MIA missing in action: An Alex Rider story. By v. cool ff

Episode 1

Sweat poured down his face. He gasped for breath, reaching out his hand, trying to grab hers. The train pulled away, with Sabina still on it. 'Goodbye, Alex. I'll write some time,' she called, over the high pitched squeals of the train. 'No! No!' screamed Alex, as the train moved further forward, and he fell down, face first, into blackness, blackness…

'Alex! Alex!' Someone was shaking him.

'Stop it,' moaned Alex, flinging his arm out in an attempt to stop the shaking. All he succeeded in doing was hitting his arm on the table and getting a burning sensation in his chest.

'Alex!' Hang on, he knew that voice… He sat up, nearly falling out of the bed for the pain of his wound. Then he slumped back into his bed. It was only Jack. Her red hair was scruffier than ever and her clothes had coffee stains down them.

She smiled. 'Hi Alex. You've been here for ages. 2 weeks. I've aged more than that, though,' she said, shrugging. Funny though it was, she did seem older. Her hair had grey streaks in it, and her face was developing wrinkles.

Alex took a deep breath. 'Jack, tell me. How long have I been in hospital for?'

Jack gave one of the saddest smiles Alex had ever seen. 'Alex, nothing was anyone's fault. The doctors tried all they could.'

'How long, Jack?'

'You were in a coma, you were lucky you came out at all...'

Alex's voice cracked. 'How long?'

'1 year 2 months,' Jack managed to blurt out, before several armed police officers burst into the room.

'Are you Alex Rider?' said the fattest one.

'Yes. What do you want?'

'My name is Sumors. Sergeant Sumors. Alex Rider, I am officially charging you with the theft of £20,000 sterling. You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you fail to mention anything you will later rely on in court.'

Alex stared at him open mouthed. Another policeman stepped out from behind him and handcuffed him to the bed. As he was doing so he said loudly 'You're coming with me, son!' but he then lent down and whispered 'Don't be fooled by appearances, Mr Rider.'

Jack looked about to protest, but then Sumors punched her so hard she fell to the floor, unconscious. He arranged her on the chair to look like she was asleep.

Alex tried to cry out, but someone's hand was on his mouth, and then he felt the syringe pierce his arm. He slowly dissolved down, spiralling into the darkness.

The men changed out of the police uniforms, and changed into white doctor coats. Sumors went into the adjacent room and brought out another bed. They crumpled up the duvet, and propped it up with pillows, making it look like a person really was sleeping there. Finally they injected a memory loss serum into Jack. 'She won't remember anything, boss,' a lanky man said to Sumors.

'Good. Now let's go.'

They left the room with Alex on the bed. They coved his head with the duvet. No one questioned them. They did look like real doctors. Every thing was precise. They even had stethoscopes around their necks and identity badges. They left the building, got into an ambulance driven by a crony, and put Alex inside as well. He wouldn't wake up for another 5 hours. They had plenty of time.

'Right boys,' yelled Sumons. 'Take off your masks now.' Every one of the men pulled at their neck, and their 'faces' came away with them. Smiling, Sumors sat back in his seat. 'And off we go,' he murmured. The ambulance hit the motorway at 80 mph with the lights flashing.

Mrs Jones walked into the hospital. She walked the short distance to the recovery ward, and then looked for room 14. She walked slowly, thinking how ironic that she had nearly been shot by the person who was shot. She got there 10 minutes later. She went into the room, with a big, fake smile on her face. And then stopped. Because Jack was lying on the floor, blood trickling down her forehead.

'Oh God no,' whispered Mrs Jones.

She ran to the bed, and pulled at the covers madly. But Alex wasn't there. She checked in the bathroom. Alex wasn't there either. She ran out of the bathroom, out of the bedroom, tears streaming down her face. She clutched at her bag, dragging out her mobile phone. She speed dialled Alan Blunt as she ran out of the hospital. It rang twice before she had got to her car, and five times before she had got in.

'Blunt.'

'Alan! Alex has gone missing!' Mrs Jones struggled to keep the panic out of her voice.

'Ahh. How bad.' Blunts voice was emotionless.

'How bad?' screamed Mrs Jones. 'Alan, if you don't find him I'll, I'll…'

'You'll what?' said Blunt, humour creeping into his voice.

'I'll, I'll quit!'

Silence. Then 'Where are you?'

'In the hospital car park,' whispered Mrs Jones.

'I'll see you at headquarters in ten minutes. The meeting will start then. Understand?'

'Yes.' The word came out as barely audible.

'Mrs Jones?'

'Yes?'

'We'll find him.' Blunt said before hanging up.

Ten minutes later, Mrs Jones was sitting at a table, with some of the most important people in the country. Her red puffy eyes were still noticeable.

Blunt barked at the table. 'Right. We have code red. Alex Rider needs to be found. We don't know why precisely he was taken, but we do have one major suspect of who took him.'

'Scorpia,' whispered Mrs Jones.

Everyone at the meeting stared at her. Blunt nodded his head.

'Yes. We believe Rider was taken by Scorpia. We have no idea why, but we know we can't use the Albert Bridge trick again. We have no important figures, or any that would work for us. We need to find Al…I mean Rider, infiltrate the plant, and give him a chance of escape. We have no other possible way. Are there any questions?'

Blunt stared at the room of solemn faces. Slowly a weedy man in a black suit raised his hand.

'How are we going to find Rider? If it was Scorpia who took him, the job will be very thorough. No finger prints, DNA, witnesses…'

'That's where you're wrong.' Smiled Blunt.