Chuck vs The Wayward Legionnaire
Book 2: Water.
Chapter 3: Diving school/ Revelations.
06th May. 2010. Anomaliz Offices. Dublin 3. 10.30amGMT.
"Awesome…."
"Devon, dear…." The voice dripped menace….
From behind the laptop, he was working on, Devon Woodcomb's head cautiously popped up," Yes hun?"
"If I hear you say that word one more time, I'm gonna perforate your right testicle with my heel…." Ellie waved her foot in the air to emphasise her point...
The rictus grin on her face made her husband gulp.
"Aw…." There was the scrape of a chair, "…no problem, babe…message understood…but have you seen this data? It's…. amazing!"
Ellie sighed, she should have known better than to involve Devon, if anyone was going to turn fanboy at her brother turning into a …. superhero… it would be her husband. He had waxed often enough at Chuck's potential for years, even before the bad times at Stanford and after.
When she had decided some tough love was necessary and considered forcing Chuck out of the safety of the Echo Park apartment it had been Devon that defended her brother even more vigorously than the bearded gnome.
She got up and walked over, "I'll bite, what's the awesome, Awesome?" she asked, settled in her husband's lap to his delight, curling an arm around her waist, he tilted his head back expectantly, she snorted, but gave him a quick kiss before drawing back, turning his head back to the screen.
He got the message, "Babe, this is…. fantastic…?" He paused; his wife did not apparently share his enthusiasm for his brother in law's changes. He tempered his delivery.
"Hun. You remember when I was interning after college?"
"How could I forget; you were even moonlighting for your old team at UCLA."
"Exactly, you remember that study I was involved in. Old Henshaw had me do a lot of the groundwork on the team for a lot of the figures we got later for his study. I had to map the changes in the player's bodies as they went through the regime, it was all part of the new Coach's development plan."
She nodded, "is there a point here Devon?"
"Yes, your brother is become symmetrical in all his dimensions, and that my dear is nearly impossible, even for a honed, trained, lifelong athlete… HOLY SHIT!"
He had clicked on some of the attached video files, his and Ellie's jaws both hung open as Chuck did his one-handed lift. "That's incred…."
They both fell silent again as another clip showed Chuck and Sean sprinting, With a blistering turn of pace Sean was left stranded in Chuck's wake, offscreen Morgan Grimes could be heard speaking in shocked tones, "is this thing calibrated correctly?"
There was a close up of the readout, Ellie heard Devon choke reading the display… 33mph. He looked at her, "That's faster than Usain Bolt!" he said quietly.
"How…"
There was a beep from her laptop, she went back to see a link forming with Sven and Meike, "So…" Sven looked at their faces, "…. You've had a chance to review the material…"
Ellie nodded, "What's happening to my brother, Sven?"
Ohlsen looked troubled, "Look Ellie, this isn't easy, but we finally found something…Akio's program… he was helping us check …. "
She looked puzzled, "What do you mean, you found something" She hated how her voice sounded, she could hear her own fear.
He sighed, "It's probably best I show you…" the screen changed, they both gasped as they saw Chuck locked in combat with Janos, Devon felt his wife's fingers digging into his shoulders, he went to hold her hands to assure her.
But they shot to her face as her brother crashed through the greenhouse, she stifled a scream as flames burst from around his prone form.
Devon tried to remain impassive, no matter how his insides churned, the key was here, he frowned and paused the video as he studied Chuck's face as he inhaled the mix of coloured gases, he replayed it, wincing as the electricity surged through the fallen man.
"…. how do I access the sound on this Sven…I want to hear what he's saying…"
"Sounded like gibberish to us, but hang on…Meike… can you filter that through…yes…thanks Liebling…" She beamed at her partner, "try it now…"
It was a blur of noise, but… Devon frowned, he thought he caught something, "… can you slow that down further….?"
"Sure…"
"what did you hear, Devon?" asked an anxious Ellie, he raised a hand for silence…there, that was almost intelligible!
"Slow it more, Meike…"
The next words were clear and chilled them all to the bone.
Intersect version 1.1 online…. Warning! Sensory input overload...recommended action shutdown… new host acquired… host organic… damage sustained… initiate repair mode…Warning!Sensory input overload…. recommended action shutdown…
"That's impossible!", said a stunned Devon, Ellie had stood and moved away, whatever her worst fears had been, they paled into insignificance in the harsh light of discovery.
"Ellie….?"
Pale faced, she turned to him, "Dear God in heaven, it's the Intersect…. it's sentient!"
Devon couldn't believe his ears, "Is that possible….?"
Ellie was shifting through the paperwork Sean Murphy had sent her from Chuck's time in the hospital… with a cry of triumph she found what she was searching for. The EKG readouts….
She showed Devon, the others listened in, "Sean thought the machine was defective, remember?" he nodded. She continued, "It wasn't…. look…his brainwave patterns when he's sleeping, but here….", she pointed out the faint line in the Gamma and Beta, "…and here…" She showed another, a week later, "…it's more pronounced, the Intersect is running when he rests, probably even when he's awake!"
"That accident must have been like a jumpstart, the chemicals, the electricity, the gases… all combined to alter the …"
"Host".
They looked at Ellie. "How has this not happened before, Larkin is Intersected", asked Meike.
Ellie was locked in thought, "…because Chuck was always the original recipient, he got 98% in Fleming's test at Stanford, Larkin only managed 91% on his most recent exam and that's after he trained himself to do better, that's as good as he could get… those percentage points are literally canyons apart…"
She thought furiously now, "…it was a system originally designed to help challenged people, but Chuck is gifted…" She ran back to the screen again, she opened the files they had sent her on Pacelli's work, she studied the formulas.
"They're still under analysis, Ellie…" Meike said, but that was as far as she got, Ellie's brow furrowed as she scanned them, "It's not totally beyond me, Meike… some of these are similar to what I was prescribing for Dementia and Alzheimer's, you've heard of the Nootropic phase?"
They all had, there was a thriving black market for a lot of drugs people used for neurological conditions, students and professionals had found that they also boosted people with normal cognitive function, cramming for a test? A quick snort of Vasopressin, laser like focus? A few tabs of Piracetam, it looked like Pacelli had taken that far beyond the current research, as Ellie studied the chemical makeup of what the Contessa had been working on.
"That bitch had been trying to enhance herself, she needed a … substance that would bind in her neurochemistry, a permanent alteration… "
"Looks like Chuck reaped the… benefits…" She sat down, her head in her hands, "We need to get him back… run more tests…", tears ran freely down her face.
Devon walked to her, she hugged him tightly, he promised, "We will, we all will, we have more tests…"
Ellie pulled back, "No Devon, you're not seeing it… all these changes? It's protecting itself. These are upgrades… basic biology, the basic… instinct of any living organism… is self-preservation… and it's inside my brother!"
There was a stunned silence amongst them….
….
Through the lens of the webcam that facilitated the meeting, another silently bore witness to Ellie's discovery, Orion was watching; it had taken him some time to break the encryption that Chuck Bartowski had placed on their operating systems, but he was a genius too.
His head was also in his hands, his daughter was right, this was unprecedented, even the accident of many years ago had not wrought consequences such as these, he groaned to himself, he would need to return to America, he needed to get some equipment from his secret lab in the old family home in Tarzana, thank God he'd had the foresight to buy the property years ago.
He began to make his plans, he froze, what could he tell her? He'd promised to keep the children safe; he'd failed miserably. She was going to go spare….
Well, he had married an assassin, he grinned wryly, seemed like a good idea at the time…
Hurriedly he closed his laptop, thinking to himself instead of thinking about himself. He never realised he hadn't been as careful as he'd thought, Chuck had been smart, but so were his friends, he may have written Archangel, but they had all added their genius to the final product, right now, one of those improvements had sent a signal down the ether to Akio at his desk in Kyoto.
He studied the details of the intrusion, they had been very clever, this unknown entity. "You're so sly…but so am I…" he breathed as he attached a marker to the backdoor the entity had created, "… next time…"
…..
06th May. 2010. Calvi Beach. Corsica. 14.00CET.
There were sighs of approval as the group of young half naked men emerged from the water, the young women who had gathered to catch a sight of the latest batch of Legion recruits practising had not been disappointed.
They too lounged on their beach towels, bathing in the rays of the warm sun as they giggled like schoolgirls at the display of military masculinity in front of them, they weren't there to swim, the sunbathing was just an excuse for them to showcase their own feminine wares, sheer one piece or bikini swimsuits clung tightly to honed physiques and they all privately wondered who would be lucky to claim a young recruits eye and then the trophy they all coveted; the flaming grenade emblem off a Kepi or uniform.
They were the equivalent of rock star groupies, but the only rock hard on their young minds right now were the rock-hard bodies of the men that ran and swam along the beach, preparing equipment, doing exercises while elsewhere, landing crafts assaulted the pristine sand dispersing soldiers and overhead, helicopters hovered over the bay disgorging their passengers into the waiting waters below.
Most eyes were glued to a small group who had silently exited the water, the tall blond Adonis who leapfrogged around a cute looking Oriental set most hearts aflutter, if the rest of him was as big….
…..
The men of the Unit were carefully assessed as they slowly made their way to the predetermined target, the two Instructors Captain Le Corre and Petty Officer Dary watched approvingly as they advanced.
"You've got some good men there, Lt."
"Merci, Mon Capitaine."
Delon was pleased, the observations from the officers attached to Commando Hubert that were based in Toulon were well received, the men were performing better than expected again. He wondered if it was just their innate capabilities or the focus that actual combat brought to those that survived its test. He'd take it either way.
They moved well despite the CRABE rebreathers that they wore strapped to their backs, they had adapted well to the first two days of training at Military Diver Training Centre of Excellence at Saint-Mandrier, the theory had been quickly grasped, now it would be practise until it was second nature.
Commando Hubert specialised in Underwater operations, counterterrorism & the release of hostages, added to the previous training of land-based targets he and the Colonel now added assault at and from the sea.
The men entered the dunes, their silenced MP5s were pointing in all directions, full battle alert, their situational awareness was flawless.
"They have good heads, Sergent Murphy and Caporal Robie are born leaders…"
Delon saw what Le Corre meant, whether by design or happenstance, the unit had coalesced around both men, now as they watched, the two men led their men in a classic pincer movement towards the mission objective, the 'enemy' soldiers fell like ten pins to the rapid assault tactics the Naval officers had drilled into them that morning.
"I think they may be already ready for the night training program… with your approval of course, Lt. Delon." Dary added.
"That soon?"
The Petty Officer smiled, "We push as hard as the men, and these guys…. push hard "
"They're more than capable, Delon." said Le Corre. He looked at the younger officer. Delon realised this was a test of his command abilities too, he sighed, he had mentioned to the men that they could have liberty this evening, but this was a Legionnaires life. Expect the unexpected. He knew Chen had a date planned. No matter, Koh would understand.
"What's the plan?"
"We have an informal training ground to the South of the islands, near a sunken city, there's deep water surrounding it, but the area is good, plenty of visibility and we have a few exercises we like to run. The weather is meant to be good, full moon, if we put it off, we may not be so fortunate later…"
Delon nodded, "I'll break the good news."
He grabbed his Kepi off the bonnet of the Peugeot P4 and jumped behind the wheel. Gunning the engine, he shot off towards the high fiving men in the distance. Enjoy the moment lads, he thought, work awaits.
…..
Warmed up by the afternoon sun at last, Erik moaned at the rest of the men lying around the, "Who ever said the Mediterranean was warm and lovely was a lowdown lying bastard!" he shivered.
Robie and the rest laughed, he had been surprised too, but the Pacific back home was surprisingly cold at times too, and they had approached the beach from the boat's half a mile out and 50m beneath the waves, that had been their fifth run that day, he was sure the rest of them was as hungry as he was.
Hearing an engine approaching, they got to their feet, they expected the Unit transport instead they saw it was Delon's P4 bearing down on them, "Uh oh…"
There was laughter as the men had a feeling, Delon wasn't making the journey out of the goodness of his heart, some of the unit wags questioned the fact that he had one, Chen reckoned he made do with a blackened lung, he smoked that much. The truth was the young officer was much admired by his men. He was tough but fair in the true meaning of the words. Still, they braced themselves.
He pulled up and called them over, they quickly formed up, he was pleased to note their professionalism, Murphy had the right qualities for an NCO, and it was reflected in the Units behaviours.
"Right, well I have some good news and some bad news…" There were groans from the assembled men, Sean shot that down with a glare. Delon smiled, "…the good news is, your trainers say excellent progress has been made, as usual, you lot are well ahead of the curve."
"And the bad news Lt.?" interrupted Brun.
"…the bad news is liberty is cancelled tonight because they want to squeeze in a night dive exercise…I know …I know…" He moved quickly as the rumblings started to gather momentum.
"…it has to be done either way, and the weather tonight is too good to let the opportunity pass, however… if we can maintain this pace, I see no reason why I can't extend the next weekend pass by 48hrs… "
The moans ceased instantly. Erik had a broad smile on his face as he turned to Robie, "That's great. Now we can go do that…. thing… that we …said …we …would…do…"
Delon had wandered over. "And what thing would that be. Caporal Vanderlaan?" He stood with his hands on his hips staring at the tall Dutchman, who had turned a bright shade of red.
"Ah… just a little excursion we didn't have time to make last Leave, Lt.", said Sean Murphy quickly. Robie stared daggers at Erik, who made the "I'm sorry and extremely embarrassed" shrug.
"Hmmm." The usual answer from a subordinate that was up to no fucking good, thought Delon, but he decided not to push it.
Chen popped up and started to say something, Delon cut him off, "Sorry Chen, I'll let Koh know what happened, she'll understand." Chen's shoulders dropped but he knew Delon was right, the French police were part of the military too.
"Right, get yourselves back to the camp and the Mess, then Dary and Le Corre will conduct a briefing at Instruction Hall 2. Remember…48 hrs… if you continue to do well!"
There was some light-hearted jibbing from the men, but they moved quickly, gathering their diving equipment, and jogging back to the waiting troop carriers. Delon was sorry he couldn't be with them, but there was a senior staff meeting on and he'd already qualified at St. Cyr. He'd join them for the advanced exercises though, he was feeling a bit rusty. He looked out across the bay, it was a beautiful day, what could go wrong….
….
Somewhere, Mediterranean Sea. Date unknown…
Carina Miller shook her head, she went to move but groaned instead as the pain from the large bruise on her side shot through her, she could taste dried blood on the side of her face too, but she couldn't seem to get her hands to her face. She cracked open one eye, it was dark wherever it was, she started to remember… Sakis! That bastard drugged her!
The anger caused a surge of adrenaline to course through her, seething, she tried again to move, that's when she realised, she was suspended from a ceiling in a pair of manacles, the pain from her side had masked the numbness from her arms, now fully aware it had returned full force, she straightened her legs and found she was in tippy toe distance from the floor. She strained and some the weight transferred to her strong thighs, pins and needles travelled down her arms.
She took stock, she hadn't made her designated call in, that was good and bad, good in the sense now her boss and her agency would be alerted to her absence, bad, because, she moaned softly as a fresh wave of nausea passed through her, she was captured.
She had made a mistake … her memories started returned, she'd gone to breakfast…
….
"Ah Laura, so good of you to join me!", Sakis smiled. He stood and held the chair for her as Laura Conti entered the cabin.
"Thank you, Sakis my love", she grabbed his shirt front pulling him down to a kiss. He acquiesced but she could sense a hesitancy, "…everything alright?"
Under the table, her legs tensed, she casually reached for a small knife that lay beside her plate, her eyes roamed over the assembled delicacies but her ears paid careful attention to his words…
He made a small impatient gesture, "It's our last day at sea, I much prefer it here rather than our return to civilisation…", he made a disappointed face.
Her antenna was twitching but…. She poured them both a coffee, he accepted his with thanks, he added some fruit and berries to his Greek yoghurt and drizzled some honey on top, taking a spoonful he raised it to his mouth, "Do you have any plans for this evening, I was thinking a nice meal at this expensive restaurant I own…"
Carina affected a disappointed look herself, "I'm sorry my love, but I must check in with the office, perhaps tomorrow would work better?" She took a sip of a fruit drink that she had poured herself.
He looked thoughtful, "Yes, you've been out of contact with your office for a while now, they must be worried…."
She paused as she raised a piece of paximadi to her mouth, there was something in the way… she raised her eyes to look at him, his face was no longer smiling, rather, he seemed very intense, she began to get a bad feeling, casually she looked around the room, they were on their own, she turned back to face him when it hit her.
He was blurring, she shook her head, but she could feel herself grow leaden, her movements an effort. She tried to stand but her legs refused.
He did though. He walked around the table and watched her as the drugs took hold, her head lolled back, and it seemed to her like he was walking in slow motion, he spoke to her, but his voice sounded cavernous, hollow as if from a distance. It made no sense…
A wave of fear passed over her, then blackness…
Balatos pressed a bell, Bugatti entered with another seaman, Oliveras, he had some rope in his hands, they quickly and expertly tied her hands and feet, the knots were tight, they had experience dealing with other 'guests'.
Sakis looked on approvingly, "Take her below, make sure she's secure and then search her cabin, I'm going to contact Lasky.
Oliveras bent and pulled Carina into a fireman's lift, he was broad, she weighed practically nothing, Mario stood back keeping a careful eye of her in case she was feigning but she was out for the count.
Sakis sat and finished his breakfast, he looked at the timepiece clock on the cabin wall, he'd make the call in an hour, they should be at operational depth then, the antenna would be deployed.
He smiled to himself, Lord Autokhthon was known to be generous, and he had done well.
Approximately one hour later he sat at his communications station, he excused his radio officer, he activated some countermeasures, he watched as they slowly turned green from red, from memory, he inputted a set of frequencies.
Donning some headphones and switching on the microphone, he spoke, "Manta to Swordfish, Manta to Swordfish, over".
There was a pause, he started to repeat himself when the familiar tones of Mr. Lasky filled his ears, "Swordfish here, what is your status, Manta?"
"Swordfish, I wish to report a guest of mine, she may have …covert connections…"
"Explain." It was one word; he froze as he recognised the voice of Lord Autokhthon. Despite the cool air conditioning in the radio room, he began to sweat.
"My Lord…we discovered a guest where she shouldn't have been…she may have accessed my personal computer."
"This guest… how long was she in your…. hospitality, Manta?"
"…two weeks…but we were at sea the whole time…" From his headphones there was a hiss of annoyance, then silence. He began to fidget; this had been a bad idea. The sudden booming voice of Lasky made him jump.
"Report to these co-ordinates…" Lasky reeled off a series of numbers, Sakis quickly wrote them down. "Rendezvous there at 2100hrs tonight… and Manta?"
"Yes Swordfish…"
"Maintain radio silence…I am coming… Swordfish out."
The radio hummed static in his ears again, he released a breath he didn't even realise he had been holding. Gingerly he reached up and switched off the communications system. He sat back, that had been disappointing, not what he had expected at all.
Still, the die was cast, he was a skilled negotiator, yes, he'd worm his way of it. They needed him, he'd accomplished his task, gotten the arming codes and the final specs. He'd be fine, he had all the bargaining chips, he'd get his reward… damn that bitch….
….
The Borealis sat in the water, the night sky was overcast with cloud, the moon peeked out now and again but otherwise the sea was dark, they were far enough offshore to avoid any light pollution, Sakis strolled across his bridge to his marine radar, peeking at the screen he watched as the sweep of the return showed nothing approaching.
He looked at the time display, 20:58, he turned to a wall intercom, contacting the stern he got an acknowledgement, "Bugatti here, boss".
"You got anything?" Bugatti put his binoculars to his eyes again and surveyed his immediate horizon, nothing. "No Boss, maybe they're late?"
On the bridge Sakis rolled his eyes, these people didn't do late, they were nearby, he could feel it, he wasn't wrong, beneath the surface of the sea a small V rapidly approached the stern of the yacht.
A black rubber suited head broke the surface and scanned the area, seeing no one they carefully mounted the platform connected to the transom, peeling off their air tanks they quietly mounted the deck.
Bugatti never knew what hit him, a spliff in his mouth again he never saw the approaching figure, halting behind him, the intruder checked before exploding forward clasping Bugatti's throat in a cablelike forearm as a diver's knife pierced the base of his skull severing his spinal cord killing him instantly.
At the bow, Oliveras flicked a butt towards the waves just in time to see a black shape suddenly surface as a harpoon spear tore through his sub orbital cavity, becoming literally, the last thing on his mind, his body collapsed against the railings.
At the stern a medium sized submersible surfaced, the figure on the lower deck caught a thrown rope and in seconds a boarding party swarmed the yacht, they quickly opened cabin doors and the cabins were briefly lit by flashes of a double tap.
In the engine room, the head engineer and his two mates were surprised to find they were no longer alone just before the contents of their skulls adorned the walls, their bodies slid slowly to the floor. Their killers quickly found the necessary valves and quickly opened them, sea water poured in, the bodies were thrown in a small locker room and welded shut by a portable arc.
That done, they proceeded up, opening hatches and bulkheads as they went, a not unexpected find awaited them in one, the prone form of Carina Miller, two of them quickly grabbed her and carried her aloft to the upper decks.
From the submersible a large figure boarded the yacht, taking his time he mounted the steps to the bridge, he threaded a silencer into a large handgun as he did. He slid the door open quietly and watched as Balatos stalked nervously around the room.
Phut! Phut! Sakis screamed as he hit the deck clutching the ruins of both his knees, Lasky stood watching his furtive movements impassively; from behind him came one of his men, they entered the bridge and sweeping some maps off a table deposited their findings in Miller's cabin.
"Where?" he asked.
"Behind a bulkhead, she'd removed a panel." Lasky grunted in appreciation and examined the hoard, small handgun, various throwing knives, a garotte, a small case of darts and finally, a small transmitter with a small, folded dish.
He pursed his lips in annoyance at that. Now they would need to interrogate her, Sakis had been a fool.
Balatos had dragged himself to a chair and despite his wounds, pulled himself up onto it. "What are you going to do…?" His voice shook with fear and pain.
Lasky ignored him, he walked to the communications array and entered the same frequencies Sakis had earlier.
"Swordfish over."
"Report…" came the terse reply.
"It's an … agent of Harpocrates, my Lord."
There was a curse uttered. Lasky waited, his Lord was wise. "bring them to me, we must find out what they know…"
"It will be done, and Balatos…?"
"Bring him too… my pets need feeding…." The radio went silent. Lasky stood and looked at Sakis.
Balatos's eyes bugged in fear at the realisation of what he had heard, he began to scream at Lasky for mercy. Lasky nodded to the other man who swiftly delivered a blow to the back of Sakis's skull, he hit the deck again and fell silent.
"Patch him up for the journey."
The man nodded, another joined him, and they set to work. Lasky walked out on the Bridge deck and watched as Miller was dragged and placed on the lower deck, the men began to prepare to leave the now, listing yacht.
There was a sudden flurry of movement, Miller had been feigning! As the men dropped her to the deck and paused, she seized her chance, her hands shot out and grabbed a diver's knife off the calf of the one beside her, a quick slash and he screamed as she severed his Achilles tendon, the other was violently slashed across the face as he tried to grab her!
As he fell, she kipped up slicing the bonds around her ankles, the ropes fell away from her legs, she quickly reversed the knife and jamming the handle against a raised table support with her foot, she slipped her bonds under the blade, there was a grunt as she cut her wrists free, a little blood could be seen, but a small nick was a small price to pay for freedom, she sprinted for the bow.
She'd figured out the intentions of the boarders rapidly and realised her only chance was in the water, she had to get away and warn somebody! They were good but she was better, she grinned as she neared the railings.
The huge man that suddenly dropped in front of her wiped that off her face, she tried to turn but like quicksilver his front leg lashed out in a perfect front kick, half turned, it caught her side and flung her up against the side of a cabin wall, she gasped in pain, she had never been hit so hard in her life!
Stunned and winded she raised head just in time to see him step in and deliver a vicious backhand across her face that knocked her out on the spot.
Angrily, Lasky turned to the two men, the one with the Achilles injury felt his head grabbed between two enormous hands, a sudden twist and an audible crack filled the air, the other man had propped himself up against the deck wall.
"NO! PLEASE, IT WAS…" Seeing the resolute look on Lasky's face as he approached, he attempted to fight, running at the larger man, he jumped in a perfect flying sidekick, Lasky's own leg blurred in a sidekick too, the blade of his sole arcing over the other man's leg and smashing into his Adam's apple turning it to apple sauce, he hit the deck choking, twenty seconds later it was over. Mr Lasky could be quite unforgiving too. He didn't tolerate mistakes.
The rest of his men quickly secured Balatos and Miller, they all boarded the submersible and cast off. Lasky waited until the Borealis slid beneath the waves before he commanded the return to the base. The craft dived beneath the sea leaving only a small trail of bubbles in its wake.
….
06th May. 2010. Camp Raffalli Calvi. 1900hrsCET.
Maggie Koh cursed her luck for the fifth time that hour, she'd turned up at Corsica airport expecting to be met by her boyfriend, instead there was a message on her mobile when he switched it on explaining that he'd been roped into a night exercise, damn, it was supposed to be their third date too!
She sighed, she'd splashed out on some expensive lingerie too, after checking into her room at the Hotel Mariana, she booked a car and headed over to the Camp, maybe she could ask Lt. Delon when Philip would return.
She'd just gotten the car, a small Citroen when the hire company clerk rushed out and apologised, the tank was nearly empty, perfect she thought, but he handed her a fuel token and said it was accepted at any station, she thanked him and drove off.
Halfway down the long Avenue she realised the fuel situation was more dire than she thought, and she looked around for the nearest garage, quickly spotting one she pulled in and began filling up, that was when she noticed the DGSE unmarked car keeping tabs on the Camp entrance.
Looking as casual as she could she withdrew her mobile and snapped a couple of shots, she wasn't one to worry about state surveillance, but she was worried about the probable cause, what was going on? She hadn't been made aware of any terrorism alerts and besides, normal procedure would have been to beef up Camp security on any suspected military installation target.
She walked inside and paid the bill. She had an idea, she had the Lt's details, she dialled his number.
"Capitaine Koh, I guess you heard…."
"Oui Lt. but that's not why I'm phoning, is there some alert on?"
Delon was in his office. Puzzled by Koh's question he turned his attention fully to the call. "Non. Why?"
"It may be nothing. But there's a DGSE operative watching the base, are you sure?"
"Oui, where are you Capitaine?"
"Parked down the Avenue at the petrol station to the East of the main gate, they're parked at some old sheds…"
"Oui, I know the ones, and they're there now?"
"Oui, what do you suppose it's about?"
"I have no idea but let me check it out. Hang on." He grabbed his desk phone he dialled Sabut, he quickly explained the situation. The Col. was as nonplussed as them both.
"Dewavrin was poking about after the mountain… but I don't like it… Alain, here's what we're going to do…."
Delon and Koh listened as he explained….
…..
Ilsa Trinchina sat outside the base again, she'd quickly returned to the site of her mark as soon as she'd arrived back in France, she'd fired off an email to Dewavrin saying she was on the verge of a breakthrough, she figured she owed Bartowski that much.
She was ignorant of the ongoing Diving training, so as far as she was concerned, he was still on the base probably training. First chance she'd got she planned to corner him and find out what the hell he was doing in France, as a Legionnaire no less!
She was still figuring that part out when her passenger door shot open, and Maggie Koh got in beside waving her Glock and her ID!
Surprised and annoyed, Ilsa hissed, "What the hell do you think you're doing? You're blowing my op…"
Cutting across her, Maggie replied, "Waiting…" Ilsa was caught out by that. "…waiting, what do you mean waiting?" Her back passenger door opened, and Lt. Delon slid in, his eyes widened as he recognised the woman in front.
"Long time, Major Trinchina. I don't believe I've seen you since St. Cyr..."
Ilsa shook her head, this had gone to shit.
Delon continued, "…mind telling me what you're doing running an operation on my men…" He had found the surveillance photos in the file she had on the back seat, leafing through them, he was surprised to see Robie, repeatedly. When Ilsa replied her answer turned his world sideways.
"I could ask you the same thing, what are you doing working with a CIA spy?"
Koh felt her eyebrows raising in surprise and she holstered her gun, "I think this is a conversation better had in your office, Lt. Delon…"
Delon nodded, he indicated the road to Ilsa, "Let's go."
Ten minutes later they all sat in his office as he teleconferenced with the General and Sabut. To say their jaws hit the ground with the Major's revelation was an understatement.
"Robie is a spy?" Bouquin could hardly believe it first, but it did answer some troubling doubts they'd had after the mountain incident, his knowledge of classified weaponry.
He turned his attention to Delon, "where is he now?" Delon was in the process of lighting a cigarette, "Right now, he's somewhere off the coast, training, the dive school…"
"Get him back…now!" ordered the General. He was visibly angry. "Oui, Mon General", Bouquin's screen went dark.
The others looked at one another. Trinchina looked at Maggie, "We better get your bosses on the line, you're about to be read into material above your paygrade, Koh."
All hopes of a romantic night out now firmly dashed; all Maggie Koh could think to herself was …merde…
…..
Despite the storm brewing back in Calvi, all Robie and his friends could do was enjoy the fast naval boat that Dary had secured for the night exercise. On the small bridge he outlined the purpose of the exercise and its tasks again to the trainees, four of the small five-man crew milled about the place on the old modified VTB 23, securing the dive equipment and clearing the diving hatches which filled the space where the old WW2 torpedo tubes used to be.
The three old Rolls Royce Merlin engines churned the water behind the craft as they approached the dive point.
Dary watched as the men dressed in their wetsuits, he made a final inspection of them, again he was surprised to find trainee Robie had attired himself in the Naval fashion, "You have some experience with this suit, Robie?"
Robie looked at the Office curiously, "No…"
Dary blinked at that, walking around the man he lifted parts of the suit to check the fitting, it was secured well, "You wear the suit like a born diver, who taught you this?"
"It just …. seemed right…" Robie shrugged, telling the Officer that a deluge of Intersect information had dropped in his consciousness days before was probably not the best way to handle the probing, he made a mental note to himself not to be as perfect on any other training in future, he was supposed to be a novice after all.
Dary grunted, Robie wondered if the entire military world was populated by monosyllabic officers whose main ability to communicate lay in guttural sounds.
The roaring of the engine dropped to an idle and they drifted towards the dive zone, putting on his mask Dary motioned to the French sailors who began opening the dive hatched on the deck, one after the other the men sat on the edge and then dropped backwards into the dark sea.
Two of the sailors waited until the last man disappeared and then with a nod to the crewman on the bridge took out a packet of cigarettes and lit them up, Hector Courbis nodded to Lionel Hebras, his friend, "We've got about 30 mins before they return".
Hebras had been looking out to sea, "Wonder what his story is…" Courbis looked, he could just make out a small craft not much bigger than theirs in the distance.
He shrugged, "Probably diving the old ruins too, if they're not treasure hunters, it's probably some ancient archaeology professor with a bunch of students…"
Hebras nodded, "…probably…"
…
Under normal circumstances they might have been right, unfortunately, this time they were wrong, seriously wrong, unbeknownst to them. Powerful eavesdropping devices were trained on them right now, the captain of the small craft sat in his chair, debating…
He could see the French Naval flag on the stern of the boat on his screen, that worried him more than anything, what was going on? They had no intelligence on any fleet movements, whoever they were, they were dangerously close to station X, they were less than 48 hours away from Operation Prometheus, did the authorities know something?
They had been on high alert since the day before, something had happened, the patrols had been increased and his boat had been armed, he turned to his electronic surveillance officer, "Still nothing?"
The man shook his head, he looked at the screen again, "Contact the base."
The officer complied, "Barracuda-2 to base, Barracuda-2 to base. Respond."
"Swordfish to Barracuda-2, what is your situation?"
Taking the microphone, the captain quickly explained the problem.
"Hold station, orders to follow".
"Affirmative, Barracuda-2 out"
The officer looked at his captain, "I guess we wait."
The captain nodded. "keep a close watch, any changes, notify me immediately." He got up and headed to the small galley.
…
At the undersea base, Mr Lasky pondered his options, for years they had operated with total anonymity, now with less than 48 hours to go they were facing incursions from all directions. He contacted the chief Engineer again in charge of the launch tubes. "Mr Wolff, are we still on schedule?"
The thin bushy eyebrowed man turned to the screen to face his superior, "Yes, Mr Lasky, we're fully operational in less than 12 hours, go for launch after that, the codes are being sequenced now and we're waiting for final target selection confirmation from Lord Autokhthon."
"He's …busy with our guest…but I have to see him anyway, I'll have that confirmation within the hour."
"Thank you, Mr Lasky."
He broke contact, he checked another monitor, in the infrared mode, he could see their guest was awake, time for a visit, he thought.
…..
Back in the chamber, Carina had adopted a meditative state, she had no way of escaping the manacles, there was no use straining, she needed to bide her time, hopefully now, Seagram would be on the case, she hadn't deactivated her personal homing signal in over 24 hours, right now it should be silently broadcasting her location, she was glad Casey had made her take the subcutaneous implant when she joined the Intersect team.
There was a sound of a door sliding open behind her, she pulled her awareness back and steeled herself, she just had to hold out. This wasn't her first dance, and they hadn't started yet. She wished it was her CATS days though, then her self-assuredness would be sky high, back then Walker and Rizzo would have already blasted their way in here… the good old days…
A pair of hands grabbed her head roughly and her head was forced back, she tried to struggle but she could make out the outline of the man holding her, it was the brute!
A cold splash against her lips surprised her, he was forcing her to drink, a quick sip confirmed it was water and then she was gulping it down greedily, first rule of interrogation resistance, eat and drink when you can, the more reserves she had, the longer she could hold out…
She coughed and spluttered as she shallowed as much as she could. The cold liquid pouring down the front of her body confirmed she was naked, classic ploy, embarrassment. Wrong girl to pull that on, she was an exhibitionist and it allowed her a chance to employ a weapon, her beauty.
"I think she's had enough Mr Lasky…" the voice was …odd. The man obeyed, stepping back he walked to a console and activated a low light. The room was still dim, but she could make out some details, behind the console a robed figure sat, the brute took up a position behind them.
"So…I think it's time you unburdened yourself… we know what you are…." A light came on illuminating a small desk with her equipment.
She looked cooly at her cache, hiding her dismay. "What's that?" She asked.
The brute smiled; the other figure seemed to sigh. "My patience is wearing thin; I have come too far to see my life's work falter at this critical moment… perhaps your 'friend' Sakis can help you understand the situation better."
He reached out to the console, she could hear his hands as they pressed a series of buttons and switches, there was a low hum behind her as a pair of hatches opened, her eyes went wide as she realised, they had been covering a large Moon Pool, the structure's opening wasn't level with the floor, but it had glass sides that allowed her to see inside.
As she watched she noticed movement towards a ladder that was attached to a side, she realised it was a figure! The sheer size of the pool made her realise that the structure she was in must be massive. She began to feel a little less confident about her implants ability to penetrate the superstructure and be seen by friendly forces.
Splashing noises drew her attention back to the water, with a shock she saw it was Balatos, he was threading water and heading for the ladder, it was the way he was moving though that first puzzled her, his face was turned away as if he was looking for something, he turned to check on the steps and his face was a mask of terror!
There were more splashing noises behind him, and he became even more frantic in his efforts to reach safety, unfortunately time ran out….
It was abrupt, the attack, suddenly he exploded backwards through water, his screams of pain startled her, she had watched many men die, even by her own hand, but this was something else, the water ran red around him, and visibility faded.
When his body slammed into the glass, she jumped in fright despite her training, something shook Sakis like a rag doll and then he was pulled away, through the crimson cloud a large sickle shaped tail slapped the water and then another smaller appeared.
She understood, he was being eaten… sharks, she felt the gorge rise in her throat, an unbidden memory of that old Spielberg movie popped up and she closed her eyes.
"I'm afraid, Balatos turned out to be a …disappointment, however I have high hopes for you, Ms Conti… or whatever your real name is. Otherwise…. well, my pets always appreciate my offerings…"
She always knew this life had its dangers, she'd imagined an ending where she went out in a blaze of glory, guns blazing, a ferocious snarl on her face, dying as large as she had lived, not as the excreted remains of some aquatic predator's latest meal.
"You know they're looking for me, right?" She managed to inject some bravado into her voice, "…I'm missing so, they're already on their way here, why make it worse for yourself, killing me will just add more …."
The hooded figure shook with laughter, "I don't think you fully appreciate your position here… they're not going to find anyone, and in less than 48hours, trust me, "they" will have much more than you to worry about…. the whole world will…"
They hit the console again, the humming was all around her and she watched in consternation as portholes revealed the ocean around them, struck silent, she understood, they were deep underwater.
There wasn't a hope in hell her implant was going to picked up, she was alone.
"I just need to know, have you contacted anybody, if you cooperate, you will live…"
She looked at the hooded figure again, they were standing.
"Did you know you have the most exquisite blue eyes?" They turned to face the other man, "Mr Lasky has been quite impressed by your genetic profile, you're just the kind of person we need for …after."
"You must be mad if you think I'm helping you out with anything…"
"Oh, trust me, we'll need to make a few alterations first, but my associate needs a mate, and you promise to be excellent breeding material…."
"Fuck you and the …."
The figure dropped the robe they were wearing and for the first time in her life, Carina Miller, hardened DEA agent, former member of the CATS, ex-military and law enforcement officer screamed.
The figure that stood in front of her was humanoid, that was the kindest thing she could say about them, they were tall, easily six foot plus, the rest though….
There was a greenish grey scale covered skin, the torso was hairless and slim, almost like a swimmers build… the limbs were long, the muscles elongated, on the backs of the calves and below the elbow joints it looked like short fins were emerging under the skin.
The hands and feet almost looked human until she saw they were webbed and the digits long and slender, unnaturally so. The nails were blackened and clawlike reminding her of talons.
From the back, between the shoulders, she could see a larger fin rising, almost like a fish, but it was the head and face that truly shocked her, the nose was almost flattened against the cheeks, the nostrils were slits, the eyes were huge, almost three times the size of normal human eyes, she couldn't see eyelids or brows, there seemed to be what she would have called whiskers on its chin that reminded her too much of a catfish she once saw.
The ears were finlike structures, there was no hair on the head, just another fin from behind the crown to the neck, that too, was a horror of vertical slits on either side of the throat that she quickly realised were opening in time with the rising of the chest…they were gills.
The movements they made were oddly fluid as if they were swimming in the air. Despite the horror she was fascinated by the spectacle, "How…."
"Oh, I won't bore you with the process, you'll experience it yourself soon enough…"
Her eyes widened in fear as the meaning of his words sank home.
"… after all the age of Homo Mermanus is nearly here, we will return to the sea where it all began, there we will flourish under the benevolence of our God Poseidon, in the city that has been provided for us…."
He hit a button on the console, in the depths below Carina saw a vast expanse of light appear.
"…there, I, Lord Autokhthon, shall oversee a new world, safe from the holocaust above… a new era… for us all…"
Carina sagged in the chains, this was beyond her training, beyond her imagination… what the hell was she going to do?
A drawer opening pulled her place to the moment, she watched as a long cord like apparatus was withdrawn, it had a handle, and the shape was … familiar, she realised with a sinking feeling it was a stingray tail whip, she'd seen some pictures from her studies, they had been extensively used in the slave trade days as a means of punishment. If the venom was still in the spines….
"… I'm afraid I must insist upon you answering my questions, time is short, and I need to know if you contacted your associates…."
The whip unravelled and the being tested its flexibility with a few trial cracks, satisfied he turned and faced her.
"…last chance, I would hate to …damage such promising material, co-operate and things will go …better…"
"You can go fuck yours…. aaahhhh!" She had steeled herself mentally but the caress of the whip across her back still hurt, she spun in place shooting a death glare at her tormentor, but the whip was already in motion again and she bit her cheek to ensure she didn't give the bastard the satisfaction...
"Who are you associated with…. crack.... what do they know? …crack! She writhed in pain but held her tongue… it continued…
…..
Back on the surface, Hebras looked and saw the first of the men return to the boat, he and Courbis quickly moved to assist the men as they clambered up through the hatches.
Dary was happy, they had shown good teamwork in the night sea, everybody had performed well, he was happy to report to his bosses that they could be moved to the next stage of the course. Delon would be happy and if what he had heard was correct, the men were due a big reward.
He looked up as his name was called from the small steering area, it was the radio operator, Giroux, "Yes, what is it?"
"Urgent message from base, you're to detain Caporal Robie and return him to Lt. Delon immediately. There'll be a detachment of MPs meeting us back at the quays."
Dary was astonished to say the least, but orders were orders, he called to Sean, he quickly made his way over.
"Sergent, I have no idea what's going on, but I've been ordered to detain Caporal Robie and return to base."
Sean Murphy's face whitened, it had finally happened, somehow, they'd been found out, schooling his features, he nodded, "Aright Petty Officer, get us underway, I'll see to Robie". Dary nodded and began instructing his men to secure all equipment prior to departure.
Sean went straight to Robie, he motioned to Chen too, he joined them, "You're busted, mate, there's an order to get you back ashore fast, MPs are waiting in the harbour."
Robie's face fell, "What can I do?" Sean looked around, "play it cool for now, when we get in shore, Chen and I will organise a diversion, you get over the side… make for the exit point… as soon as I get free, I'll contact Roisin and she'll come get you, ok?"
"Dammit to hell!" he swore, Chen sympathised, "Getting away is the plan now, Robie, no regrets, concentrate on the mission, I did it for a year, you'll be fine", he smiled reassuringly at his friend.
Robie nodded. Philip was right, this had always been a possibility, Oisin had planned for this, they had planned for this, but in his heart, he had hoped it would never come to this, he would be lying if he wasn't going to miss his friends, hell, he couldn't even say goodbye to Erik. Chen read his mind, "I'll sort out Vanderlaan".
Robbie looked out at sea again, he had been so close, he watched as another boat came into view… the hairs on his neck stood up…. He could feel his adrenaline spike, danger was close…
"What's he playing at?" Sean turned, "Huh?".
…
On the craft that had been shadowing them, the captain had been alerted by his surveillance officer when the other boat had received a coded transmission, he had watched the body language of the Officer in charge and the sudden movement of the sailors as they readied their ship. He wasn't happy with what he was seeing.
What the hell he wondered. Quickly he ordered a link with base. "Barracuda-2…."
Within minutes he explained his observations. Mr Lasky considered the options, it was just too close, they still had no answers from the prisoner, no, better to safe than sorry, he made his decision.
"Barracuda-2, Swordfish here…. obliterate them…."
"Barracuda-2 acknowledges, out".
Turning to his weapons specialist, he nodded, the man quickly ran to the missile launcher and uncovered the weapon, returning to his station, he began the process of arming them, the launcher spun on its axis pointing its armaments towards their target.
The captain went to his bridge, turning to the men, he ordered underway, "get in close, we'll need to mop up afterwards."
"Aye sir." They steered towards the French craft….
…..
ALERT! Craft approaching on attack vector!
It might have been Robie that saw the approaching craft, but the Intersect with its understanding of military strategy across all branches instantly recognised the manoeuvres of the approaching ship. It was Robie's eyes but while he saw, it was the Intersect that understood, it boosted his vision, it recognised the FAC33, a fast attack craft that had been stolen from the Turkish naval shipyards three years previously.
Ship's armaments Marte mk2/N anti-ship missiles, two 12.7mm machine guns. 25mm Aselsan remote controlled weapon station front of ship… danger level high! Initiate flight response Host…
Inside in Robie's body the instinctual mechanisms that had been honed over the course of human evolution sprang onto action, before he was even fully conscious of his decision, he had grabbed Sean and Philip and launched himself at the men surrounding the diving hatches.
The force of his charge caught the others completely off guard and they all plunged into the water!
Dary had witnessed the whole thing, he stared to walk towards the hatches when the powerful roar of the approaching boat drew his attention, he turned to look as two smoke trails shot up into the sky and dipped straight for his ship!
Heavy machine gun fire slammed into the decks, Hebras screamed and went down, it was all happening too fast, by the hatches the group of Legionnaire trainees surfaced spluttering.
"Sacre Bleu!"
"What the fuck Robie…"
The smashing of the bullets silenced them, Chen pointed to the sky, "Look!" They did, freezing momentarily, it was Robie that screamed "DIVE!"
…
Petty Officer Dary never stood a chance, he had tried to get back to the bridge, the screaming of the approaching missiles filled his ears, slamming into the small boat they delivered their payload, it disappeared in a fireball of debris that peppered the water with splashes as they fell from the sky.
The other craft was quickly on the scene, the captain slowed as he negotiated the surrounding remains as they slowly settled. There was a movement on the water, Courbis, badly burned and with a broken leg clung desperately to a floating crate. He saw the boat approach, the watching men's faces were impassive,
"…. please…." The heavy machine guns sang their deadly song and his body twitched as the heavy rounds pummelled it, what was left slid beneath the waves.
The captain made a few circuits of the wreckage, finally it too joined its crew, the waters hissing as they closed over the burning remains. Satisfied, he powered away, strangely the steering seemed a bit sluggish, he groaned, he had gotten too close, he would check for wreckage when they returned to base.
….