Wolf and J were heavy hearted as they went out of the door. Both were looking sullen and shaking their heads in rebellious silence, but a decision had been made by the Commanders in Chief of The Free World.
However, J and Wolf were special individuals; that’s why they had risen so high within the ranks of MI6. There was no way they would leave the children in the lurch and so they headed straight back to Somerset House to contemplate the problem and decide on a course of action. But Wolf was way ahead of J on this one. He didn’t have the constraints of loyalty and deference to the politicians. He immediately went to the rooftop for some privacy and animatedly talked to Brett using his satellite phone. Wolf had decided they needed Brett as close to the action as possible and after listening to the MI6 agent’s update, Brett jumped in his Hummer and headed south from the hotel. After crossing the Kenyan border he turned eastwards and accelerated into the wilds of Tanzania.
* * *
The mountain of Kibo, one of three volcanoes that made up Kilimanjaro, was riddled with ancient passageways. Many had been explored by the Maasai who were now in Madam Musseine’s debt and therefore they had given her information that had been handed down through generations of Maasai chiefs. Extinct fumaroles provided a perfect and secret passageway to those in the know and Twip Twop was one of those in the know.
Techno, Kit Kat, Roger and Jack were physically and emotionally exhausted as they exited the lift onto level three. Jack encouraged them all to “look normal” and they split into two groups to walk “normally” back to the accommodation sector where Timmo and Marshall were waiting for them. But they were anything but “normal” now as they were the arch enemies of Madam Musseine who would have been informed of their treachery by Twip Twop. As they passed other children on their way to breakfast or technicians on their way to the AICs, they glanced nervously at every individual. On two occasions the technicians were Japanese which made them pause and turn away until the technician’s had safely passed, as a ninja could easily borrow a white technician’s coat. Therefore, by the time Kate and Jack walked into their bedroom they were glad to have returned to a dubious safety. Jack pushed open the door and stepped inside. He was closely followed by Kate.
Twip Twop was stood at the far end of the room with his back towards the rear door that had always been locked. Now they realised why. It enabled MM’s henchmen access at all times and by sprinting through the secret passage ways leading from level one it had helped Twip Twop to surprise Timmo and Marshall before the others had returned. He held two boxes in his hands. They didn’t contain bullets but were just as lethal. The ominous black box chargers of the XREP’s were close to Timmo and Marshall’s heads as they sat on a bed facing the main door.
Roger and Techno bundled in behind Jack and Kit Kat. Immediately Techno fanned to the left of Jack and Kit Kat followed his example but fanned to the right.
Roger stood close to Jack and whispered encouragement.
‘It’s okay, there are four of us. If Twip Twop managed to get here so quickly, then he won’t have had time to inform MM about our treachery.’
‘What are those black boxes Roger?’ Jack needed to know what they were up against as they circled around Twip Twop.
‘They look like sources for eXtended Range Electro-Muscular Projectiles. Range – well unfortunately we are too close to avoid them. Kill rating is 100 per cent on a head shot at zero range. Evasive action…unknown.’ Roger was too precise for Jack. The information hurt him badly. This was his brother.
Techno shouted at Twip Twop. ‘If you harm my brother I promise I will kill you.’
Twip Twop’s head jerked to the left a few times. A nervous twitch from the deranged brain. ‘So what. Your time is up anyway. MM has no need of you anymore.’
‘So everything you little albino idiot. We have the SD card and therefore she can’t upload her virus without it.’ Techno played his negotiating card. He was prepared to give the SD card to Twip Twop to save his brother.
The white hair flailed left then right as Twip Twop twitched. He was thinking hard. He could buy his freedom from MM if he had the card and start his own business, his dream, Assasination Limited.
He gurgled at Techno, ‘give it here then.’
‘I haven’t got it. Roger do you have it?’
‘No sorry Techno.’
‘Jack?’
‘No mate.’
Techno turned to Kit Kat. ‘So you kept it Kate?’
‘Sorry Techno, it seems that none of us have the SD card.’ She moved another metre to her left, encouraging Roger to leave Jack’s side and further surround the albino.
Timmo spoke. ‘Don’t give this monstosity anything. I’d rather die than betray our cause.’
Marshall took his cue. ‘Yeah, don’t mind us. Just get him and put him down a steam filled fumarole. That would give him his first ever suntan.’ The gang laughed making Twip Twop unsure about his tactical advantage, these kids were acting too cool for his liking.
He spoke. ‘Just throw the SD card to me and I’ll leave you in peace with this lot whilst they’re alive.’ He pushed Timmo and Marshall’s heads onto the bed with the XREP’s pressed hard against them.
Jack’s heart lurched but his reply was ice cold. ‘No mate, if we gave you the card then we have no bargaining position with MM ourselves. It’s a tough choice for you. Fail with us or fail with MM. A lose, lose situation but fail with us and you will live. That’s your choice mate.’ Twip Twop was licking his lips. He stood more upright with the XREP’s hanging loosely in his hands. Jack watched him carefully. Sergeant Sargent had talked about distraction and surprise. Twip Twop was watching the others edge closer and thinking about MM killing him for failing. Jack thought quickly, he had heard of the prototype weapons in the police case in Northumbria a few years before. He remembered they were powered by high voltage electricity. He suddenly had an idea. To his left was a fire hose. The red tap was a simple 90 degree turn from off to full on. He sidled next to it. It was Kit Kat who cottoned on to his next move. She moved a metre closer to Twip Twop. It was a sudden step to distract him thus giving Jack a moment to pull out a metre of hose and flip the tap to on. A powerful stream of water flew across the room and knocked Twip Twop backwards and against the rear door. There was a bright blue flash that sparked outwards from both of his hands towards the floor as the XREP’s short-circuited. Two surges of electricity jumped up his arms and the high voltage started to burn the palms of his lily-white hands. Twip Twop’s hair stood on end and a faint blue aura surrounded his head as he threw his arms in the air and immediately dropped the XREP’s. Jack stepped closer pulling the hose off the reel as he moved. The water was powerful enough to knock Twip Twop out of the door. They watched him crawl away from the stream and lurch uncertainly to his feet. He was quick to run away but was lurching from side to side, drunk on electricity and defeated for the second time.
Jack’s gang gathered by the bed and hugged each other hard.
Techno grabbed Marshall from the ruckus and pulled him close. ‘Thank god Marshall. I thought you were a goner that time!’
‘Not yet Robert, I’ve only just found my brother and I am in no hurry to leave him.’
‘In that case let’s go and find our mum hey?’ Techno turned to the others. ‘Are you helping or not?’ It was an easy decision as they bundled Timmo into his wheel chair and headed for the door.
* * *
MM’ voice came over the tannoy as they walked toward the lift to take them to level two, the security zone. Jack glanced at his Rolex watch, it was nearly 10.30 am. He liked the design and decided he needed to one but then he remembered Roger’s dad had forked out £3500 for it. He realised it was a strange thought in the circumstances. ‘Ah well, maybe a new Swatch watch would do, after all it just tells the time.’
She was speaking again, this time with more urgency. ‘Come my little players. Come and play the extraordinary extravaganza against me. A personal fight to the death on “world d
omination”. The very latest in 3D computer graphics and always and only me as your main opponent for today only.’ It was enough to send the children scampering to the AICs. They bumped and ran past the gang, eager to play a game against someone they still trusted. Someone who was the ultimate opponent.
Marshall commented as he walked past the AICs and glanced into the flashing interiors. ‘Look at the innocence of it all.’
Techno clasped a hand on his brother’s shoulder. ‘If only they realised what a few key strokes on a computer keyboard could achieve. That was my mistake originally.’
As they walked, they were all wondering where MM was at the moment; they didn’t want to bump into her on their way to Mrs Hines’s cell. However, it had become clear during their short stay inside the terrorist’s den that Madam Musseine kept herself to herself. Wherever she was broadcasting from, she would be playing the game and would be surrounded by her bodyguards.
Roger interrupted the brothers. ‘It’s not about playing computer games is it? Surely the chaos theory takes precedence. You know, one tiny event like a butterfly crossing the Atlantic Ocean can have a massive impact on god knows what and where.’
Timmo shook his head negatively. ‘No way splodger. Everything is planned, technical and scientific in our world now.’
However, Roger had read copious amounts about the chaos theory. ‘Really, there are whole universities devoting time to study it. It’s a mixture of mathematics, with applications in other disciplines like physics, economics, and even philosophy. It would probably explain “The Reason” according to Sergeant Sargent. The deterministic nature of these systems doesn’t make them predictable e.g. we have weather forecasts and they can be wrong.’ For the first time ever, the friends stared at Roger and wondered what planet he came from. They were gob-smacked by his speech.
Techno was leading the group and urged them to hurry. ‘We can’t stop the children playing but we can save our mum.’
Kit Kat was feeling incredibly tense. ‘It’s okay taking on the ninja army and Madam Musseine but then what’s the plan? Like, how do we get out of here?’ Before anyone could reply the mountain rumbled, a cacophony of blasts reverberated around the cavern and temporarily deafened the group who flung themselves instinctively to the hard rock floor. Their training had instantly taken over and made them lie still and wait.
Timmo shouted at the top of his voice from his wheelchair above them. ‘It must be an eruption! Kibo is set to blow again.’
Jack shouted back over the noise of further explosions as they edged nearer to the lift to gain access to level two. ‘You dimmo, Timmo. It can’t be an eruption, the volcano is extinct not dormant.’ The earth shook again and a blast door 100 metres away was thrown across the floor.
It was Roger who had the right answer. ‘They have lost confidence in us, it must be the Yanks and Brits attacking MM with everything they’ve got.’
‘That’s madness’ said Jack, ‘there’s no way they can penetrate inside this place. He stood up slowly from his crouch and looked at screaming children leaving the AICs and starting to run amok. ‘Look we have to help the other kids. If they go outside they’ll get killed for sure.’
‘What about our mum?’ Marshall asked.
Jack pointed to Roger and Kate. ‘Go with Marshall and Techno and see what you can do but be careful yeah?’
‘What about you and Timmo, Jack?’ Kate didn’t want to leave him.
‘We are going to get this lot into a safe area. Go! Go now and remember to squeeze your ear lobes to turn on your minrads and stay in touch.’ They had all forgotten the minrads, the tiniest radios available in the world. Whilst at the SAS camp they were surgically implanted under the skin below the right ear. This gave a direct link to the ear drum and their vocal chords allowing communication without interference but without carrying a large radio. The 5 kilometre range would be shortened because they were inside the mountain but with no battery worries, the equipment could be a life saver. The energy cell inside each minrad used the body’s heat to generate electricity and as they were all sweating on their fast walk, so power was at the maximum. Smoke started to billow across the cavern, low clouds that stank of cordite from the explosives in the cruise missiles. Jack turned away from the others and started to push Timmo towards the stage where MM had greeted them a few days before.
Timmo observed one advantage. ‘At least the attack has stopped the children working!’ A piece of rock crashed from the ceiling above them and hit a small Chinese girl who was passing. She didn’t stand a chance and must have been killed instantly. Gritting his teeth, Jack pushed Timmo faster and headed towards the audio visual equipment on the gallery above level three. Innocent children weren’t supposed to be seeing such adult realities; it was instantly making the boys into men.
* * *
J and Wolf sat together watching the video uplinks from the main battle groups. Wolf had patched a direct link with the crème de la crème SAS team, which was led by Sergeant Sargent. In training, they had told the children his nickname. Wolf only knew him as Mike and on this attack, he was one of the senior commanders of this elite group. J had also invited the rest of the project conman team to join them. Matthews was absent, currently held at Her Majesty’s prison in Wormwood Scrubs. Sybil sat beautiful and alluring, she was wearing a black silk evening gown, which she had worn at the opera the night before. Like most of the team, she had worked through the night in preparation for the attack and hadn’t managed to go home and change. Morrison sat picking his nose, an odd habit whenever he was stressed and the finance man, Claypole was also absent, he preferred excel spreadsheets to the blood and guts of reality.
At 10.30 am precisely, the screens exploded into action. The US and British armed forces were unleashing the forces of hell against Madam Musseine. It was Armageddon for more than an hour, cruise missiles left the subs offshore and skated inland just above the surface of the Savannah. Each one was specifically targeted to a known entrance on the volcano and smashed into the blast doors, which shuddered in the explosion but with little noticeable effect. Then a second and a third tranche followed to exactly the same targets. Some passed through the odd smashed door and went deep into the mountain but only to explode into a second set of doors. This lack of penetration to the heart of the place saved many children’s lives.
Mike spoke to the assembled MI6 team. ‘We’re going in, in exactly five minutes. There are four teams of ten men taking four different passageways on both sides of the mountain.’
‘Good luck Mike.’ Wolf replaced the microphone on the desk in front of the screens. The noise was squelched and they saw the CCTV pictures from four drones as the SAS teams entered the tunnels and then there were just black gaping holes remaining. The views were switched. Each soldier on point duty had a CCTV camera attached to the side of his helmet but the TV screens in Somerset House showed nothing except a cloud of swirling dust. However, they could hear the quiet orders between the soldiers. Mike ordered his team forward, after 100 metres they regrouped.
Mike spoke to Wolf. ‘Anything happening outside?’
‘No Mike, it’s all quiet now.’
Mike grunted. ‘Too quiet mate. I’ve got a bad feeling here; we are like rats going down a ferret’s hole rather than the other way around.’ He told his men to move forward another 50 metres and then stop in a defensive position. Before they arrived at the next stop point, there were bright flashes that grew so intense and continuous that the TV screen showed nothing but white. It occurred simultaneously on all of the four TV screens following the SAS’s assault.
‘Oh my god. It’s a trap.’ Wolf picked up the microphone and shouted to Mike. ‘Get out now.’ It was too late. The ninjas had emerged from behind the teams and thrown the magnesium flares. They had used the hidden passageways to ambush the soldiers and now they opened up their heavy machine guns on automatic. The heavy thud of the guns merged with the ricochet of bullets that spun past the helpless SAS men. Those tha
t made it to the ground without taking a bullet had three seconds to react as the ninjas tossed their grenades. More than thirty grenades decimated each of the SAS teams. A single TV screen gradually cleared as the whiteness of the flares died away. Mike’s face was opposite the dead soldier with the headcam, which was on its side. His eyes were wide and staring, one above the other, which made the whole MI6 team turn their heads 90 degrees.
He coughed up a little blood; he was struggling to breathe with three bullets lodged in his chest. ‘Whatever you do Wolf,’ he coughed again, ‘get even with these bastards and save the kids yeah?’ Wolf didn’t need to reply. They watched Mike – Sergeant Sargent’s eyes slowly close as he died. The MI6 team sat in stunned silence.
J was the first to talk. ‘Now for phase two of the crazy plan.’ They watched the shots from the drones of the giant Chinook helicopters arriving. They were carrying more than a thousand troops as the machines landed halfway up the volcano and deposited their loads. High above they could see the Harrier Jump jets waiting to pounce on any emerging enemy vehicles. But they couldn’t make out the Landrovers as they left the secret tunnel at the foot of Kilimanjaro, cloaked by the RNT – Radar Networking Technology. Something no one in the US or British forces could have foreseen.
MM was in her lead vehicle in the middle of the array created by the Landrovers. It only took ten minutes to assemble everyone outside the volcano and then she sat and watched the oncoming forces.
She keyed her radio and spoke to the children remaining inside the mountain. ‘Come and play my game. Ignore the crashing sounds, it is only the quarrying work to create a larger gaming space.’ It was disinformation on the grandest scale. A bit of extra fun as she waited like a giant spider in the middle of her lethal web. The screen in front of her told exactly where each attacking platoon were located. Their locations were automatically input into the Landrovers’s defence systems and bazookas, rockets and RPG targeted every last man. Openings appeared on the side of the mountainside as small automated cannons poked out of the rocks to double MM’s firepower.