‘Malcolm Joiner,’ Bic said.
‘As I’ve said previously, he is a distinct possibility, and one the GMRC would definitely favour.’
‘You are right on one count, but only President Henry out of the three you mentioned has been targeted. The other two are far more interesting ...’
Another screen powered up, this time on Steiner’s right. Three 3D images appeared. One was of President Henry; the other two, however, made Steiner’s eyes widen.
‘It seems we are both surplus to requirements, Professor Steiner.’
Steiner gazed at his image which was first in line; he then glanced at the second and third photos, of John Henry and Bic respectively.
Steiner sat down on a crate. It wasn’t every day you found out you’d been chosen for assassination. ‘This means nothing, we knew we were targets. John Henry himself wants us dead or alive; one more person after us is just grist to the mill.’
‘In normal circumstances,’ Bic said, ‘I’d agree. However, I suspect the man assigned to kill us is part of an elite group known as S.I.L.V.E.R. Have you heard of them?’
Steiner shook his head. ‘Should I have?’
‘No, but if I’m right, this man, this Ophion, is a killing machine, trained like no other and with access to state-of-the-art weaponry.’
‘Can you stop him?’
Bic made a face. ‘I can try, but there is something else you must see.’
The video resumed.
‘It has been foreseen,’ Selene said, and then waited for an answer, after which she spoke again. ‘The God Device has shown us the way.’
The unseen Ophion must have replied, as Selene Dubois paused once more.
‘Courtesy,’ she said – another pause – she gave a shake of her head. ‘When your task is complete you can contact me through the usual channels.’
The video call ended and Steiner was left sitting on his crate, deep in thought.
‘Foreseen,’ Bic said, ‘by something called the God Device, and judging from Ms Dubois’ reaction, she clearly has reason to believe its predictions become reality.’
‘We don’t know she meant the assassinations.’
‘I have run the flow of the conversation through quantum simulators,’ Bic said. ‘The chance she was referring to our murders is a ninety-eight point six per cent certainty.’
‘We’re not dead yet.’
‘According to their God Device, we will be.’
Steiner removed his spectacles and massaged his tired eyes. It was one thing to be hunted, it was quite another to be told that hunt would be successful. This was all he needed, on top of everything else: a warning he would be dead within a fortnight. It wasn’t a comforting thought, especially when it would be facilitated by violence. ‘What do you think it is, this device?’
‘Some kind of new technology, technology I suspect might be related to that mentioned by NASA astronaut, Tyler Magnusson.’
Steiner tried to recall the conversation he’d had all those months before with the NASA pilot. ‘Project Ares?’
‘He said it was an abomination,’ Bic said. ‘Some type of plasma that affected people’s minds, sometimes with fatal consequences.’
‘He said it was military.’
‘Yes, but run in conjunction with the GMRC, which means this Committee would have access to it.’
‘Those are a lot of assumptions,’ Steiner said, wondering if the device was Anakim in origin.
‘Based on sound reasoning.’
‘Then it’s just as well I don’t believe the future can be predicted.’
‘It can, if the time-space continuum is the illusion it appears to be.’
‘Life is as we make it,’ Steiner said. ‘If you believe there’s no free will, your belief creates the reality you fear.’
‘I don’t think I mentioned free will, but your theory is interesting,’ Bic said. ‘Although not yours, I believe.’
‘Perhaps we should be thinking less about philosophical teachings and more about how to stay alive long enough to save this country.’
‘Perhaps we should be thinking about harnessing this God Device for our own ends.’
Steiner frowned. Letting such a weapon, if indeed that’s what it was, fall into the hands of a cyberterrorist of Bic’s capabilities didn’t bear thinking about, which was why Steiner wanted to stay close to him, to make sure he failed to add to his long list of crimes. And you’re doing such a good job, Steiner told himself, the tone dripping with sarcasm.
‘If it’s even remotely accurate,’ Steiner said, ‘we’d be better off destroying it.’
Bic looked sick at the thought, which confirmed Steiner’s fears.
‘If they believe it can predict the future,’ Steiner continued, ‘they’d have it someplace beyond even your reach.’ He suddenly had an idea, a disturbing one. If it was Anakim tech, who was to say it wasn’t capable of accurately mapping coming events? Humanity’s larger cousins excelled at many things, science being at the top of their list. But if they could predict the future, he thought, why, or how had they died out? If they had achieved what current mainstream scientists cited as an impossibility, then the prediction of Steiner’s demise was all the more terrifying. Not to mention that, regardless of any otherworldly device, a highly trained assassin was homed in on Steiner as the first person to be culled on a list of three.
‘And I know exactly where it would be,’ Bic said.
‘And where’s that?’
‘Think, Professor Steiner, where would you hide a device that’s experimented on in space?’
‘A space station, but we know they’re all ...’ Steiner’s voice tailed off and he looked at Bic, who raised an eyebrow.
‘The stealth space station Tyler was trying to get to,’ Steiner said. His expression turned sad. ‘And there is still no word from him?’
Bic shook his head. ‘I fear he has long since succumbed to the vacuum of space.’
Steiner had to trust Bic’s information to be accurate, but Tyler had viewed his own chances as slim, so it wasn’t a surprise. ‘If it is on the GMRC’s secret space station then it’s as I said, beyond our reach. We couldn’t even shoot it out of the sky, as we need that ship if the intercept missions are ever to be rekindled.’
‘Then what do you propose we do?’
Steiner looked at Bic. ‘We mustn’t get distracted, not now. We stay the course and try to stay alive long enough to do what we set out to do.’
‘Stop the asteroid ... if that’s what you intend.’
Steiner held Bic’s gaze. ‘It is.’
‘Then may God light our way,’ Bic said, ‘as the darkness is closing in.’
Steiner thought about what was to come: an apocalyptical nightmare only held back by the tiniest sliver of light, of which he was an integral part. ‘May God light our way,’ he said, and made the sign of the cross on his chest, ‘as our end draws near.’
Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Seven
Jessica remained on the other side of the door, listening intently to Steiner and Bic’s conversation. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing; a device capable of predicting the future? It was insane.
‘And the plan remains,’ she heard the professor say.
‘It does, Professor Steiner,’ Bic said, ‘it’s as we agreed. But you must know they will never forgive us, when they find out what we’ve done.’
‘They had their chance to leave, I tried my best.’
‘And Brett?’
The door handle turned and Jessica scurried back to her sleeping bag and lay down, her heart racing.
She heard Steiner say something in reply to Bic’s question, before the door opened and a corridor of light cut across the room.
She closed her eyes and listened as Steiner entered.
A few seconds later he was waking Eric so he could take the next watch.
Eric mumbled something in passing, then moved into the computer room and closed the door. Some more moments passed as Steine
r lay down and made himself comfortable, and then silence once more saturated Jessica’s world, the sound of the professor’s breathing joining the rhythmic pattern of Brett’s, nearby.
Jessica rolled onto her back and opened her eyes, the words of the cyberterrorist ringing in her ears; they will never forgive us, when they find out what we’ve done.
The final vestiges of Jessica’s optimism at overcoming the challenges ahead were left in tatters, her fear for the surface, her family and the billions that called it home, greater than ever.
So many secrets, Jessica thought, and then gave a slight shake of her head. ‘No,’ her inner voice replied in despair, ‘so many lies.’
Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Eight
Jessica awoke the next morning to the sound of raised voices. She opened tired eyes and sat up, the previous night’s revelations having kept her tossing and turning until dawn. She felt exhausted, wrung out like an old rag.
Eric burst into the room. ‘Get up!’ He grabbed Jessica’s arm and hauled her to her feet. ‘Sie sind hier, sie haben uns gefunden!’
‘What?’ Jessica stumbled as he let her go. ‘They’ve found what?’
‘US!’ Eric said, as he shook Steiner awake. ‘They’ve found us!’
Jessica swore and then saw Brett was nowhere to be seen.
Steiner clambered to his feet. ‘Grab the drives!’
Eric dashed into the computer room and Jessica and Steiner followed.
‘How many?’ Steiner said, fumbling with his glasses.
Jessica stared at one of the screens in horror. An overhead camera streamed footage of ten Humvees speeding down a main road five blocks away.
Eric reeled off a stream of German expletives as he struggled to eject the liquid data drives.
Bic’s face appeared on another screen. ‘You need to get out! Forget the computers. GO!’
Jessica grabbed Eric. ‘Forget them!’
The young German ceased his efforts and ran after Jessica, who made for the exit.
‘Where’s Brett?!’ Eric shouted, as they fled through a series of dark passages.
Jessica kicked open a wooden board and emerged into a larger space within the industrial building.
‘Where’s the truck?!’ Jessica looked left and right.
There was no sign of the pickup anywhere.
Daylight streamed in through the burnt-out structure and Jessica thought she could hear the familiar hum of approaching helicopters.
‘She’s turned us in!’ Eric said, and glanced behind. ‘Where’s the professor?’
Jessica whirled round. There was no sign of him. She grabbed Eric’s arm and dragged him forward. ‘Let’s go!’
‘What about the professor?!’
Jessica didn’t reply; as far as she was concerned, he could fend for himself.
A moment later they made it to the road and Jessica looked up at the sky. ‘No helicopters.’
‘Yet,’ Eric said.
The high-pitched roar of gasoline engines grew louder and a flock of birds took flight, giving away the convoy’s position as it homed in on its target.
Jessica found herself running in the opposite direction, with Eric by her side.
They reached the corner of the block out of breath, and glanced back to see the first Humvee power-sliding round the far end of the street.
‘Come on!’ Jessica said, and they were running again.
‘We’re not going to make it!’ Eric said, between gasps.
Jessica knew he was right, but what else could they do?
More frantic moments passed and their pursuers were almost on them.
The Humvees bore down on their prey, and Jessica glanced back just as an armoured truck burst out of a nearby building with a roar. Debris flew in all directions and the black vehicle landed an instant later and ploughed into the first Humvee. The crumpled U.S. army vehicle spun round and crashed into the one following. The others took evasive action and Eric said, ‘It’s the GMRC!’
Jessica swore and kept running, but the black truck soon caught them up and drew alongside.
Jessica glanced at the vehicle as she ran; the game was up.
A door in the truck’s side slid open and an armoured man held out his arm. ‘Get in!’
‘Go to hell!’ Eric said, and he and Jessica veered away down a side street.
The GMRC truck followed, as the green Humvees regrouped and opened fire from behind.
Bullets whizzed past Jessica’s head and the soldier shouted again, ‘Take my hand!’
Jessica glanced at him again and saw a familiar figure by his side.
‘Get in the fucking truck!’ Brett said, as more bullets ricocheted off the armoured vehicle.
The Humvees closed in. Jessica pushed Eric towards the truck and he, and then Jessica, were hauled inside.
Brett’s betrayal was complete.
Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Nine
The door to the armoured truck slid closed with a metallic clunk and Jessica found herself face-to-face with Brett.
Eric threw a punch at her, but the FBI agent swayed out of its path and dragged Eric into a headlock.
‘Get off me!’ the young German said, going red in the face.
The formidable black-clad soldier who’d helped in Brett’s duplicity spoke to two other similarly armoured men. He then moved to the rear of the vehicle, which rocked and rolled, swerving this way and that, as it sought to keep the Humvees from overtaking and surrounding them.
‘Let him go!’ Jessica said, and grabbed Brett’s arm.
The FBI agent glared at her and released Eric’s neck.
The German hacker stumbled back and gave Brett a two-fingered salute.
‘That’s the thanks I get,’ Brett said, ‘for saving your scrawny asses?’
‘Thanks?!’ Jessica said, grasping an overhead rail. ‘You think we should thank you, for betraying us?!’
Light streamed into the dark interior and the din of gunfire drowned out Brett’s angry response.
Jessica turned to see the truck’s roof had retracted and a platform with a mini-gun attached to it shifted upwards on hydraulics.
The armoured soldier, now wearing a matching helmet, unleashed the weapon with an unholy roar. Tracer rounds bit into the Humvees, tearing them apart like paper.
The other two soldiers shouldered rocket launchers and then opened the other side of the vehicle.
‘Fire in the hole!’ one of the men shouted. He aimed the weapon at a Humvee that had pulled alongside and depressed the trigger.
A whoosh of flame shot out of the back of the weapon, narrowly missing Brett, who’d jumped out of its way.
The Humvee exploded in flames and the second soldier repeated the process, destroying another Humvee that had dodged the minigun’s lethal rain.
The door slid closed, the platform descended and the roof rolled closed, sealing them all inside the truck once more. The soldier who’d manned the minigun stalked past and opened a hatch, which led to the truck’s cockpit. ‘Take a left here!’ He pointed in the direction he wanted them to go.
‘Roger that, Captain!’ The driver turned the wheel, taking them down a narrow street, while the fifth soldier, occupying the passenger seat, managed a complex array of gadgetry and displays that boggled the mind just to look at.
‘Take another left and stop at the end of the street,’ said the captain.
‘We’ve got fast moving bogeys coming up from the south,’ said the radar operator. ‘ETA, five minutes.’
‘Copy that.’
The truck turned again and soon after it skidded to a stop, road dust billowing up in a cloud from its wheels.
Silence ensued, before the captain barged past Jessica and yanked open the sliding door.
The two other soldiers jumped out, high tech rifles raised to their shoulders as they scanned the area for threats.
And then, just as Jessica was thinking about making a run for it, a familiar figure emerged from a nearby building.
She opened her mouth in shock and looked at Eric, who looked similarly gobsmacked.
She continued to gawp as the man jogged up to the waiting truck, his breathing laboured.
‘I’m sorry we missed you first time round, sir,’ the Captain said to the late arrival, ‘we had to make a choice, and you weren’t it.’
The man was helped into the truck and the two soldiers re-boarded behind him. The door slid closed once more and the captain banged his fist on the roof. ‘Let’s go!’
The truck lurched forward and they were on the move again.
Chapter One Hundred Forty
Jessica stared at the man before her. Looked at Brett, opened her mouth to say something and then looked back at the source of her consternation.
‘What the hell is going on?’ Jessica said, bewildered.
Professor Steiner sat down on a bench secured to the side of the truck and looked up at her. ‘Are you okay?’
‘Yes, but why are you working with the GMRC?’
Steiner looked amused. ‘I’m not.’
‘We work for the GMRC quite a lot,’ said one of the soldiers, as the captain moved off to speak to his driver. The man removed his high-tech helmet. ‘But we’re not GMRC.’
‘Then who are you?’
‘Contractors,’ Eric said.
The man smiled and tapped an emblem on his chest.
‘Darklight,’ Jessica said, reading it.
‘At your service, ma’am,’ said the soldier, giving her a cheeky salute.
‘This was your doing?’ Jessica said to Brett.
The FBI agent shook her head and pointed at Steiner.
The professor gave Jessica a wink. ‘Bic isn’t the only one who can plan ahead. Captain Radcliffe there,’ – Steiner pointed at the Darklight officer – ‘was good enough to help us out of a tight spot. I’d initially planned for him to take you and Eric to safety, but as you both had other ideas, they were on standby in case we needed them.’
‘And you didn’t think to tell us this?’ Jessica said, unable to keep the anger from her voice.
Ancient Origins: Books 4 - 6 (Ancient Origins Boxset Book 2) Page 75
