by RR Haywood
Time slows like it did when he was seventeen and walking home down a country lane. Like it did when he was on the platform at Holborn Tube station and when he fought in the bunker against the guards with Safa and Harry. Like it did in the ocean and in this same house. Everything in perfect clarity. Every move laid out in front of him. There is no panic, only calm. Ben is smart. He doesn’t panic. I need that.
Ria kills her mother. Firing blanks was easy. She never needed to aim but just fire. She sprays the landing with rounds. The soldiers and operatives are trained for such a thing and drop to roll or burst away. Her mother doesn’t. Susan stares fixed at the gateway to hell from which her daughter runs as the rounds slam through her chest and neck.
Time slows. Everything in perfect clarity. The Barrett already handed to Safa. The rocket launcher already pulled round. Ben sees Ria firing the assault rifle, wild and unfocussed. He sees the plaster falling from the ceiling and the dust particles hanging in the air. He sees the soldiers recover quickly to bring aim at Ria as the air on the landing glows with red lasers seemingly drawn of the same hue shining behind the girl screaming out as she sees her mother drop dead and bleeding.
Time slows. Everything in perfect clarity. He squeezes and fires. The missile launches with a bright burning trail from the front door into the space between the men and Ria. The explosion is instant and huge. A booming detonation of fire and noise that only adds to the carnage in Cavendish Manor. Ria is taken off her feet, sprawling out on the floor.
Time slows. Everything in perfect clarity. Ben drops the missile launcher and reaches back to take the Barrett from Safa, swinging the weapon over as he brings it up to brace in his already sore shoulder.
‘Leave the bazookas . . . Go now . . .’
He braces and readies to stare down the scope through the dust and smoke billowing in the house. He spots a camouflaged figure moving and fires. He spots a black-clad figure and fires. He fires quickly into bodies and into the middle of them. He fires the enormous weapon as Safa, Harry and Emily run for the stairs.
Ria has to be protected, but more than that, more than anything, the Red has to be protected. This is the level of what we must do, Mr Ryder. The safety of the device will always be the priority.
Ben pulls the trigger. The recoil slamming into his shoulder. The noise is immense. The solid whump of the sniper rifle marking their presence. Marking their arrival.
‘GET THROUGH IT.’ Alpha screams the order while hunkering down behind several bodies. Using their forms as a shield. Others scream in panic, but he is Alpha. He does not panic. Through the smoke and debris, he spots Ria sprawled on the floor. His right hand brings the pistol up. The Barrett fires again, killing a man rising up near Alpha. Hot, wet blood spatters on Alpha’s face, but he pays no heed as he aims and fires. Men rise to charge at the red glowing light, only to be shot down by Ben twitching to aim and fire while he waits.
Safa takes the top of the stairs and runs down the landing with her own pistol out, firing into the mass of soldiers and agents. Harry and Emily do the same. They run past the Red to go deep into the attackers. Everything on instinct. Everything on reaction. Safa held five on her own. You ever see anyone do that? I need Safa.
‘MINE, BEN,’ Safa screams into the mic. Ben drops the Barrett.
Safa slams her knee into a head and twists to flip with a high kick, striking the side of a skull. Harry smashes two through the ruined bannister that land with a sickening crunch of bone next to Ben, who draws his pistol and shoots both before hefting the two remaining missile launchers up. Emily grabs a head from behind and snaps hard, severing the spinal column.
Miri smokes and holds the radio taken from the soldier. She listens to the sounds coming from the house. She looks up to the sky, as though towards the satellite, then checks her watch.
The three on the landing twist and spin to block, to snap arms, sweep legs and stamp on throats as Ben strides from the lobby to a back room. He lowers one missile launcher, lifts the other, makes ready and fires at the back wall, removing it from existence.
Miri smiles and presses the button on the side of radio. ‘Hello, Mother . . . My name is Maggie Sanderson . . .’
Ben walks to the gap in the ruined wall and stares up in awe at the sight of two military gunships firing both sets of chain guns. Spent casings spew in long trails from the side. Glinting as they fall to scatter unheard on the ruined lawn.
In a control room in a building in central London, on the banks of the River Thames, Mother freezes as the room becomes instantly quiet.
In a bunker under Downing Street, every aide and minister ceases what they are doing at the new voice coming through the radio network and a name they all know from a person that was meant to have died many years ago.
Washington and Moscow grow silent. They all know that name. Anyone who ever worked in intelligence and security knows that name.
Miri holds the radio and the attention of the world in her hand. ‘I need you to understand who is in control here . . .’
Harry’s heavy 1943 boot drives into a soldier. He swings a fist into the face of another. Someone hits him. He doesn’t blink. He doesn’t flinch. He slams his head forward, dropping the attacker instantly. A kick, and the body sails over the edge to land on the lobby floor. Alpha and Bravo see Tango Two. She is upstairs. But she is also here. Time travel. Doesn’t matter. They go for her. The two best agents in the country aiming for the woman as she fights on.
In the glade next to the Blue, Miri draws breath and checks her watch. ‘Look at your gunships . . . Watch what happens . . .’
Ben lifts and aims. He flicks the sight up and adjusts. No rush. No panic. He blinks slowly and presses the trigger. The missile swooshes. A glowing trail of bright light marking the trajectory as inside the top room Tango Two sees the arc while fighting for her life without a clue as to why.
‘That is what happens . . .’
‘Oh, fuck,’ Mother mutters at the sight of Ben Ryder aiming from the hole in the back of the house. The missile launches and soars up into the gunship on the right. Rotor blades strike with a flash of sparks that send screaming metal ramming into the house as both aircraft spin out of control down to crash into the roof of Cavendish Manor.
‘Ben Ryder. Safa Patel. Harry Madden. Emily Rose and me, Maggie Sanderson. My five against all of you . . .’
Emily ducks, spins and comes up behind a soldier to grab his head. She tenses and snarls to bunch the explosive force needed to break the neck. Only a few metres away, Ria lies in shock on her side, clutching the gunshot in her stomach. Silent. Pale and staring only at the face of her dead mother lying amongst the bodies and debris. The pain is immense. She sees the two men that held her mother now running at Emily and thinks to scream, but stays silent in the chaos and noise.
The speed of them. The vicious power as Alpha wrenches Emily back and spins her round for Bravo to rain withering, brutal punches into her face. Emily tries to block, to counter, but the two best agents go at her. Neither relents. Neither stops. Her nose breaks. Blood sprays out. She blocks a few hits and lashes out, but the psychological effect of just knowing she is fighting Alpha and Bravo give them the edge. She tries, but they are too fast. She screams out as the hard kick takes her down with a dull thud.
Alpha’s foot lifts to stamp. His own bloodied face twisted in malice. The foot comes down, but she smiles up almost in pity at the two men who have no idea what’s coming.
I need Harry. Mad Harry Madden takes the two men from the side. The man is fearless. The sheer power of him lifting both up and along as he drives them into the wall. Mad Harry Madden won’t stop. Mad Harry Madden will eat crackers and cheese tonight with his friend, and he’ll kill every living thing here to do that. He drops to punch. Landing huge hits one after the other into eye sockets, bursting ear drums, breaking noses.
‘Harry . . .’
He snatches round to see Emily on her feet behind him and moves aside. Emily draws and stares down at
the battered men. Pick a side, Tango Two. She aims, fires once then twice and goes back into the fray.
‘Your best are dead. Your best will die. Dammit, I hate smoking. You okay, son? You stay there. It’ll be over soon.’
Mother closes her eyes. Maggie Sanderson. Christ, they don’t stand a chance. The PM listens to the flat American voice that comes through speakers to emergency bunkers all over the world as aides, generals and advisors shake heads in confusion.
Ben sprints up the stairs to see Ria down and bleeding. He grabs her wrists to drag her, screaming, through the Red to the instant silence of the bunker.
‘DOC . . . IN HERE . . . !’
‘Coming . . . !’ he hears Doctor Watson shouting, and goes back to the noise, heat and smoke of Cavendish Manor. No panic. Calm inside. He draws, aims and fires his pistol into one going for Safa. He twitches to fire into another one.
‘FALL BACK . . . FALL BACK . . . Miri, Ria activated the Red. It’s live in the house. We’re going back through it now . . .’
Safa, Harry and Emily retreat in a disciplined line. Pistols drawn and firing at anything moving, as all around them the whole house trembles and shakes from the gunships crashing down through the roof.
‘RUN,’ Ben screams as the aviation fuel in the gunships ignites. They run across the landing towards Ben to fall through the Red into the bunker as Cavendish Manor is lost in a fireball that plumes up to be seen in perfect detail by the satellite feed.
They land hard, as they did the first time they came running from Cavendish Manor. They land hard and sprawling in the portal room as Doctor Watson works on Ria. Flames come through the Red. Heat and debris smashing into the walls around them. The doctor drops to protect Ria with his body as Ben scrabbles to get the tablet and swipe the screen to cut it off.
The young soldier on the ground flinches as the house explodes. His eyes locked on Miri as she speaks into his radio. Her voice so calm, so controlled, so powerful. She reaches down to pat his shoulder and winks, telling him it’ll be okay.
‘Miri . . .’ Ben comes through the Blue. ‘Ria’s been shot in the stomach . . . Doc’s working on her now with the others . . . Who the hell is that?’ he asks on seeing the soldier.
‘Just a kid,’ Miri says. ‘Tell John the bullet passed straight through Ria. No serious internal injuries . . .’
‘How do you . . . ?’ He trails off, too in the heat of the moment to care for the answer. He watches Miri lift the radio to her mouth and press the button. She speaks slowly. Deliberately and with care.
‘Are you all listening safe in your bunkers? My name is Maggie Sanderson. I will complete my mission, then destroy any and all devices. If you interfere with my team again, I will release the bubonic plague in your cities and poison your water. I will either find you as children and kill you, or be there when you wake in the night old and frail to see me watching you. I will find your families. There is no place I cannot go and there is no thing I will not do to achieve my objective. What you are, I am, but worse, because I did it first and I did it longer . . . If you have any doubt as to my words, let me show you what I can do . . . Let me show you how a plan is executed . . .’
‘Maggie! This is Mother . . . Don’t you fucking dare . . . For the love of god, don’t do it . . .’
‘I already am . . .’
Forty-One
How do you stop a government?
They ate because they knew the day would be long and it was decided to punch through while the energy was high.
A few minutes for Safa to check Emily’s injuries to her face. It should have been the doc checking, but he stays with Ria. Refusing to believe Miri that the bullet passed through and caused no serious internal damage. Having a time machine is one thing, but he is a doctor and he will check for himself, thank you very much.
They drink water. Rinse faces and reload weapons before gathering in the portal room in front of the two inert devices.
How do you stop a government?
‘Ready?’ Miri asks, holding the tablet.
Safa waits to take the lead. She is Safa. She always takes the lead. ‘Ben? You sure about this?’ she asks quietly, her pistol held in a double-handed grip in front.
How do you stop a government?
‘I am,’ Ben says, holding his own pistol in the same way. They all do. All holding pistols double-handed and ready. Hearts hammering. Eyes fixed and staring.
‘Ready,’ Safa says.
How do you stop a government?
The Blue comes on. Safa charges forward with pure aggression on her face to a voice booming through a radio network.
‘Maggie! This is Mother . . . Don’t you fucking dare . . . For the love of god, don’t do it . . .’
‘I already am . . .’
In the same bunker she secured the then Prime Minister in nearly forty years ago, Safa Patel appears from a shining blue light. The current Prime Minister, Veronica Smedley, flinches at the sight. Aides scream out. A uniformed guard goes for his sidearm and is shot dead with a double-tap to his centre of mass.
Emily, Harry and Ben surge in behind Safa. Pistols up and aimed. Eyes tracking for threats. They trained for this. They drilled for hours and hours in every room in their bunker, and even Bertie’s shack, to make this go right. Soldiers and police officers are killed. Veronica stays frozen at the head of the table. Frozen in fear and resignation. Harry shoots into the doorway of the emergency planning meeting, killing the armed man running in.
They gain control of the room in mere seconds. Bodies lie dead and bleeding. Ears ringing from the shots inside the confined place.
Miri strides through the Blue and heads straight towards the Prime Minister. A uniformed man rises to block her. Older, military. His hair greying. His eyes hard. She draws and aims at his head. He lowers back to his seat with his hands up. She moves to the PM and glances at the screen on the wall showing the satellite feed of Cavendish Manor.
‘MAGGIE? MAGGIE?’
Mother’s voice screeching through the speakers in the room. Miri stops at the side of the PM and stares down at the woman with those cold grey eyes so unreadable.
‘My name is Maggie Sanderson. I will complete my mission, then destroy any and all devices. If you interfere with my team again, I will find you and I will kill you. Do not take any action against any other country. What we are doing does not concern you. Do you understand? I need you to understand.’
The PM nods, once and firm.
How do you stop a government?
The Blue comes on. Safa goes forward.
‘Maggie! This is Mother . . . Don’t you fucking dare . . . For the love of god, don’t do it . . .’
‘I already am . . .’
Sarah Conway, the US President balks at the sight and dives from her chair to the floor. The reactions from the Secret Service are fast. Safa fires, killing one instantly, as Harry, Emily and Ben come through to shoot down the others still trying to draw pistols from holsters.
Aides run screaming. More armed men and women run into the room. More shots are fired. More death is given. An aide rushes at Harry and drops unconscious with his nose broken from the punch given by Emily.
Miri strides from the Blue with her pistol already out and gripped. She told the others the Secret Service are good. She spots the same feed on the screen showing the same view of Cavendish Manor engulfed in flames.
‘MAGGIE? MAGGIE?’
Mother’s voice on the hacked radio system. Miri crosses to the cowering Sarah Conway and drops to kneel at the woman’s side.
‘My name is Maggie Sanderson. I will complete my mission, then destroy any and all devices. If you interfere with my team again, I will find you and I will kill you. Do not take any action against any other country. What we are doing does not concern you. Do you understand? I need you to understand.’ Miri drops lower to speak softly. ‘If I need help, I will come to you, but stay the hell out of my way until I ask you.’
The Blue comes on. Safa goes forw
ard.
‘Maggie! This is Mother . . . Don’t you fucking dare . . . For the love of god, don’t do it . . .’
‘I already am . . .’
Moscow is worse. More guards. More men and women with guns. More death. Safa kills two before Harry, Emily and Ben can get through. The emergency room is bigger too, with more people screaming and running in panic. More angles to cover.
Cavendish Manor on a screen. Mother screeching into the radio. Men and women diving on top of the Russian President trying to cover him with their bodies. Control is still gained. Albeit short-lived while the alarm sounds to summon more guards and soldiers.
Miri speaks in Russian this time. Fluent and perfect.
‘My name is Maggie Sanderson. I will complete my mission, then destroy any and all devices . . .’
As she speaks, so her team commence firing at the doorways to hold back the arriving reinforcements.
The Blue comes on. Safa goes forward. She leads them each time. The first through and the last back. Her instincts and reactions save them time and again.
‘Maggie! This is Mother . . . Don’t you fucking dare . . . For the love of god, don’t do it . . .’
‘I already am . . .’
Cavendish Manor on a screen. Mother screeching into the radio.
‘My name is Maggie Sanderson . . .’
Again and again they deploy to arrive at the exact same time in bunkers and emergency rooms the world over.
