The Royal Albert Hall
21:40 GMT+1 (20:40 GMT July 21st)
Time To Detonation: 20 minutes
Team Victor Charlie, Alpha Troop
Charlie Tango Zero-Two/Zero-Six
Team Victor Charlie
The concert was well under way in the hall above.
The patriotic finale was building up and a rousing parade of typically British patriotic songs was well underway. The conductor had received a curt order over his earpiece to: 'Keep Calm and Carry On!' as it was deemed safer to keep every one of the 5,500 guests inside. The current tune, just beginning, was 'Rule Britannia'.
When Britain first, at heaven's command,
Arose from out the azure main,
Arose, arose from out the azure main!
This was the charter,
The charter of the land,
And Guardian Angels sang this strain.
The Axis had mobilised to entrap the Royal Marines below and at best cause mayhem to thwart the opportunity for disarming the nuclear device. Only they had not counted on Vengeance. Glide and Prowl felled two men on the Gallery (level five) as the rousing music from the main hall below drowned out the sounds of the suppressed gunfire. Vengeance as a whole moved forwards, deadly accurate gunfire spitting from their raised weapons as the bullets cut down anyone in their path. Ajax and Nemesis were moving through the Second Tier (level two) outside the boxes, taking down the gunmen all while avoiding any guests who left their private boxes.
Rule, Britannia! Britannia, rule the waves!
Britons never, never, never shall be slaves.
Rule, Britannia! Britannia, rule the waves!
Britons never, never, never shall be slaves.
Nobody in the main hall above noticed as a grenade was thrown by the Axis on the Ground Floor (level zero), detonating violently against a wall, killing two CTSF officers in a bloody explosion before their colleagues cut down three of the enemy in return.
The nations not so blest as thee
Must, in their turn, to tyrants fall,
Must in their turn, to tyrants fall.
While thou shalt flourish great and free:
The dread and envy of them all.
NIGHTSHADE
The dark waters had come closer and closer as Scorpion had tried her utmost, but she could not keep the stricken helicopter on an even keel and the wayward machine turned into little more than a fourteen-tonne paperweight with about as much airworthiness.
The fourteen-tonne helicopter struck the waves, wrecking the nose radar, and wallowed even as Goshawk manually deployed the flotation bags in an effort to keep the battle-damaged helicopter afloat and then the undercarriage to try and balance the topweight of the still-spinning rotor blades. Bute fate intervened and it happened – one of the five BERP rotor tips struck a wave and then the next and the next. The helicopter began to capsize to port even as the main composite rotor blades shattered when they struck the thicker water, spinning off at a tangent into the darkness. The helicopter was quickly on its port side very quickly and the cabin was flooding with cold salty water. Goshawk could feel the panic welling up inside her as the surprisingly cold seawater crept up her body even as she sat strapped in her seat. She had hated the dunk tank training at Yeovilton, but she knew that it had been essential to help her survive a crash such as they were experiencing at that moment.
Her training kicked in and her left hand grasped the cabin door release beside her while her right gripped her seat harness release. The seawater was gurgling in via bullet and shrapnel holes as well as through ventilation panels and door openings. Goshawk started to hyperventilate as the cold water rose to within inches of her face and at an increasingly distressing angle as the helicopter did not stop rolling and went for the full inversion taking Goshawk, Scorpion, and Chief under the dark cold salty waters of the Thames Estuary but then the helicopter came to a reluctant rest but remained afloat, gently moving on the waves, supported by the four giant yellow inflatable bladders fore and aft.
Goshawk yanked at the door release and the pins withdrew, releasing the escape hatch which with a punch of her gloved left hand began to fall into the depths. Her right hand violently twisted her seat harness release and she felt herself lifting out of her seat by the air trapped in her exposure suit. It felt like minutes had passed but in reality, they had been inverted for just eighteen seconds. Then a thought struck her and she fumbled along the back of the centre console and found a covered switch which she flipped open and she stabbed the red button beneath. Then she looked over at Scorpion who raised her right hand and her right thumb indicating upwards.
Goshawk swam out of the cockpit and then found herself on the surface beside the inverted NIGHTSHADE.
..._...
Widow fought against the drowning sensation keeping death at arm's length for as long as possible.
Then, just as her vision began to darken at the edges a shadow came into view and something was forced between her lips. Then she coughed as she found air forced into her lungs and she also felt a hand at her stomach as the harness straps were released and she was pulled out of her seat. A gloved hand guided her to where a window was partially dislodged and the same gloved hand punched out the window which sank out of view. She was pushed headfirst through the opening and she quickly found herself on the surface. She opened her mouth to breath in real air and dropped the small air bottle she had used to escape the helicopter. With help from the waves, she was hauled aboard the belly of the aircraft by a tall woman who had to be the pilot. She saw the other pilot being helped onto the belly of the aircraft by the same man who had assisted her earlier inside the aircraft before the crash.
She slumped against one of the landing gear and then began to vomit.
..._...
The Merlin helicopter known as NIGHTSHADE was totally inverted with her tricycle undercarriage sticking forlornly straight up and the bright yellow inflation bags deployed, supporting the helicopter on the surface.
Also clearly visible were her empty weapons pylons and it was not a pretty sight. Goshawk was not comfortable with the rocking motion of their floating helicopter which rolled and pitched both calmly and then violently with every sixth or seventh wave. Despite their precarious situation, none of the trio had inflated their lifejackets due to their flamboyant nature of illuminous yellow and orange with a flashing strobe light – that was because of the enemy whom they knew had to be out there in the darkness . . . somewhere.
Goshawk yelled out a warning as her keen eyes caught a flash of light off in the darkness just before cannon rounds struck the water beside the inverted helicopter and the ominous sounds of racing rotor blades could be heard – it was the Tiger.
The Tiger turned tightly to make another run and strafe the crew even as they huddled on the belly of their upturned helicopter.
..._...
In the darkness, they could make out the silhouette of the Tiger as it closed to destroy them once and for all.
Goshawk and Scorpion each pulled a soggy Glock 17 pistol from their flight suits and began firing at the inbound attack helicopter. Chief joined in with his L22 carbine which he had brought with him during his escape. Their bullets were not expected to even find the helicopter, yet alone damage it – but they had to try, despite being all but soaked to the skin and standing on the belly of their inverted helicopter. Then Chief was surprised as a bright flash seemed to race towards the Tiger from far behind them and then they were all surprised as the Tiger was struck by two missiles in rapid succession and disassembled by the combined explosive forces of the warheads with the remnants of the attack helicopter dropping into the sea some two hundred yards away from them.
Then came the ear-splitting sound of twin EJ200 gas turbines at full military power as a Typhoon fighter jet streaked overhead punching out a dozen flares which lit up the waters for miles around.
TWILIGHT
The darkness was relentless and finding the wreckage in the sea was to be nigh on impossible but then...
"Ratchet Four: Fox Two! Ratchet Four: Fox Two!"
The mid-air explosion was impossible to miss in the darkness.
"Splash one Tiger! Orbiting crash site. I have sight of inverted helicopter at crash site. I count four: one – two – three – four survivors on the fuselage. I have a lifeboat at one mile west of crash site. Marking with flares."
"Thank God!" Raptor announced.
He had the lifeboat on radar and he monitored the contact as it slowed and began to circle a position four miles southeast of them.
Waterloo Station
Team Victor Bravo, Team Foxtrot Two, Team Hotel One
Charlie Tango Zero-Eight/One-Zero/One-Two
Intrepid lay on her right side, her left leg a mass of blood as she fired her pistol down the escalators which descended to the Jubilee Line platforms five and six.
Crimson and the wounded Arbiter provided supporting fire while La Terreaur, La Coccinelle and Le Chat Noir stormed past and lobbed stun grenades down said escalators. They waited precisely eight seconds while the metallic cylinders clattered down the frozen steps before the grenades detonated and the three French vigilantes leapt down the escalator with Shadow and Scamp barrelling down a neighbouring escalator. Bullets erupted out of the dust cloud which billowed from every nook and cranny of the underground facility. For the defenders, the dust was opaque and prevented any sign of impending doom. For doom was closing on them and one person had a personal score to settle. Out of the looming cloud and the semi-darkness came a small form flying through the air and what light there was glinted upon a pair of perfectly honed blades which were already mottled with semi-dried blood.
The first mercenary simply saw the ceiling and then the floor as his head was severed from his neck. His vision remained until all blood seeped from his brain and he never felt the impact of his head striking the concrete of platform six. The explosive vomiting of blood from the headless body caused a certain amount of consternation amongst the remaining mercenaries as they attempted to dodge the fiery hot bloody fountain which lent a rich coppery tinge to the dried air. That scent was like a red rag to a bull as the pint sized terror sought to kill, maim, and destroy. The youngster was not in a forgiving mood as she slashed with her blades, accurately. Limbs and blood were removed/extracted from the living and the soon to die were encouraged further down that path as Shadow tidied up with her pistol and bō-staff, following along behind her daughter.
The glass doors which ran along the full length of the platform were opaque with blood in places which was fresh and dribbled down the glass. Bullets flew but few connected with anything important as the target was both small and fleeting as it dodged and twisted. Her favoured tactic as to pounce and punch her target in the face multiple times with her gauntlets before then slashing open the neck and chest cavity, her blades easily slicing through some of the lighter armour and stab vests. The trauma was always fatal if not always causing a timely death, leaving the stricken man or woman to fall prey to Shadow. La Coccinelle provided support with Le Chat Noir as they dropped anybody who attempted to interfere with what Shadow had darkly referred to as 'Scamp's therapeutic blood letting'.
While Scamp was 'blood letting' to soothe her loss, Crimson and La Terreaur had tracked down the endgame.
NIGHTSHADE
The Trent class lifeboat had approached them at twenty-five knots.
The volunteer Royal National Lifeboat Institution crew prepared to come alongside the inverted helicopter as the coxswain circled the site and gauged a safe approach. It was not the first time the twenty-year veteran coxswain had rescued the crew from a downed helicopter but it was the very first time that the helicopter crew being rescued had been in combat at the time of the ditching not to mention the entire lifeboat crew having witnessed the destruction of another helicopter by a Royal Air Force fighter jet which was orbiting overhead. Three of the four flight crew huddled on the belly of the inverted helicopter wore military exposure suits and were armed with pistols and what looked like a small assault rifle. A salvage tug was just departing London Thamesport up the River Medway to recover the helicopter at first light.
The orange and blue painted lifeboat came alongside the downed helicopter and a lifeboat man leapt aboard NIGHTSHADE with a rope in his hands to hold the lifeboat alongside just long enough for Chief to assist Scorpion, Widow, and then Goshawk aboard. Then NIGHTSHADE was cast off to drift alone. For a few moments, the three vigilantes watched their aircraft slide out of sight with pangs of sadness countered with feelings of pride as the lifeboat turned away towards the shoreline to the west. A lifeboatman clad in a bright yellow all-weather suit with orange lifejacket led the aircrew aft and then inside the crew cabin before they were led below into the bow. The survivor's cabin in the bow of the fourteen-metre Trent Class lifeboat was cosy and inviting when compared to the exposed belly of an inverted helicopter. It was brightly lit and they were each offered a seat facing inboard and told to strap in for what was to be a rough ride home.
Widow and Goshawk just stared at one another, ignoring the questioning expressions from Chief and Scorpion, as the lifeboat headed for Sheerness at twenty knots.
One Canada Square,
Canary Wharf, City of London
Team Victor Echo, Team Foxtrot Three
Charlie Tango Zero-Five/Zero-Nine
Team Victor Echo & Team Foxtrot Three
Foxtail was not buying it either.
At that moment, she was almost back to where they had entered the building some time earlier. She had been careful, moving slowly – her injuries insisted upon it – to avoid meeting an Axis mercenary. She had skirted around the long way, moving along the windows on the east side and using the office furniture as cover as she went. She was approaching the final set of desks arranged in a single line of five extending away from the windows but still behind a double line of five desks facing each other. She peered over the top of a desk to see if the way was clear to move to that final set of desks but just as she found a good viewpoint and she could see three rooms which were built against the south concrete core, two of the flat-screen monitors beside her head exploded as bullets struck them. Foxtail returned fire in the blind, unaware of where the shots had come from. She dropped to the carpeted floor and crawled in a leopard-like manner towards the core as computer equipment was shredded over her head and she was peppered with electronic components and circuitry. Then, as the door opened to what seemed to be a room of photocopiers, her eyes locked onto a dark green plastic case.
"Target identified! Southeast corner in a copier room," she radioed.
"Heading your way," came the swift response from Piranha.
Foxtail edged forwards, ignoring the wreckage which showed down all around her. Then she smiled beneath her mask as she saw some feet, ankles – then she saw blood and heard screams of pain as she squeezed the trigger on her SIG MPX assault rifle and shattered each ankle. Then, as the torsos came into sight, followed by heads, blood exploded out across the open-plan office, splattering furniture, floor, walls, and . . .
"Thanks, Foxy!" Piranha growled as the explosive effluent which had once been the contents of a man's skull splashed across her mask.
"You're welcome, Fish Girl!"
Piranha considered a vicious retort but she was too professional to go ahead with it, so she simply wiped off her mask and cut down two men with a burst of gunfire from her own SIG MPX. Wildcat and Wolf swept past and into the photocopying room, gunning down the last two Axis mercenaries.
"Now that is what I call a bomb!" Wildcat commented as she knelt down beside the green plastic case. "So much power..."
"Oh, God!" Trojan stated. "Look, Dark Lady of the Sith, let's get this thing disarmed."
Wildcat ran her hands reverently across the control panel but then turned serious as she pulled up the codes to disarm the device on her wrist computer.
Over on the far side of the country...
Los Angeles, United States of America
14:51 GMT-7 (21:51 GMT July 21st)
Time To Detonation: 18 minutes
Team L.A. & Team S.D.
Paradox had dropped two directly but then many more had appeared.
The youth was in a quandary: he had Domitor unconscious at his feet and a wounded Lilim struggling to her feet a short distance away. His first instincts were to protect Lilim but that would put Domitor at risk but he also had a few million people to protect as well. The dark green plastic case was visible but he was unable to get any closer . . . without allowing his friends to die. But his mind was made up, so he began to release arrow after arrow into the throng of enemy as he ran, dodged, twisted, and rolled. A bullet cut through his left bicep, the impact slowed by his armour, reducing the trauma. His arrows began to weave due to his wound but he persevered until his last arrow was spent and he continued with his bow, clubbing his way forward. He stumbled but anger and desperation were his support and he regained his feet as he struck out at the next Axis mercenary. The dark green plastic case was just feet away but they might as well have been miles for all he could do as his left leg gave way and he collapsed to the concrete floor. Two bullets struck his chest armour and he went down completely.
Then, just as he thought everything was finished, a pair of grey boots came into view and gunshots could be heard above his head.
..._...
If she died and she failed to complete the mission then Logan would have died for nothing and she could not live with that, so she had to live to avenge Logan.
She pulled herself together and she unholstered her twin Glock 43 pistols as she stepped over the struggling form of Paradox. The weapons spat fire as they cycled and the trigger was squeezed again and again. Two men suffered nine-millimetre brain haemorrhages and another had a bullet tear through his throat. Blood splattered across the concrete floor and bodies fell before the angry vigilante.
She was relentless as she moved, her body on automatic, controlled by her training and operating flawlessly.
..._...
Lilith and Trauma were worried about their team member.
They had moved swiftly to complete their operations on the lower level so they could race upwards to support Domitor, Paradox, and Lilim – especially Lilim. As they reached the sixty-second floor via the fire stairs – the elevator was not responding – they could hear the sounds of machinery but no sounds of battle, which was worryingly ominous as there should have been gunfire and the like – unless...
The sight of Domitor as the youth struggled to his feet, obviously wounded was not encouraging. Neither was the sight of Paradox in a similar state of confusion. However, somewhat incredulously to Trauma's mind, Lilim was crouching, seemingly unscathed, on the ground beside a dark green plastic case, and surrounded by countless dead bodies.
"About the fuck time!" Lilim groaned. "You got the damn codes for this motherfucker?"
"I do," Trauma responded as he and Lilith stepped over and sometimes upon a corpse.
Lilim watched intently as Trauma began to punch in characters on the keypad.
Waterloo Station
21:40 GMT+1 (20:40 GMT July 21st)
Time To Detonation: 20 minutes
Team Victor Bravo, Team Foxtrot Two, Team Hotel One
Charlie Tango Zero-Eight/One-Zero/One-Two
Crimson and La Terreaur had worked past Scamp and the bloody mess the youngster was causing.
The distraction was welcome as it meant that just five Axis mercenaries remained to guard the device. It did not take long to whittle that number down until it was just two vs two. La Terreaur was injured but that was not going to prevent her from bringing about the endgame even if she died. The woman she faced was taller and older but that meant nothing as La Terreaur was swift to prove as she had already killed a man just a minute before by almost ripping off the man's head. She kicked and punched like she was possessed which maybe she was. The woman was constantly on the back foot and wishing that she was anywhere but eighty odd feet below the surface of London being kicked into submission by a veritable half pint. But La Terreaur was tiring and every punch she received put her ever closer to collapse and then she was grasped and thrown bodily against the concrete of the station walls, winding her badly. As unconsciousness began to close in on her, La Terreaur glared through her mask at her grinning opponent who thought she was about to win her fight. Her left hand reached down to her utility belt and she seized hold of the hilt of her combat knife.
The woman suddenly braced up as a searing pain shot through her chest and she struggled to control her body which began to spasm at the internal trauma before her body shutdown and went into shock. La Terreaur fell to the platform beside her opponent who had a seven-inch blade buried in her heart. La Terreaur remained conscious just long enough to see Crimson drive her own blade into the stomach of her opponent who collapsed in a pool of blood.
Crimson ran past the collapsed La Terreaur to where the device with a countdown showing just minutes remaining sat in ignorance of the horror it was about to inflict on the teaming capital city, home to millions.
The Royal Albert Hall
Team Victor Charlie, Alpha Troop
Charlie Tango Zero-Two/Zero-Six
Team Victor Charlie
Captain McFadden was not happy as strains of Elgar's Pomp and Circumstance March No.1 began to reverberate from above.
She was staring down at the long stainless-steel cylinder some three feet in length with squared off ends which was arranged diagonally and secured in shock-resistant mounts to the base of the dark green plastic case. The cylinder was not the immediate problem – it was the battery packs arranged two per side which were badly damaged from obvious bullet strikes. The multi-line screen which displayed the 'WEAPON ARMED' mantra in green was flickering ominously indicating some form of electrical damage. With a nod at Sergeant Martin, the NCO began to punch into the disarm code.
"Ma'am – we have a problem."
The young officer looked down and saw that pressing the keys did not appear to make the slightest bit of difference.
"Typical! Q, this is Alpha Tango One One. We need you on the lower level, right now!"
"On my way," Q responded as the audience began the first chorus of the immortal song scored by Edward Elgar.
Land of Hope and Glory, Mother of the Free
How shall we extol thee, who are born of thee?
Wider still and wider shall thy bounds be set
God, who made thee mighty, make thee mightier yet
God, who made thee mighty, make thee mightier yet
Embankment Tube Station
22:42 GMT+1 (21:42 GMT July 21st)
Time To Detonation: 18 minutes
Team Victor Delta, Team Foxtrot One,
Team Victor Romeo, Sierra Zero-Zero,
Reserve One
Charlie Tango Zero-Three/Zero-Seven
Team Foxtrot One
Hit Girl could not have been happier – relatively speaking.
Bullets were flying in every direction and a full on battle was raging. Automatic gunfire echoed all around from Fusion and CTSF weapons alike. They had come under attack almost he moment they had entered the station and the ticket barrier had turned into cover for them all until Stripe and Overrun had thrown a high explosive hand grenade each through to where the enemy were preventing movement towards the Northern Line platforms off to the left. Immediately, after the dual detonation, Hit Girl and Belle had leapt over the ticket barrier and pushed through the dust and shattered ceramic tiles which had exploded out from the shattered corridor. Close behind came Rigour and Minder in support. The disorientated Axis defenders were put out of their misery by single pistol shots to join their torn brethren on the tiled floor.
The single escalator down was short and a flash-bang grenade was tossed down by Rigour and the violent distraction was used to descend to the first subterranean level.
..._...
For a change, Belle felt almost no fear as she crouched down beside Rigour, the first finger on her right hand gently caressing the trigger of her SIG Sauer SPX, sending short bursts of nine-millimetre-sized portions of death into the Axis defenders.
Then came a second escalator heading downwards and the two girls each pulled the pin on a flash-bang before allowing the device to roll down either side of the moving handrail. The detonations caused pandemonium at the base of the escalator and rapidly Belle, Rigour, Minder, and Hit Girl leapt down the moving aluminium steps. The stunned mercenaries were no match for the combined forces attacking them and Hit Girl coldly shot two in the head with her pistol while they were struggling to their feet. Two more fell to Rigour's pistol and a fifth to Minder. Belle was moving towards Platform Three where there was the sound of running feet on the platform. Together, Hit Girl and Belle peered around the access door to the platform and they could see three men running towards the far end and the gaping maw of the tunnel. The platform was curved, bending gently to the right. A matrix sign hung from the curved ceiling and reported that the next train was heading to High Barnet with the subsequent train heading to Edgware.
Hit Girl and Belle knelt down and took aimed shots, dropping two men as the third dove down onto the track, obviously avoiding the two power rails. Belle sprinted down the platform with Hit Girl close behind but both slowed as they approached the end of the platform and the entrance to the dark tunnel beyond. Belle studied the two fallen men for a moment before she looked up at Hit Girl.
"Give me a hand."
"What...?" Hit Girl asked but then it clicked in her mind as they grabbed hold of a corpse and together heaved the dead man onto the tracks.
There was a bright white flash and then lights in the dark tunnel beyond snapped on as the traction current was shorted out for that stretch of track.
"Good thinking!" Hit Girl acknowledged as they both peered down the now well-lit tunnel.
Three men were caught like rabbits in headlights, about fifty yards down the tunnel.
..._...
Hit Girl and Belle waited just two minutes while they were reinforced by other team members before an assault was made down the tunnel.
The gunfire was heavy in both directions and with the close confines of the tunnel, it was not long before Rigour went down, slumping against the curved tunnel wall. Fury and Psyche moved up to cover their colleague even as Kick-Ass and Stripe provided covering fire. It was slow work, but the teams worked their way into the tunnel, closing on a wider section where there was a set of points and a small maintenance area.
The Embankment Tube Station originally opened in May of 1870 while the deep-level station for the Northern Line did not open until April of 1914. The vast majority of the construction work was completed by people long dead as of 2017. The steelwork was Victorian in places with more modern concrete work elsewhere. It was not a safe combat environment by any stretch of the imagination with dozens of lethal projections including Victorian bolts and newer steel cable trays and supports. Bullets ricocheted off the steelwork and men were injured as they fell back against those lethal projections. That situation simply got worse when assault rifles were swapped for melee weapons as the range decreased. Indeed, the first to suffer Hit Girl's wrath face to face found his head impaled on a prevailing Victorian bolt thread which caused serious brain trauma and left the corpse hanging with occasional twitching.
The small maintenance area was soon overwhelmed with friendly forces and the enemy was forced back towards a dark corner where a sinister green plastic case resided.
..._...
Hit Girl had been made aware of the problem which had occurred at the Royal Albert Hall and which was preventing the disarming of that weapon.
As she stared down at their own weapon, she grimaced at the sight of a pristine control panel but a smashed screen which meant that there was no way to know if their code was accepted – or even if it was being received as it was typed. It was fate, Hit Girl decided. Fate was determined both to destroy London and to end the murderous life of Hit Girl.
"Oh, that's a problem," Fury commented as she joined Hit Girl.
"Yeah!" Hit Girl agreed.
"We're fucked!" Psyche added.
"Yeah – you're gonna die without ever being fucked!" Fury grinned.
"Look..." Psyche began but then she stopped.
"Hang on!" Fury yelled and she bolted back up the tunnel.
"What the fuck?" Hit Girl demanded as Psyche simply shrugged; the usual reaction to her friend's often bizarre behaviour.
All eyes turned to follow the youngster as she raced back up the tunnel.
..._...
Fury leapt onto the platform and then she dropped to the ground beside a dead Axis mercenary.
"What the fuck are you doing?" Viridian demanded. "You enjoy fucking around with corpses?"
Fury ignored Viridian as she feverously ran her gauntleted hands through the clothing and webbing before she yelled out in happiness and yanked something from the man's neck. Viridian could only wonder as the girl bolted and dived off the platform and back down the tunnel from whence she had appeared.
"Look!" Fury announced as she all but cannoned into Psyche, her right hand outstretched to Hit Girl.
"You found the key!?" Hit Girl exclaimed incredulously as she studied the cylindrical key with a green plastic top matching the case and silver metalwork.
The key was about four inches in length and an inch in diameter. Hit Girl grasped the key and inserted it into the matching hole on the weapon, then she looked up at her husband while she turned the key from 'ARMED' to 'SAFE'. Audibly, the device powered down and a red LED turned green. Hit Girl laughed out load as she visibly sagged to the ground. Then she turned to Fury and Psyche before she withdrew the key from the now defunct nuclear weapon.
"Get this key to Q," she directed.
Fury grabbed the key, stuffing it safely inside her armour.
..._...
The two girls raced out of Embankment Tube station and bolted past the dead Axis bodies being martialled by the police and army.
At Northumberland Avenue, they spied a pair of Metropolitan Police officers astride their BMW R12500RT motorcycles. Psyche indicated the two officers to Fury and the pair each leapt onto a motorcycle behind a surprised police officer.
"Albert Hall!" Psyche yelled. "Move!"
With a wail of sirens, both machines accelerated and raced up Northumberland Avenue before wrapping around the Equestrian Statue of Charles I at Trafalgar Square and then headed up The Mall at high speed. The Mall was taken at almost eighty-miles-per-hour before the motorcycles braked hard to pass around the Victoria Memorial and then up Constitution Hill. A swift pass around Wellington Arch and then down Knightsbridge, again at around eighty-miles-per-hour.
Both machines came to a rapid halt outside the Royal Albert Hall and the two girls leapt off and raced inside.
The Royal Albert Hall
Team Victor Charlie, Alpha Troop
Charlie Tango Zero-Two/Zero-Six
Psyche and Fury came under intense fire almost immediately and they dived for cover.
For some reason, communications were being interrupted and their arrival had not reached the Vengeance and allied teams fighting inside the venue. Therefore, deep below, Q was figuring out how to disarm the device without triggering a nuclear detonation. His task was a dangerous one, and highly technical. One false move and they might die. Crouched down providing overwatch, two Royal Marines were covering his back in the hope that he could work in peace.
Above, the conductor was warned that the emergency was still underway, so he engineered an encore.
Land of hope and glory, mother of the free
How shall we extol thee, who are born of thee?
Wider still and wider shall thy bounds be set
God, who made thee mighty, make thee mightier yet
God, who made thee mighty, make thee mightier yet
For the audience, they found some of the 'special effects' a little too realistic as battles raged just yards away.
..._...
Psyche and Fury were able make themselves known to Ajax and Nemesis who sent them down below to meet up with Captain McFadden and her Royal Marines.
The captain herself met them on the upper basement and led them below. The two girls nodded approvingly at the carnage inflicted by the Royal Marines. Fury felt herself particularly drawn to the bloody and flesh-spattered chainsaws held by two of the Royal Marines; one of whom saw Fury peering in.
"Gonna be a bugger to clean," the Royal grinned.
"And then some!" Fury responded dryly.
"Moving on...," Psyche suggested.
"Captain!" Q offered in greeting. "Got some good news for me?"
"Not directly," the captain responded. "However..."
"Might this help?" Fury enquired as she pulled out the key.
"So, a Predator can be useful," Q quipped. "Knew there would be a day . . . eventually!"
"So not funny," Fury declared.
"Oh, for goodness sake!" Psyche growled as she seized the key and knelt down beside the device and inserted said key into the circular lock.
With a deep breath taken, and a glance up at Q, Fury, and Captain McFadden, Psyche turned the key one click to 'SAFE'.
The screen declared in green: 'WEAPON SAFE'.
Q sighed with relief, sagging to the floor, his hands shaking.
Across the city...
It was time to mop up.
All the nuclear devices within London had been made safe – in one way or another.
Hit Girl and Kick-Ass had received the joyous message over their earpieces with relief. Their bloody, battered bodies sagged at the news. But unfortunately, they instinctively knew that their fight was far from over. The news that there were injuries – some serious – amongst their teams tempered the happiness as did the sombre announcement that NIGHTSHADE was lost but that announcement was countered with the knowledge that the crew had been rescued by a lifeboat.
The combined forces were ordered to gather at a central point in London pending reassignment as required. Initial custody of the nuclear devices would fall to the Metropolitan Police and the surviving counter-terrorism officers with the latter also mopping up the retreating Axis mercenary forces.
As for where the combined forces would gather – that had come as a direct order from the very top!