. Jarod was unable to suppress a deep sigh of relief once he removed the obscuring vest, to find this wasn't his wife's body and continued to probe Naizen's injured torso. He provided oxygen to the fallen man and his gentle experienced fingers discovered the several broken ribs Naizen sustained in his fall.
Jarod quietly taped Naizen's chest and checked his arms and legs, keeping the man conscious so he could indicate if there were any other injuries. Finding none, Jarod gave Naizen a shot of anesthetic and watched as the wounded man slipped into a comfortable slumber.
Looking up, Jarod stared at his wife's face. Her eyes had been glued to her prone friend; guilt and remorse were alive in her eyes. When she turned her sorrowful gaze to her husband, she saw admiration, love and something else she had thought she would never seen in him—caution. Jarod held her gaze for a few long seconds before hastily moving to her side of the van, he finished removing the hood she had partially pushed away from her face and kissed her deeply, holding on to her as if for dear life.