Within a few minutes, they were back at the guild. Some contractors, led by Zack, were leaving the building. Jake shouted, “You guys will get the information soon. And Zack, don’t use your flame recklessly in the refinery. There is six hundred tons of concentrated hydrogen there. If you spark it, we all die.”
Zack stared back at him and shouted as he left, “Then why the hell was I assigned to that place!”
They rushed to the thirty-fifth floor of the guild, which was the guild’s science and research department. The place was filled with computers and strange gadgets that would tempt even the most dedicated hackers. They entered a few doors and finally stepped into Professor Gopi’s office.
He seemed to be waiting for them. Before Jake opened his mouth, the professor said, “I heard about the bomb. Let me take a look at that blueprint.”
Conner passed his laptop to him. The professor studied the bomb and the model for a few minutes. Finally, he put it down and stated, “The technology used is pretty unique.”
Jake asked impatiently, “But you were able to understand the structure and its characteristics, right?”
He nodded and said, “The bomb does seem to have a timer actually. But its purpose is not for detonation.”
Jake shrugged and said, “What do you mean?”
Professor Gopi said, “This bomb has very little metal in it and is very small as well. This might’ve been done to make it harder to detect. But in doing so, the explosive power of the device is greatly reduced. So, to cope with it, an ingenious technology has been used.”
He connected the laptop to his own super computer and showed the model of the explosive.
“A small beeping is being emitted, right? This is actually a countdown. And when it reaches zero, the red light here changes to green and the device releases a kind of radio signal, which covers a certain radius. The signal uses the radio waves of all the cell phones in its territory as a source of combustion. The greater the number of radio waves, the bigger the explosion.”
Conner recollected something he had seen. “That’s right! Just before the explosion in Genesis alley, people’s cell phones were going haywire and exploding.”
Jake also added, “Genesis alley would be filled with people and there is hardly anyone who does not have a cell phone these days. So the explosion would’ve been massive. And the hydrogen refinery might not have too many radio waves, but because of the hydrogen, even a small explosion could blow a crater. But what detonated it?”
Professor Gopi replied, “A phone call. The device has a SIM card inside it. And it seems to be programmed to receive a call only from one other phone. The call would act as a catalyst in the explosion.”
Conner and Jake stared at the professor and then at each other. The professor smiled and said, “I guess you guys know what to do to track this guy out now.”
Conner nodded and Jake said, “Yeah, let the next bomb blow.”
The professor said, “Zack is going to go nuts after we tell him. Should I do the explaining?”
Jake said, “No. I’ll do it. You stick with Conner and get ready to track the bomber.”
He nodded and left with Conner, who grabbed his laptop. Jake said as he left, “Conner, inform Sora right after you find the location.”
“I know. And tell the guys in the refinery soon. There’s only fifteen minutes left,” Conner said as he exited.
Jake sent the information about the bomb to the guild’s control room to forward it to the guild contractors. He then contacted Zack with his G watch.
“Zack, did you find it yet?”
“~ Not yet. We’ve evacuated the workers and there are only a few places left to search. I’m sure we’ll find it. And we just received the information from the control room about the bomb. So we know that the bomb emits a strange beeping. We’ll use a sound tracker and triangulate its position ~”
“Zack, don’t destroy the device. You should let it explode.”
“~ WHAT! Are you mad! ~”
“No, but listen to me. I’m not telling you to let it blow inside the refinery. Throw it into the sky or something in the last second. No matter what the signal radius of the device is, the explosion won’t be too big seeing as there are very few people in the outskirts with cell phones.”
“~ Yeah. But what’s the point? ~”
“Listen closely. Professor Gopi and a kid called Conner will be arriving in an N-2 in a few minutes. You heard that the bomb detonates with a phone call, right? Those two will try to track the signal of the call. Even if the signal will be short, the professor is a genius and Conner seems to be some kind of skilled hacker. Those two will be able to do it.”
“~ Whatever you say then. So, how long till this one explodes? ~”
“Around twelve minutes. And Zack, you should keep in mind that there’s another bomb somewhere in the city. After this one is finished, ask Conner for the location. If by any chance we’re not able to track the bomber or are too late, we should be able to destroy the bomb somehow.”
“~ Okay. And thanks. ~”
Saying that, Zack cut the call. Jake sat on Professor Gopi’s chair and let out a soft sigh as he leaned back.
“You’re a busy man today, aren’t you?”
Sean had just walked in. Jake sat up straight and asked, “What are you doing here?”
Sean replied, “I just returned from a job and I heard about this fiasco. They told me you’re calling the shots as well.”
Jake scowled and said, “It’s not like I want to. There were no S ranks here and most of the A ranks are on jobs. Plus, I was one of the first at the scene, so I just told them what I thought should be done and they are doing it. Nothing else.”
“I’m not indicating anything.”
“You forgot that I’m a psychic and can read minds,” Jake said coolly.
Sean frowned and said, “I detest that power of yours.”
The minutes ticked by. Conner and Professor Gopi arrived at the scene. The hydrogen refineries were big gray buildings with many pipes and cylinders. Zack met them outside it and said, “We got the bomb. How much time left?”
Conner said, “Only four minutes. Professor, the blast won’t reach the refinery, right?”
The professor said, “After studying the blueprint a bit more, I inferred that the signal radius is six hundred meters. How many cellular devices are there in this area?”
Conner did a scan on his laptop and said, “Only eleven.”
The professor did his math and said, “Throwing the device about fifty meters above the refineries should be more than enough, Zack. Well, let’s get on with it.”
They climbed up to the top of the building. Conner kept staring at the screen and said, “Twenty seconds.”
Professor Gopi said, “Now Zack, only throw when there is a second left. Make sure that you don’t throw too early or too late. Also, don’t throw it too far or else the signal will be hard to catch.”
Zack nodded. Conner said, “Ten seconds.”
Then, “Five… four… three… two…”
Zack wound up.
“One… NOW!”
Zack pitched it high into the air. They could see the lights switch to green and a few cell phones exploding at a distance. After this, a white flash followed.
“Conner, track it!”
The bomb exploded high in the air, with the refinery safe from its flames. But they held their breath staring at Conner, who was typing furiously on his laptop.
A few seconds later, Conner lay back on the floor with a sigh of relief. The professor asked anxiously, “Well?”
Conner said, “I trapped the signal… BUT,” he said before the others started cheering, “The signal has been redirected to various locations across the south continent. It’ll take a while to track it to its original source.”
Just then, Zack received a call from Jake.
“~ Well? ~”
Zack explained the situation to Jake, who said, “~ Okay. Conner, how much
longer for the last bomb to go off? ~”
Conner approached Zack’s G watch and said, “At this instant, thirty five minutes.”
“~ And how long will it take for you to get the signal location? ~”
“At best, it’ll take roughly thirty minutes.”
“~ Okay. Give us the location for the third bomb. We’ll get some people over there as a precaution ~”
“Yeah… That’s going to be a problem.”
“~ Problem? What do you mean? ~”
“The only thing given in the message for the third bomb was that it should be placed in the best location.”
Conner could hear Jake groan. He then said, “~ Right. I’ll try to find the possible location for these bombs and get back to you. I’ll tell Sora to stay put. You guys head back as well ~”
Jake covered his face and thought quietly. Sean said, “You’ve got your work cut out for you.”
Jake glared and said, “Tell me something I don’t know, like, why you aren’t doing anything in this situation.”
Sean sat in one of the spare chairs and said, “That’s because you seem to have everything under control here. I don’t seem to be needed here.”
“Yeah, I forgot you’re pretty useless. Sorry.”
Twenty minutes elapsed without any leads. Most of the contractors were growing edgy. Conner typed away without a single moment of break while Jake pondered over the locations where the effect of the bomb would be most effective. It was nearing five in the afternoon and was a Saturday. Many families would head out together around this time. He had already sent search teams into the busiest malls, the biggest movie theatres, famous restaurants and other densely populated areas. But their sound tracker had not picked up a beep resembling the one from the bomb and those similar to it turned out to be false alarms.
But with ten minutes left, Conner seemed to have struck gold.
“FINALLY!” He shouted.
He contacted Sora first and said, “I got the location. He’s moving away from the city. The speed seems to be like he’s in a car. I’ll give you his co-ordinates so that you can track him on your GPS.”
“~ Conner, You’re the man! Great job! Leave everything to me and Jake ~”
Jake received word that Conner was done and Sora was hot on the bomber’s trail. But one fact surprised him.
“He’s moving away from the city?”
Sean said, “That’s what the message says. Why are you so surprised?”
Jake said, “Earlier, I figured that he must be in the city so that he can check if the bombs blew up or not. But if he’s leaving the city, that must mean…the city isn’t safe.”
“What?”
Jake said in a shaky tone, “The whole city must be in danger with this one bomb. That’s the only reason I can think of.”
Sean said, “That’s crazy. What place generates so much radio waves that a huge city would be destroyed?”
Jake cracked his head trying to put the pieces together. Sean said, “Come on Tyler. Only five minutes left!”
Jake suddenly realized something. “Wait… radio waves. The ones used by cell phones. God, I’m an idiot.”
Sean was startled. “In most situations, I would agree, but what do you mean?”
Jake said, “I was thinking about places that had a lot of people, not lot of radio waves. But there can only be one place where all the radio waves in the city come together.”
Sean stared at him and slowly said, “You don’t mean… the city’s telecommunication tower!”
Jake shouted in approval, “Of course. I am such a retard!”
He called up Zack and said, “Hey, check the telecommunication tower. That has got to be the place!”
“~ How much time left? ~”
“About four minutes. You need to rush. If we’re too late, you can wave everybody in this city goodbye.”
“~ I’m on it ~” Saying that, he cut the call.
‘You know, we can see the telecommunication tower from here.” Sean said as he looked out the window. “It’s not too far.”
Suddenly, Jake received a call from Sora.
Jake picked up and said, “Sora! Give me good news man!”
“~ I got the bomber, codename BLITZ ~”
“Thank god! Now he won’t be able to detonate the bomb.”
“~ There’s also a problem. When I cornered him, he dialed the number. He says that now the device is automatically armed, making it gather radio waves and explode simultaneously when the time runs out ~”
“What!”
“~ Plus he says that he’s rigged the areas around the bomb, conveniently revealing that the device is placed near the top of the tower. He says that if anyone comes in contact with those triggers, the device will start picking up the radio waves at once. And since he has already armed the bomb, it will explode as well ~”
“Seems to be true.” Jake turned to see Sean looking at the tall tower. “I can see the bomb, but there are also many other devices and wires around it.”
Jake said, “Sean, damn your hawk eye! Tell Zack not to get close to it.”
“~Jake, what are we going to do? ~”
Jake said, “We’ve got to calm down and think of a way to reach the bomb without setting off the triggers.”
Sean, who had just finished talking to Zack, was in disbelief. “Calm down and think? Jake, we’ve got only a minute left! We don’t have the time to think.”
Jake said, “No. The situation is too fragile. There’s too much at stake for us to take any reckless actions.”
“Jake, fifty seconds. We can’t afford to waste time in thinking.”
“Wait. Let me think.”
“Thirty seconds. Got a plan?”
“Hush! Let me concentrate.”
“Twenty seconds. You don’t seem to have any bright ideas.”
Jake shot out in fury, “Oh yeah? Then what do you think we should do, wise guy?”
Meanwhile, Sora was fidgeting uncomfortably. The bomber, a young man in his twenties, was sitting with his back to his car, smiling wider and wider as the seconds ticked on.
“Fifteen seconds,” he said. “Get ready for some fireworks.”
“Shut up!” Sora said tensely.
“Ten seconds now. Said your goodbyes to your friends already?”
“Shut up.”
“Five seconds. You can kiss–”
Sora held him by his collar and said, “Stop the bomb NOW!”
“Two second,” whispered the deranged bomber in glee.
“STOP THE BOMB, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!”
“Zero, BOOM! They’re dead, you brat! You didn’t know whom you were messing with! They’re dead!”
“~ Who’s dead, you nincompoop? ~”
The bomber’s eyes went wide. So did Sora’s but his was in joy. “You guys did it! Wait, is that you, Sean?”
Sora was even more confused as he heard Jake shouting at Sean from his watch.
“~ ARE YOU MAD! HOW COULD YOU DO THAT… Calm down, it worked, didn’t it… THAT DOESN’T MATTER! WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE DONE IF YOU HAD HIT THE TRIGGERS INSTEAD… You should trust my sniping skills more, you know. Nailing that shot was no sweat… YOU WEREN’T EVEN LOOKING AT THE TARGET! YOU WERE LOOKING AT ME AND GRINNING LIKE AN IDIOT THE WHOLE TIME… That’s called talent. I have the right to show it off a little… YOU… ~”
Jake’s swearing and insults were drowned by Sora’s laughs. The bomber was still gaping at him.
“I think we haven’t got to know each other properly yet,” Sora said as he crackled his knuckles.
The bomber, BLITZ, who had terrorized the city of Gildartz, gulped as he sat silently, engulfed in so much fear that he was paralyzed and –
“– Did you just pee your pants?”
There was a party in the guild cafeteria that evening. Jake, Sean, Sora and Conner (who was forced to attend even though he wasn’t part of the guild) were the heroes of the day. Mac and his team had pulled all the punches and produced a feas
t rivalling the one held during the welcoming party.
Guild members were also approaching and congratulating their efforts today. There were jokes and laughs all around them.
Situations like these seem to change people’s opinion about others. For starters, at one point, there were girls surrounding Sora for the first time since he entered the guild. The recent events had resulted in them changing their opinion about him.
Also, Jake noticed that Zack was also involving himself with others more. He had never seen Zack smile and laugh so much or so cheerfully. But after he caught a whiff of the drinks being served around, he figured that it might’ve just been the liquor.
As the party reached an end, most of the people drifted away. Sora was chatting with Conner, who asked him, “Are your wounds okay now? You shielded us from that terrible device at point blank range. It must’ve hurt.”
Sora said, “Nothing I couldn’t handle. Dr. Reed, our guild doctor, said that I don’t need his treatment because the first aid was well done. Though I’ll have to stay covered in bandages for a few days.”
Sora took a glass of juice and raised it saying, “And before I forget, here is to Conner Wake, an ordinary kid, who was ready to risk his life to save people who he never knew despite it not being his job.”
There was a giggle behind them. Julie was approaching them a bit groggily. She said, “You could have phrased it a little better, you know.”
Sora made her sit down and said, “You should ease off on the drinks. You’re still underage, aren’t you?”
Julie was still steady mentally though. She said, “You were talking about Conner’s contribution to today’s fiasco. I was wondering, you never answered my question in Genesis alley. Why did you trust him so readily?”
Sora sighed and said, “Julie, your contract might be the blast element, but that doesn’t mean that you should blow up every small detail.”
Julie shook her head and said, “Am I really just reading too deep into it, Sora? Secret information suddenly falls into the hands of a fourteen year old kid, who happens to be a skilled hacker? I smell something fishy here.”
Conner shuffled a bit in his seat. Sora said, “Julie, please. A friend of his got the mail as a spam and forwarded it to Conner when he found that it was encrypted. That’s all.”
Contractor: The Legendary Contract of Vento Page 20
