Illya Kuryakin approached the door of Kadiri's residence, looking around to ensure he was free of prying eyes, he glanced upwards hoping there was no one watching from the the latticed mashrabiya that jutted out from the upper wall of the house across the narrow street as he pulled his lock-pick from his sleeve. The door was open within seconds, allowing the Russian to quickly duck inside, hoping that he had not triggered some sort of alarm system; all the more vital that he move quickly.
He tread cautiously through the residence filled with ornately woven carpets, brass lanterns, arched entrances draped with transparent curtains of burgundy and gold, passing a gently cascading blue and white fountain within a courtyard, going from room to room but seeing nothing of interest until he reached a locked door at the back of the house.
Kneeling down in front of the lock, he again used his pic and after two clicks the door knob turned without resistance. As soon as he stepped inside, he knew he'd found the lab. There was a metallic looking device the size of a washing machine in one of the corners mounted on an asbestos platform with more of the material covering the walls behind it.
It reminded him of a potter's kiln but he knew that it was nothing as innocent as that.; it had to be the diamond synthesizer. There was a large wooden crate nestled beside it along with some smaller ones; it was clear that this machine and it's acoutrements were due to be packed up for shipment.
He scanned the room, not recognizing some of the electronic equipment, but fought the urge to let his curiosity engage itself by examining any of it. That was when he spotted it, a small dark wooden box on one of the lab tables; he opened it immediately; nestled in a row on a cushion of black velvet were the three diamonds. All of them had been cut, faceted and polished into finished stones.
"A diamond incarcerated in it's subterraneous prison, rough and unpolished differs not from a common stone,*" he thought to himself. But with the development of these diamant faux all diamonds would end up becoming common stones finished or not, like the pebbles on a river bed. This scheme of Thrush's truly was a clever one.
Yet Illya smiled wryly as he picked up the largest of the gems holding it so it was able to catch the light, allowing it to scintillate; he could not help but admire the cold beauty of it, even though he knew it was a fake.
That was when Illya heard it coming from behind him; the click of a weapon being cocked. He stiffened instantly, placing the stone back in the box, then carefully raising his hands, laying them clasped on his head as he slowly turned.
"Illya Kuryakin," a familiar accented voice said his name.
"Narcissus Darling, I thought you were dead?" His voice showing the slightest bemusement.
She sighed, waving her weapon, indicating for him to move away from the diamonds.
"Oh isn't that just a bit of wishful thinking on your part? You know, I am becoming awfully tired of you showing up and ruining my soirees Kuryakin."
"Why thank you," he smiled," usually I have rather nasty names thrown at me, but a party crasher? That is a new one. I rather like it."
She ignored him, picking up the largest gemstone as he had done, admiring it herself..."What a waste, a real shame?" she said, "A girl could enjoy wearing something like this."
"I find it a bit ostentatious myself," he said. " But to each their own, if you like that sort of gauche look... on the other hand I supposed devaluing natural diamonds and destroying the world diamond market could be considered the real shame and waste. So Project Deep Hole did not curb your interests in things geological?"**
She laughed, a soft gentle laugh that one could almost find enjoyable. Illya always remembered that pleasant side to the woman, her lyrical laughter, perhaps the only thing about her that was agreeable and hardly indicative of the woman's bloodthirsty and narcissistic persona.
"Is that what you think we are using these lovely stones for?" she laughed again. " Well I suppose that is so typical of U.N.C.L.E's one-dimensional thinking. Perhaps a small demonstration of their true intended purpose is in order."
She placed the diamond on a small tripod on atop a device with a single toggle switch and a dial on it, then flipping the switch and adjusting the dial until a low level hum began to be emit from it. As she made further adjustments the hum increased in it's intensity until it became a strong rapid pulse. Narcissus turned the dial completely, then suddenly a tight beam of white light streamed from the the culet of the diamond, hitting a large glass beaker, reducing it to a melted mass of silicate.
'Impressive," Illya said dryly, not indicating his concerns over the implications of such a weapon.
"This is just a test model of course, once we grow larger stones there will be a full sized devices that will be mounted in satellites orbiting the planet. It will be a quick take over for us, to say the least."
His face remained passive, that annoying her just a bit.
"Don't look so smug Kuryakin, we will succeed. Our first task will be to target the United Nations and of course take out the American and Russian missile defence systems. Our message will be clear and decisive...can't have the so-called superpowers going off half-cocked releasing a nuclear holocaust on the world. What good would it be ruling a place that's been contaminated by radioactivity?" She laughed again."The entire globe will bow down and submit to the new order.
"What is it with these Thrush?" Illya thought to himself. "they just have to brag?" Though he was glad at Narcissus' willingness to gloat; that at least gave him a different view of the situation and knowing they were only in the test stages, made it a bit reassuring. In a way he actually owed her a debt of gratitude for being so forthcoming with her braggadocio.
"Now what to do with you Mr. Kuryakin? Do I just kill you outright?" She paused, pacing back and forth for a minute thinking on the matter, while still keeping her weapon trained on him.
"No I think not...perhaps a trip to Central in the Middle East is in order. You have been a thorn in our side for too long, so now I think you'll be of use to us. What would you say to a little re-programmed to serve as a mole for us within U.N.C.L.E. Yes, that is a deliciously ironic plan isn't it? You'll help us destroy your own organization from within."
"You are quite delusional you know that." he answered her sotto vocce.
That remark earned him a slap across the face, but it brought Narcissus close enough to him as he had hoped it would to enable him dive at her, wrestling her to the floor, trying to get the gun out of her hand.
Illya had no problem fighting with a woman, finally ending up sitting in top of her while he forced the gun from her hand, then pointed it at her.
"Oh this would have be much more pleasant if we were naked together in bed?" she cooed.
"Unlike my partner I do not dally with your ilk, so only in your dreams would that be possible my dear." He raised his fist to strike her in the face, intending to render her unconscious. But the words that he spoke were his last before falling forward unconscious on top of Narcissus, his face nestled right between her ample breasts as another Thrush agent had slammed him in the head with a rifle butt.
"Get him off me now you fool!" She snarled at the the guard.
He lifted the Russian up like a child's toy, then let him drop with a thud to the grey slate floor, tying the agent's arms behind his back.
Narcissus ran her hands across Kuryakin's body, feeling his surprisingly strong muscles as she searched him, letting her hands drift down to his privates with a lustful sigh. Then she remembered the rumors about the Russian, that he preferred boys. "What a waste." she said as she relieved him of his communicator and other U.N.C.L.E. toys.
You'll wait here for Kadiri, and start crating up that machine," she ordered her guard. But first I want the Russian loaded into the truck, we go to Algiers and from there to our headquarters in Libya. And make sure you guard him well, his capture and my plans for him are going to be a feather in my cap with Central!"
Illya's eyes opened, finding himself laying bound in the back of a moving lorry. He had company, two Thrush guards armed with rifles seated on benches on either side of him.
"Look who's awake Marv," one of them said.
"The bosses have plans for you Russian, and it's about time. But you know what, I'm going to get some payback before they get their hands on you."
Illya's eyes widened; the man's obvious threat forcing him to give more attention than he normally would to a Thrush lackey.
"You don't remember me do you Kuryakin?"
"Sorry, ornithology is not one of my areas of interest."
"Ornithology? What does that mean?"
"It means to me, if you have seen one bird, then you have seen them all."
That earned him a kick to the stomach, followed by another and another. Marv was pulled to a stop as he was just about to take his rifle butt to the Russian's head.
"Knock it off, do you want to kill him? Narcissus will be pissed?"
Illya bit the inside of his bottom lip, fighting off the pain from the assault; taking several deep breaths as he ascertained there was no real damage done.
It was stifling hot inside the canvas covered truck as it traveled along it's rather bumpy road. Every once in a while, the guard named Marv would give him a shove with his foot.
"I do not suppose it would be too much to ask for some water?"
The guards snorted, drinking their fill from their canteens in front Kuryakin but offered him none, tormenting him as they knew the agent was thirsty.
Illya shook his head, not surprised at their treatment. " Then perhaps an answer as to our destination?" He asked.
"Oh yeah, we can tell you that," they laughed together," we're heading through the Sahara...bet you'll get real thirsty there won't you, because it's going to get a lot hotter."
Suddenly, without warning the lorry hit a particularly hard bump sending the Thrush guards down to the bed along side Kuryakin. The truck came to an abrupt and noisy stop.
"What the hell?" shouted the guards as they pulled themselves up.
There were loud curses heard coming from the cab, doors slamming, then more cursing. Then finally Narcissus came around to the back ordering them out of the truck.
"We've broken an axle!" she shouted at them with an obvious tone of displeasure in her voice.
The guards shoved Kuryakin out of the back of the truck not giving him any support, forcing him to topple face forward down into the hot sand.
He lifted his head spitting the grit from his mouth. " A little water would be good right now?
"Sorry Kuryakin, we barely have enough for ourselves for the trip back to Marrakesh. I'm sure you'll survive. And if you don't, then you don't." she snickered at him.
They began the trek through the Sahara, walking single file along the dunes. Two of the guards bringing up the lead and the rear with Illya between the armed driver and Narcissus. The bright sun reflected off the sand, reflecting it back in radiating heat that made the Russian perspire heavily and squint as his blue eyes did not do well in extremely bright light.
He staggered a few times then fell, not being able to maintain his balance in the unstable sand with his hands bound behind him. His throat was becoming parched and lips cracked from lack of water after walking for hours under such brutal conditions.
Illya was feeling cranky to say the least, he hated the heat to begin with and the desert, and now he hated it even more, but he remained silent; not giving them any satisfaction from his sufferings.
Suddenly shots rang out, taking out the lead guard. They dove for cover unsure where the gunfire had come from. Then there was only silence as it stopped as quickly as it had started, until the familiar sounds of guns being cocked came from behind them.
There stood armed Moroccans aiming their rifles directly at Narcissus, her men and Kuryakin.
"Yalla! Imshi! Kaffãr!"The one who was the obvious leader called out to them.
"What's he saying" Narcissus asked.
Her henchmen looked back at her in bewilderment as none of them spoke the language.
Illya let out a long sigh. "They want us to go with them, apparently we are infidels in their eyes."
Narcissus after screaming and resisting had her hands bound behind her back along wth her men; while there seemed to be some whispering among the presumed bandits about the Russian having already been tied up, but Illya could not hear what was being said.
Then one of the Moroccans approached him, tearing away his shirt, then ripping his undershirt as he examined his shoulders, apparently not finding what he was looking for; the man shook his head to the others.
The truck was searched, finding the prototype weapon that Narcissus had carefully packed in her bag, it was carelessly tossed it out onto the sand, seemingly of no interest to them. They took the Thrush rifles but when they found the box with the diamonds; it was held aloft accompanied by a yelping cry of triumph.
Illya, Narcissus and the two men had iron collars put around their necks, then they were joined together by a long heavy chain.
"What is going on?" Narcissus demanded of Kuryakin.
"I would venture to guess that after being searched for an owners brand on my shoulders, and these collars and chains, that these men are slavers and we will be taken to a slave market to be sold."
"What? I...I can't be sold as a slave, I'm a free person. You tell them that Kuryakin, tell them now Thrush will pay to get me back!" she shrieked.
Illya remained silent, ignoring her hysterics as their captors pulled them to to their feet, dragging them off through the dunes of the desert to some unknown destination.
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*Charles Caleb Colton, Lacon ** Season 2 Episode 26 MFU