Killer Instinct
Chapter 9: The End Part One
Simon glanced across at her as she finished packing the remaining equipment into the black satchel laid out before her. He looked away as she returned the attention, feeling her gaze burning into him. He couldn't help but believe that somehow, she just knew. But he also knew that it was probably in his head. After all, around her, he never really could seem to keep his thoughts straight. He stared into the darkness of the bag in his hands. Mentally he checked off its contents before zipping it closed and turning to face her.
"Here, I wanted to give you this..." He trailed off as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a tiny yellow envelope the size of a matchbook. "Don't open it until we're at the bank, okay?"
She nodded as she slipped the envelope into her pants pocket. For a second she wondered what it was, but all thoughts of the yellow envelope escaped her as they left the house and headed outside. Two black vans were parked before them. Sydney couldn't help but notice just how obvious these vehicles were. She shrugged it off as she loaded the bags into the first van and took her seat in the front passenger seat. Within minutes they were off, driving towards there next destination. It wouldn't be long before the latest mission had been placed into action.
Vaughn stared at his computer screen. The words that glowed in front of him sent chills down his spine, but a cloud of doubt formed in his mind. Why would anyone associated with the Covenant want the CIA to know their plans? How could anyone be that close to the Covenant and steal information without being detected? And how did Vaughn know that the information was legitimate, and not some kind of trap. That was a dilemma they often had to face...Either risk the lives of agents to save the lives of others, or do nothing, and risk losing the lives of others. He read the message over and over as he waited for the higher ranks to form a decision.
The Covenant were going to attack a Swiss bank, and they had no interest in hostages...just casualties. Another chill shot down his spine. In that instant he reached a decision. His instincts told him that something wasn't right, and although he'd recently been shown just how wrong his instincts could be concerning a certain woman, he wasn't about to ignore it now. Regardless of the CIA's orders, he needed to go to the bank.
Simon leant back against the cool metal of the van's interior. He ran through the details of the operation through his mind, visualizing the folder and its contents, and then the other document which had only been seen by his eyes, and those of the person who'd written the orders. It seemed strange to him how such a small yellow envelope could contain such a document. In the years that had passed, a piece of paper had never seemed so important, so powerful and life threatening as that one had. He'd never cared before, and now that he did, he'd found new perspectives on his line of work. He looked down at the floor. Despite it all he still had a job to do, he still had orders to follow, and he was determined to get it done. Thoughts of the betrayal he would soon inflict meant nothing in comparison to the promises made. Simon would do his job, and he'd do it well.
Sydney glanced into the back of the van where Simon and two other men sat. He hadn't been able to look at her all day, she'd noticed it, and she wondered what was to come in the hours ahead. For one of the first times in her life she had no control over anything. She didn't know how this would turn out, and she didn't know whether she could trust him, or even trust herself. The surrounding landscape passed them in a blur as the van sped towards their rendezvous point. Soon it would all be over.
Sark sat within the richly furnished hotel room in front of the newly set up computer equipment. Several screens monitored the interior of the bank, from the bank's basement to the foyer; everything could be seen from his base far from the bank. Everything was in place. He began to grow anxious as the seconds counted down to the end of it all. The people around him continued to check and re-check the equipment, further adding to his irritation.
Beside him his cell phone began to ring. After 6 rings it stopped, and with the final ring the operation's commencement was confirmed. In no less than 2 minutes the plutonium would be within the bank, and in a few moments after the Covenant's message would be made known to the world.
The two black vans made their way through the busy streets as they inched closer and closer towards their fateful destination. Soon the bank was in sight and the two vans split from each other, one parking itself at the front entrance. The other turned into a tight fitting alley which ran alongside the bank's southern wall. The doors of the van slammed shut, the sound echoing throughout the surroundings as Simon, Sydney and the two other men loaded their gear and readied themselves for what was to come. The two men eyed Sydney, and she couldn't help but feel that they knew something that she didn't know. Simon had managed to hire another two men who had learned not the trust her.
"Can you get that bag?" Simon said as he zipped up his jacket, gesturing into the back of the van.
Syd nodded before climbing into the van. She felt the weight of the van shift as someone else entered the van. She grabbed the bag and turned to find Simon behind her.
"Here," she said as she handed it to him. He seemed to hesitate before taking the bag and throwing it to the two men outside.
He turned back to her, watching her as she took a step towards him, but he blocked her path. He gave a quick glance back to the two men before returning his attention to her. A smile formed at the edges of his mouth.
"I'm sorry, Julia." He said as he drew his arm back and punched her as hard as he could, his fist connecting to the side of her face. The two men watched as she crumpled to the floor, and as Simon handcuffed her to the metal railing within the van.
Sark watched on his monitor as three masked figures dressed entirely in black stormed into the bank's foyer. With their guns raised they ordered the people within to drop to the floor. They removed all weaponry from security and moved behind the counter, preventing any kind of alarm from being triggered. He smirked as he watched the events play out before him, only wishing that he was there with them, but the Covenant wished for him to oversee the operation, not take part in it.
He imagined Sydney at that point in time. The three within the bank were obviously the three men, Simon and the two others, indicating that Simon had followed orders and restrained Bristow in the back of the van, ready to be picked up by a third team which awaited his commands. He set them into motion as he continued to watch the monitor. Sark watched as Simon made his way down into the lower levels of the bank and began work on the large vault door. He then turned his attention to the adjacent monitor. All civilians had been gathered in the center of the foyer and guarded by the two men who had now been joined by the team from the second van.
Sark watched as he awaited the next phase of the operation. Simon soon had the vault door open and returned to the foyer. He then returned to the vault with another Covenant member and the plutonium, ready to set everything into place. The two disappeared from site as they entered the vault. Sark leant back in his seat. All he could do now was watch and wait.
Sark began to grow anxious as he waited for Simon to emerge from the vault and signal that everything was in place and ready to go. He looked down at his watch and remembered that soon the third team would have Sydney in custody, and not long after that she'd be in that room with him, ready to face her death. It disturbed him a little, knowing that soon she would be dead. He had a high level of respect for Sydney Bristow. It seemed like such a shame for her to be removed from the game, after all, she made things so much more interesting.
The third van pulled into the alley way. The men poured out of the vehicle with their weapons raised. They'd heard the stories about her, about what she was capable of, and they weren't willing to make any mistakes. Their task was simple. She'd already been restrained, they simply had to retrieve her and deliver her to Sark.But the most simple of tasks always seemed to be the ones that went horribly wrong. The five men surrounded the van; two covered the driver and passenger doors while 2 stood at each of the back doors, and the third in the middle, ready to open the doors.
In one swift motion all of them opened the doors and entered quickly, using the element of surprise if she had something planned. The team leader entered the rear of the van, his gun aimed directly at the seemingly lifeless body of Sydney Bristow. He edged forward, monitoringher body as he drew closer and closer until he was standing right beside her. She was out cold.The two others entered the van behind him, ready for anything as the leader carefully rolled her over.
"Oh God..." He then cursed as he realized that the body wasn't Sydney Bristow but was one of their team members.
"Then where the hell is she?" Another exclaimed.