24:Deadly Game
The following takes place between 9:00 AM and 10:00AM.
Jack Bauer exited his SUV and looked out at the wreckage before him. Hammond was slumped over in the drivers' seat of his pickup, a nasty gash running across his forehead. He started to stir, so Jack pulled out his USP. The bottom of the gun was very thick, so two clips could fit inside. One clip was regular bullets, while the other were the special nerve toxin ones. Jack flicked a switch on the gun, switching over to the nerve bullets. He pointed the gun at the groggy Hammond. Jack was the first to speak.
"Don't move Mike!"
Hammond looked up and spoke very slowly, "What the hell are you doing, Jack?"
"They have Kim, Mike. I have to do this, or they'll kill her."
"Do what? What do you have to do?"
Jack sighed, aimed, and fired. A small dart shot out of the gun and struck Hammond in the right shoulder. His body began to twitch, and Hammond looked at Jack with a look of being betrayed. His mentor had turned on him, and it hurt like hell. When the twitching stopped, he found he could not move a muscle, even if he wanted to. He began to scream at Jack.
"Jack, you son of a b!itch! How could you do this? Jack! Jaaaccck!," he yelled as Jack walked back into his car, pulled back from the wreckage, and drove on toward his objective.
Davis picked up his phone and dialed Hammonds cell. It started to ring, and it continued to do so. Why the hell wasn't he answering? He slammed down the phone, frustrated. This was his one chance to nail Jack Bauer, and it looked like it was going down the drain.
Chase entered his apartment slowly after noticing that the door was ajar. Kim always locked the door, why hadn't she done so today? He looked around the main hallway, the looked into the bedroom. On the bed was Angela, playing by herself. Where was Chloe? Chase looked behind him, into the open closet. On the floor was the dead body of Chloe, her throat slit all the way across. Chase gasped and fell back onto the bed in shock. It was then he began to put the pieces together. There were signs of a struggle. The lamp had fallen over on the dresser, and Kim's work clothes were crumpled up on the floor. There was also a strange smell in the air. It smelled like chloroform. My God, he thought, what had happened to Kim?
9:05:23
Jack was speeding down the street when his cell phone rang. He plucked it out of his pocket and looked to see who it was. It was Kate. My God, he thought. He had forgotten all about her. He had left her in bed earlier; she must be worried about him. He answered the phone.
"Hey Kate."
"Hi honey. Where did you go?"
"I had to go into work, it was urgent. It was about that bombing today at the bank."
"Oh, when will you be back?"
"I don't know yet. Won't be too long," Jack lied.
"Ok, I'll be waiting," Kate said with a smile. "I love you, Jack."
Jack hesitated for a moment before saying, "I love you too."
He hung up and increased speed, heading on towards CTU. In a way, he dreaded when he was to arrive there. How would he do this? How could he do this? Jack shook his head, trying to clear those thoughts away.
Southern Tajikistan Middle EastSand blew around the small town in Southern Tajikistan. A storm was brewing on the horizon; a sandstorm that would swipe over the region very soon. This did not bother Jalil Hamat, who strode through the center of town, brushing past several people walking in his direction. Jalil had dark skin and a fair build, and was wearing sophisticated clothes that looked out of place with the people around him. He was headed towards a building that would be coming up on his right very soon. It was hard to see in the blowing sand, but he eventually made it there. He knocked on the front door of a very dingy building and waited for a response. The door opened a crack, and he saw a pair of eyes peeking out at him. The eye man spoke.
"Yes?"
"I'm here to speak with Kahal. He called me here on a matter of high importance."
"Are you Jalil?"
"Yes."
"Come in," the eye man said as he opened the door fully. Jalil entered the dark building, and the eye man closed the door behind him. Jalil looked around and saw a flight of stairs leading upward. The man ushered him towards these.
"Right this way."
Jalil followed him as they ascended the stairwell. When they reached the top, his guide made a right and walked down a dark hallway. There was a slightly ajar door on the left, which the guide knocked on. He called trough the crack.
"Kahal, Jalil is here to speak with you. He says you have an appointment."
A voice called from inside, "Yes, let him in."
The guide put his arm out, as if to permit Jalil to enter, and he did just that. He pushed the door open and entered. A man was seated in a chair, his back to Jalil. The chair was facing the open window, and the man was looking out it. Jalil slowly approached the chair.
"Kahal, you asked me here?"
The man spoke, still facing the window.
"Yes, Jalil, I did. You are aware of the situation currently going on in Los Angeles?"
"I am."
"Well, two of our men have gone down already. One from his own bomb, which I am very proud of, and the other from the incomparable Jack Bauer."
"Ah, he's meddling in our affairs again, I see."
"He ruined our nuclear bomb plot 4 years ago. We supplied it to our Second Wave friends in Los Angeles. We wont make that mistake again. Today will go down as our proudest day. We have a more dependable man in Los Angeles now that we can easily work with."
"From what I heard, Kahal, he is playing games with Bauer."
"Yes, I know. That was part of our deal. He gets to have his fun with Bauer now, while our "main event" comes later."
"Where is the device now?"
"It's about to head off to Los Angeles, my friend. When it arrives, I will instruct our man to take the plan to it's second phase. As a matter of fact, I scheduled to call him at 9:30 their time. I called you here to ask you if you would like to join this effort, and to give Allah the show of thanks he rightfully deserves."
Jalil stood for a moment, thinking this over. "My family must be left out of this."
"Of course, my friend, of course."
"Than we are together, side by side," Jalil said as he approached Kahal and put his hand on his shoulder. Kahal put his hand up on Jalil's and they shook, now together in this plan.
Chase exited the apartment in a sweat. He was now very worried. Kim could be in trouble. He whipped out his cell and punched in Davis' number. When he picked up, Chase spoke first.
"John, we got a problem."
"What is it now?"
"Kim is gone. I have no clue where she is."
"I thought she was still here."
"No, we had an argument and she walked out. I thought she came back to our apartment, so I came here to apologize and she's gone."
"So, she could have gone somewhere else."
"No, John, when I came back Angela was here. Left home alone. Kim would never do that. Plus, there was a heavy smell of chloroform in the air," Chase said as he entered his own SUV and drove off.
"Well, what do you want me to do Chase? I got major problems here myself. Bauer is off doing god knows what, and we may have a possible mole here, so find a way to deal with this yourself."
"How could you say that? Her life could be at stake!"
"As I said, find a way to deal with it yourself."
Davis hung up, and Chase threw his phone onto the seat beside him.
"Damnit!"
9:12:43
9:12:44
9:12:45
9:17:34
9:17:35
9:17:36
Jack pulled into the CTU parking lot, his heart beating rapidly. The time had come. The question now was: could he do it? His phone rang and he picked it up. The familiar voice spoke first.
"Ah, Jack. I see you have arrived at CTU."
"How do you know that?"
"Oh, I know lots of things. You have my permission now to plant the bomb. Do I need to remind you what will happen if you don't?"
Jack stayed silent.
"I take your silence means you understand. Place it in the transformer room. Expect a call when the deed is done."
The man hung up. Jack sat in silence for a second, then pulled the car around to the back of the building. He picked up the briefcase with the bomb inside and got out, looking up at the roof. It wasn't too far up, so his plan would work. Before he did anything, though, he realized that it was not too late to back out. But he realized if he did, his only daughter, his Kim, would die a horrible death at the hands of this man. Jack then resigned himself to his decision reluctantly, and pulled out the grapple gun he got from Jeffries. He couldn't just walk in to CTU through the front if he wanted to get away with this without going to jail. He would have to take an alternate way, and that way was the roof. He aimed the gun upward and pulled the trigger. A long hypertension rope shot out with a hook attached to the end, and the hook eventually attached itself to the roof. Jack tugged back on the gun, making sure it was secure. When he was satisfied, he depressed a button on the gun and held on tightly as he began to raise upward. It was amazing how Jeffries made this stuff. His inventions helped many field - ops agents around the world. But if he died in this explosion, he couldn't help anybody anymore. Actually, many valuable people would die if this bomb were to explode. He tried to blot that out of his head however, as he reached the roof. He put his hand on the railing at the top and pulled himself up. He landed on the roof, then detached the hook from the roofs edge and put the grapple gun back on his belt. There was a door on the roof that led down to the back of CTU. He would use that to gain access. When he approached the door and tried to open it, he realized it was locked. He walked backward, then plowed forward with his right shoulder and rammed it open. Then Jack began to descend the stairwell into the bowels of CTU.
Davis sat in front of his laptop, still waiting for the amplification to complete. It was taking too damn long, he thought. He was sick of waiting, so he pushed away from his desk and got up, crossing the room to the glass door. He exited, and walked down the stairs back to the floor. He saw Michelle walk in front of him and he stopped her.
"Hey, can you take over for me for a little bit? I can't get hold of Hammond, and I'm starting to get worried?"
"Ya, no problem. Why are you worried, though?"
"I sent him to look after Jack. He was supposed to give me frequent updates, but he hasn't called in even once yet."
"Ok, just send me over all the things on your system."
"Sure thing," Davis said as he went back upstairs. If he were to look down at that precise moment, he would have seen Jack Bauer peek out from the darkness of the hallway next to the stairs. He was looking out at the main floor, scanning the room to see who was in the building. He was sweating uncontrollably under the pressure of the situation. All of these people would die in this explosion, every one of them. He shook his head, and turned around, heading towards the room he had to plant the bomb in. Ironically, it was the room his wife had died in years earlier. He opened the door that led to the hallway, and he walked down it, looking to his right for the room. He spotted it, and walked inside. It was dark, as usual, which suited him well. He walked over to the wall, and put the briefcase on the ground, opening it. He looked at the bomb for a moment, then pulled it out of the casing. He placed it on the wall, where it stuck do to the adhesive on the back of the device. He pushed down a button, and watched as a red display appeared and began to blink. He had five minutes to get out. The device beeped rhythmically, and Jack turned around and walked out. He headed back towards the stairs he came in through.
9:25:35
The man dressed all in black positioned himself on the roof of a building across the street from CTU. From this vantage point, he would have a perfect shot. He opened his duffel bag he had slung over his shoulder and began to assemble his sniper rifle. It was a very meticulous process, and he had to be sure he did it correctly or there would be some serious consequences. His orders were to kill this man, this Jack Bauer. He had been hired to do it, and was going to get a hefty sum when he was finished. But he had to be sure he didn't screw up. Bauer was a very capable agent. He wasn't going to be a pushover. The rifle was now assembled, so he aimed it toward the back of CTU, where Bauer would be appearing in just moments.
Michelle Dessler was ready to take over as Director of CTU for a few hours while John was gone. She had done it before, when Tony was here. Her Tony.....she stopped herself. She couldn't think about that. It would only depress her further. She headed toward the transformer room; that dreaded room where many things have happened. She heard that Jack's wife had died in that room. That also was the room that Nina Myers was killed in. That had a slight bit of irony to it, seeing as she was the person that killed Jacks wife. She pushed open the door, and walked in. There was a computer in there she needed to get to. She saw it in the center of the room. This computer had information on it that only the Director of CTU could access. If she was going to take over, she would have to be updated, and this computer would help to update her. She approached it, and that was when she noticed the bomb. She froze in terror, unable to move.
Jack was on the roof. He pulled out his grapple and shot it at the roof's edge, and lept off, the cable eventually going taut. When it did, he was able to walk down the side of the building the rest of the way. He reached the ground, them turned around and looked back at the building. He had saved his daughter, but there was an empty feeling left inside him instead of a feeling of accomplishment. All of those people dead. People he knew. Who was he kidding? He could not do this, no matter what was at stake. He could not sacrifice these people for just one life, even if that life was his daughters. Jack had now made up his mind. He began to sprint back around the building, to the front. There was only seconds left, he knew. Seconds to save those lives. Seconds to correct an unpardonable sin.
Michelle was still in the transformer room, attempting to yell out, but finding herself unable to do so. She was absolutely terrified.
Jack ran through the front doors, screaming.
"There's a bomb, get out of the building!," he screamed. The security guard behind the desk stared at Jack in confusion.
"Jack? What are you talking about?"
"Theres a bomb, Paul! Let me in!"
Paul had no choice but to comply, if what he was saying is true. That was when he heard a thunderous boom.
Davis was right at the door when the bomb exploded. He was expecting it, due to what his employer had told him. He cursed at himself for not leaving earlier. He began to sprint out of the building, passing by Jack and Paul in the front lobby. They didn't even see him go by. They both stood staring in horror at what was happening. The entire main room was going up in a ball of flame, and it was spreading to the lobby. John got out just in time before the whole building went up. The force of the explosion shot him through the glass doors and rolling down the front ramp. When he landed in the parking lot, he looked to his left and saw Jack had been flung out as well. But he wasn't in such good shape. He had a bloody gash down his face, and looked to be unconscious. Davis got up and limped towards his car, leaving the shell of CTU behind him.
9:32:21
9:32:22
9:32:23
9:39:32
9:39:33
9:39:34
His cell rang, and the man who was playing games with Jack Bauer answered.
"Yes?"
"It's Kahal."
"Ahh, Kahal, how are you my friend?"
"Let's dispense with the pleasantries. The device is due to arrive at eleven. Be ready for it at the dockyards, pier 23."
"Understood. When should I make the call to the authorities?"
"After you secure the device."
"Sounds good."
Kahal disconnected, and so did the man.
Jack slowly opened his eyes. He knew what had happened. They were all dead. All of them. He got to his knees and looked up at the flaming wreckage before him. He had caused this, it was all his fault. He had failed them all. Tears began to stream down his face as the full force of the disaster hit him. That was when he heard a shot go right by his head. It never ends, does it? He got up, putting his hands behind his head. That was it. Whoever was shooting at him, he would let them kill him. He had had enough. He had caused enough pain and suffering, it was time for him to be put out of his misery.
The man on the roof saw Jack run around to the front before, and had to run fast to position himself on top of the building across from the front. Now he had Jack squarely in his sights. He aimed right at his head, and his finger hovered over the trigger. But he stopped. There was no challenge in this. He was letting him kill him. There was no fun in that. Unacceptable, the man thought. He pulled out his phone and dialed his employers number.
The man sat in the warehouse, staring at Kim, who was still strapped down to her chair. Maybe he could have a little fun with her before he let her go. Rogan was out of the room, so he could get away with it. Then his phone rang. He looked to see who it was, and it read "Johnathan", who was also known as Martin Belkin in some circles. There must be a problem, he thought. He answered.
"What is it now?"
"We have a problem, Max. You said you wanted me to hunt Bauer, correct? Play with his mind, then kill him?"
"Yes."
"Well, he's letting me kill him. He has his hands on his head, waiting for me to shoot him. He knows I'm here."
"Alright, I'll take care of it."
Max hung up and walked into the light, revealing the man who was behind the nuclear bomb some years ago. He is looking a little bit older now, but has retained his youthful vigor. He pulls a switchblade out of his pocket and approaches Kim, who is still tied down. He also pulls out his phone, and dials Bauer's number.
Jack was still standing with his hands on his head, defeated. His phone rang; he knew who it was. There was no point in answering, he thought. But then he thought of Kim. He reached inside his jacket and picked up the phone.
"Jack? It's me again."
"I give up, you win."
"Im surprised Jack. Since when does the almighty Jack Bauer give up? Sorry to inform you Jack, but you wont have that luxury now. I have a knife to your daughters' throat as we speak, and I will drag it all the way across her face if you don't continue playing my game."
Jack sat in silence.
"Do you care, Jack? Because I will do this. I damn well will."
"Fine, I'll run. If she is harmed in any way though, rest assurred, I will kill you."
"That's very nice Jack. Now go!"
Jack hung up and ran around the back of the building, towards his car. Johnathan, meanwhile, saw this and leapt off of the low roof, landing on the top of his red pickup. He jumped into the drivers seat and drove off, in pursuit of Jack.
9:46:54
Chase was pulling into CTU's parking lot when he saw the huge plume of smoke rising up into the sky. When he reached the parking lot, he saw the flaming mess that used to be his workplace. At first he was in complete shock, sitting there in his car, his mouth wide open. Then he finally worked up the strength to exit his car and approach the building. He heard faint screams coming from under the wreckage. He had to help them. He sprinted towards the ruins, and began to pull away pieces of the building, trying to get to the source of the screams.
Jack was racing down the highway, going at least 90. He knew this killer was on his tail, and that he would not stop until he was dead. Now that Jack had begun running again, the man would now go in for the kill, no question. Jack looked at his rearview and saw the killer's red pickup, the one that had been following him all this time. That was when the idea struck him. Jack whipped out his USP, and flicked it over to real bullets. He was going to nail this son of a b!tch, and he was going to do it for all the people at CTU, and for his daughter. Jack increased his speed even more, sharply turned the wheel to the left, and sent the car into a 180 spin right in the middle of the highway. He put his gun out the window and began to shoot off rounds at the killer, who he now saw was the man he knew as Martin Belkin. Cars around him all swerved to get out of the way of the two vehicles. Martin had pulled out his own handgun and was shooting at Jack as well. Rounds shattered both of their windshields, the glass shooting all over the highway. Jack was now coming straight at Belkin, and they both slammed into each other. The collision seemed to have a sticking effect on the cars, as they both were stuck together at their fronts. Both cars shot off of the highway and through a high metal fence at the bottom. The cars then went straight down a hill, causing Belkin's car to flip over and over again as it tumbled down the hill. Jack's stayed upright miraculously. Finally, Belkin's car came to rest at the bottom of the hill. Jack's car was still coming down, however, and it slammed into Belkin's. The car flipped once more, while Jack's car came to rest close by. Silence overtook the area, as no movement could be seen from both cars. Then, the door to Jack's car flung open, and he stumbled out. He still had the USP clutched in his right hand, on his way to Belkin's car. When he reached it, he aimed the gun at the drivers side door, which was twisted and hanging off of the side of the car.
"Belkin! Stay down, or I will kill you!"
It was then Jack realized that the car was empty. Suddenly, a shot rang out, striking a tree beside him. Belkin must have jumped out of the vehicle before it started flipping. He was now running down the hill, shooting off rounds at Jack. Jack dived behind a nearby tree as more shots went off around him. Jack poked his head out and fired at Belkin, seeing his shots bounce off of the dirty ground all around him. Belkin got behind his flaming, upside down car and pulled a grenade out of his pocket. He pulled the top off with his teeth and threw it at the tree Jack was behind. Jack saw it land beside him.
"Oh sh!t."
Jack sprang up and ran to some boulders nearby. The grenade exploded, turning the tree into burning ambers. Belkin pulled out another handgun and began to shoot both of them off at Jack. He stopped for a moment.
"You can't escape this Jack. I do this for a living!", Belkin yelled.
"And I kill scumbags like you for a living!," Jack yelled back.
He then shot up and began to shoot at Belkin again, this time running at him as he did so. He had turned reckless, and was determined to end this now. Belkin put on a look of shock and he began to run away, shooting as he did so. Shockingly, none of his shots hit Jack. Jack leapt over Belkin's car and tackled him to the ground, aiming his gun at his skull. Belkin was now on the ground, with Jack on top of him. Belkin elbowed Jack in the stomach, and he fell off of Belkin, holding his chest in pain. Belkin had dropped his guns when Jack tackled him, so he reached out and grabbed Jack's fallen gun. He aimed it at Jacks head.
"Ah, it looks like I have the advantage now Jack."
Jack slowly got up, hands on his head.
"Shall I just kill you right here, right now? Or should I give you a slow, painful death worthy of useless garbage like you?"
Unbeknownst to Belkin, Jack was ever so slightly moving his hips to the right, loosening the pouch of coin grenades given to him by Jeffries on his belt. Finally, they fell off and Jack quickly grabbed the pouch and pulled one out. Belkin was confused by the action, so he didn't shoot. Jack held the coin out in front of him.
"See this, Martin? This may look like a coin to you, but it's a grenade. Made by our friends in the tech department of the very building you bstards made me blow up. If this touches the ground, it will explode."
"You're bluffing, Jack. It's just a coin. What your saying is impossible."
"Oh really? Want to test it? You like to play games, right? You and you're friend have been playing one with me all morning. Lets play one now. The explosive charge in this coin will only go off if it lands on tails. I flip it, and if it lands on tails, you're dead. If it lands on heads, you get to shoot me. How's that sound to you?"
"Turning the tables now, are you Jack? Let's do it," Belkin said, lowering the gun for a moment. He had a worried look on his face.
Jack stared at him for a second, met his eyes with his in a tense standoff. Belkin was beginning to sweat, but Jack was perfectly calm.
"I flip on the count of three."
Jack stared for a little longer, then:
"One........two........three."
Jack flipped the coin. It seemed to hang in the air for a moment before it hit the ground. It was heads. Belkin began to laugh.
"Hahahaha. Looks like you...."
The coin exploded, shooting Belkin backward and slamming him against his wrecked car. Jack stood up from the boulder he had jumped behind.
"Heads. You lose," Jack smirked.
Chase was still pulling away rubble, trying to get to the source of the screams. He had just got done dialing 911. The authorities were on their way. He knew he would need help here. He couldn't do this all by himself, obviously. He just hoped that at least someone survived this.
John Davis had just hung up with Max, telling him everything was under control when it definitely wasn't. His cover may have been blown. Jack could have seen him leave CTU. But he had to put that behind him now, because now he had to go to the dockyards to intercept the device that Max wanted him to get. This device was the main focus of today's events, and he had to make sure he got this right.
Kim was still tied up in the chair in the abandoned warehouse with the two mysterious men who had kidnapped her. She had to find a way to get out of this, just in case her dad couldn't save her this time.
Jack slowly approached the fallen Belkin. He had recovered his USP and was now aiming it at his head.
"Don't move Martin. It's over."
Belkin slowly raised his head. Blood covered his entire face.
"Go on Jack. Kill me. I deserve it. I trusted my adversary, and that is an inexcusable mistake."
Jack placed his gun to the man's forehead. Belkin put on a look of defiance as Jack pulled back the hammer. His finger tightened over the trigger, ready to end his pathetic life. But then, Jack lowered the gun.
"No, I'm not going to kill you. I'm going to let you live. Live with all of the lives you have ended...and destroyed. But rest assured, you will help me find your employer."
"Ha. I'll never talk."
"Really? I said I wouldn't kill you. That dosen't mean I wont put you through so much pain you wish you were dead."
Belkin looked up at Jack in shock as he began to walk toward him, blotting out the sun.
9:59:57
9:59:58
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10:00:00