

# Revolution

Paul Palmer Nelson

Copyright 2011 Paul Palmer-Nelson

Smashwords Edition

## Praise for Revolution

Richard Perez, 26, Bank Manager, Manchester: Could not put it down, loved it from start to finish. Loved the characters, the technology, the helicopters and all the action, incredible imagination and great descriptive English – Five stars *****!

Shane Witty, 21, Builder, Brighton: Right up my alley, well into Sci-fi and this book didn't let me down. My favourite parts were all of it really, the action doesn't stop from chapter one until the end! Really liked the part about the sculptor and the rock! Revolution would make a really good film on a scale of Independence Day in my view

Peter Briggs, 63, Extrusion Engineer, Scunthorpe: Revolution is packed with action starting within the first few pages and keeping it up at an excellent pace through to the end. The storyline is interesting with plenty of imaginative ideas whilst using the Roswell incident to give the story an air of credibility. I was kept interested from the start to the finish, thoroughly enjoyed the story and look forward to Pauls next book. Very well done.

Vlane D'marcus Carter, 35, Author, New York: Really enjoyed it actually, I have to be honest I didn't think I would! Good storyline, good imagination and an anarchic wit. I think Revolution will do very well, good luck!

Jacob Mcarthur, 16, Student, Lincoln: The thing I liked the most is that it has the potential to become a film. And as I read it I want to keep on reading it because the tension builds up throughout the book leading to the fight at the end. The story is realistic unlike a lot of sci-fi books and the explanation of each of the characters puts an image of what they look like in your head straight away and their personalities. There's loads of stuff! Loved it, bring on the film!

David Johnson, 50, Rental Executive, Southampton: Wasn't sure I would like Revolution as science fiction is not my cup of tea at all but I found the storyline very easy to follow and it was hard to put the book down once I'd picked it up. The imagination used in this book is incredible and compellingly realistic. would recommend to anyone!

### Chapter One

A vibrant sun rose gently behind the high-rise buildings of inner Budapest, its warm yellow beams skimmed the urban skyline gracefully and ushered in the new day. Pedestrians plodded reluctantly to jobs of all descriptions and a stale aroma of car emissions choked the air. He went unnoticed as he stood by the riverside and looked skywards, two anxious fingers tapped repeatedly on his thigh while the other hand clenched tightly to a fist. He looked entranced by the sky above and took no heed of the mayhem behind.

He turned his head to the city and its buildings while his carefree expression turned to one of concentration and fury. His heart welled up with intense hatred, blocking his clarity with a blanket of rage. He regained composure, turned and walked briskly as the morning traffic shuffled along in one long column. He walked quickly, navigating the gaps in the vehicular centipede and returned glaring looks from curious motorists. Hair closely shaven his features were sharp and his eyes pierced the sky like blades wrought of diamond. He stood out like a gun in a sweet shop as he walked the aged city streets in black boots, combats and padded body armour all concealed by a long black trench coat.

He reached the opposite side and stopped suddenly, pulling his sleeve to reveal a slim metallic wristband, he began to tap on it with lightening speed and precision.

'Establish a link with the Integral Grid' a large screen covered the top and displayed computer generated images, peppered with menus and options.

'Link established' A robotic voice announced from the device.

'Computer access track and trace, I want General Hamza's location to the millimetre'

He waited for a reply and looked up to see a bemused couple looking at him strangely, he fired a look they would never forget and they left him to it. As the couple walked away hurriedly a response came from the device and his full attention was focused once again.

'General Hamza has been located fourteen hundred metres north east of this location, inside the First National bank of Hungary. Would you like to know his physical status?'

'No that information will suffice, break link with the grid and switch to standby'

He covered the wristband with his sleeve and continued the mission through the streets of Budapest.

He brought up a satellite image of his surroundings and located the destination visually. His focus was again challenged by another pedestrian waving his hands annoyingly and attempting to grab his attention with a jovial American accent.

'Excuse me sir do you speak English? You don't look like you're from round here! I'm looking for fast food man, fast food! This Hungarian shit tastes like erm, shit! You get me bro?'

He looked up from his communicator again covering it with a sleeve and focused intently on the slightly over-weight annoyance before him.

'If I were you and thank fuck I'm not, I'd turn around run and never look back' He responded coldly with a glint of pure evil in his eyes.

The portly American looked bemused for a moment before doing as instructed to the letter.

'If only you could see inside my mind and knew what I know. If only you could see how pointless and insignificant you all are' the angry enigma said under his breath and continued the hunt.

His face altered for a second, deep in thought like one who has suddenly remembered something they should not have forgotten. He remembered a time not so long ago when everything seemed ok with the world and happiness was a strong part of his life, he realised his mind was now filled with an unexplainable hatred. He could sense that somewhere subconsciously there was another presence guiding him; he tried to dismiss it as nonsense but failed miserably. He made a mental note about the ease at which his brain could so easily be distracted, he blinked his eyes and concentration took over again. He regained composure for the task in hand blanking his thoughts; face as it was a minute previous.

Tall buildings with a gothic feel loomed overhead and a stench of history was in the air, he could not be certain if it was from past events or his imminent mission but somewhere inside he knew it was the latter. The bank of Hungary stood proud at the end of a westernised street, each side lined with over-familiar fast food outlets and designer boutiques. He neared his destination slowly but methodically, pulled back his sleeve and once again activated his communicator.

'Computer prepare to activate the TCA Unit I'll need full power for this and get the particle field on standby, it's going to be a rough one' he approached the bank and maintained a look of calm with professional precision.

As he entered he scanned the room like a machine and evaluated his surroundings. It was busy for the time of day but he found his target almost instantly, his focus was now directed towards a wealthy looking Arab surrounded by armed guards. He focused on the ageing man dressed in opulent traditional robes who laughed and joked with an unimpressed cashier. Hamza's bodyguards suddenly became aware of this strange man in combat apparel who was now approaching slowly, he stopped immediately in front of the Arab and offered his hand in greeting.

'Mr Hamza I've wanted to meet you for a very long time! I'm a great fan of your work, one day the Middle East will be free of western interference. It is an honour'

'Well thank you young man and who might you be? I didn't realise I had many western sympathisers!' Hamza replied with an unfazed laugh and kept calm as he motioned his guards to back away.

'Gentlemen he's a friend treat him with respect! You're not carrying any weapons are you?' Hamza said as his bodyguards motioned towards the fresh-faced individual now in their company. They frisked him and found no weapons which deepened Hamza's smile greatly.

'Now what would you like to discuss my American friend?'

'Oh nothing I just wanted to meet you sir and what a rewarding experience!' His response baffled the guards and their superior as the young man stood glaring at them following his reply.

'Well then I am a busy man and have much to do but thank you very much for your support'

'No General thank you!'' He replied slowly then raised an evil smile like a horror film clown.

Everyone inside was now aware of the young man whose strange behaviour had been an intrigue to the streets of Budapest for the past hour. Hamza looked at his guards who reflected his bemused look and turned his attention again to the man before him. He continued his stare, removed the trench coat and threw it to the ground before announcing another command to his communicator.

'Activate TCA'

A blue liquid-like substance began to pour out from his large black belt, covering his entire body rapidly. Eventually he looked like a statue of blue mercury, everyone inside the bank froze and suddenly wore a look of fear upon their previously unstressed faces. Suddenly a blinding flash took everyone by surprise and when eyes re-opened the man before them was no more. He now resembled an alien of some kind, perhaps even a robot Hamza thought to himself. If a pin had dropped it would have shattered the eerie silence like a bullet to a window. All eyes were transfixed on the metallic man before them, all traces of humanity had disappeared and his eyes were two black slits upon a dark blue headpiece. The only features that remained were thin, meshed openings on both sides of the face and contours of underlying muscle. The pungent smell of fear was mixed thoroughly with lashings of awe.

The deadly assassin tapped his chest and a metallic ball began to emerge like a raindrop on a puddle. It dropped into his hand and he tapped the now solid object rapidly on a small backlit screen. He threw it softly, letting out a metallic ping as it bounced on the marble floor and rolled directly between Hamza's trembling legs. The bank erupted in a terrific blast destroying everything nearby instantaneously whilst filling the Budapest skyline with a mushroom cloud to rival

Hiroshima. A perfect sphere of white-hot energy began to get bigger and bigger wiping out building after building, person after innocent person. Tens of thousands died instantly, many more were blinded by the devastating light it created. The city of Budapest was virtually destroyed in a matter of seconds killing hundreds of thousands in its unforgiving wave of destruction.

Some five miles away in a far off suburb of what used to be Budapest the blast could be seen and heard without question and residents rushed out into the streets to see what the commotion was all about. An onlooker pulls a phone from his pocket and begins to film the destruction on the horizon. Shock and fear struck the man like a cavalcade of emotion; he could almost hear the cries of his fellow Hungarians in the middle of this nuclear blast. Stunned, the man continued to film scanning the scene in astonishment and as he filmed he caught a glimpse of something blue flying through the air towards his position.

He lowered the phone for a second to take a look with his own eyes but still couldn't make it out. He followed the blue object as it fell in an un-orderly fashion surrounded by debris and headed towards his position. He ran for cover underneath a shop canopy as the blast debris got closer and closer, he dropped to his knees and continued filming as it fell toward the ground rapidly. Finally the shockwave hit sending litter and dust skywards, closely followed by chunks of red hot rubble, steel and anything the mind could imagine. He prayed silently as the carnage rained down keeping his phone locked on the object that was getting steadily closer. He zoomed in and focused, it had arms and legs and shakily he followed it down to the ground where it slammed ferociously into a stationary bus causing the fuel tank to explode.

After a few seconds the doomsday downpour had stopped and he moved carefully from under the shop front that had given him shelter. He was fortunate to avoid injury but could hear the cries of his fellow townsfolk who had not been so lucky. Faced with carnage and small fires breaking out everywhere he took no heed, he had to know who or what had fallen from the sky and into the bus. As he approached a blue fist punched through the twisted metal and ripped down through it like paper. He froze now, knowing whatever was emerging from the devastated bus it could not be human. The assassin broke free of the wreckage and walked slowly toward the young man holding his phone with a shaking hand, he tried to run but found he couldn't move an inch.

Finally the blue menace stood just metres from his captive filmmaker and began to speak in a monotonous robotic voice.

'This is just the beginning; you are now all witness to the dawn of a new era. I am your future, I am your destiny' he finished turned suddenly and sped off at incredibly high speed into the back streets leaving a highly populated city in ruins and devastation.

### Chapter Two

A proud ageing man relaxed in the comfort of his living room inside an almost palace-like mansion on the outskirts of Chicago. African in appearance his features were commanding an obviously powerful man to the fullest degree. His attention was fixed on yesterdays crumpled newspaper, he smiled to himself at an article headlined 'aliens ARE among us'!

General Benjamin Thorn was head of the specialist Intelligence Agency, arguably the most powerful position in the world and one which demanded absolute secrecy and constraint. Back in 1947 General Ramey had created the organisation to protect and back engineer the Roswell UFO knowing its unique technology would be devastating if abused. He never strayed from the original directives Ramey laid out and after seventy years the advanced craft was still a well guarded secret. Thorn and five others were handpicked in 1965 by Ramey to develop the technology that would one day aid the eight agents that Thorn now used to protect the globe. Thorn had wished his predecessor could have seen the genetically engineered agents in action, he knew Ramey would have been incredibly proud of the team he had designed so perfectly. His bubble was about to burst dramatically.

He jumped slightly at the shrill voice of his wife from the bottom of the stairs.

'Benjamin come back to bed! Its half past two in the morning and you're up early tomorrow! Why on Earth are you reading that paper again?'

'I can't sleep, I don't know why but I've got this funny feeling about something'

'Probably something to do with the amount of coffee you drink each day and reading yesterdays newspaper won't make tomorrow any easier' his wife was showing obvious concern.

'You know, your right lets go to bed I've read that thing three times already' He replied lifting himself up slowly while simultaneously knocking the remote to the floor, switching on the television abruptly.

'...well Krista, the death toll has been put somewhere around five hundred thousand, but that figure is sure to rise, according to last year's figures nearly two million people live in and around the Hungarian capital. It's not yet known the amount of American dead but we can confirm that the embassy was badly hit' the television delivered its chilling account of the catastrophe that had just unfolded thousands of miles away in Budapest. Thorn jumped to his feet with an energy that belied his age and stood closer, his jaw started to drop and he felt his fists clenching tightly. He listened with serious intent to the news broadcast.

'If you've just joined us I'm Krista Murphy and in the past half hour an atomic weapon of some kind has been detonated in the Eastern European city of Budapest, what's unfolding there has been described as the most shocking event of the century so far. We've sourced some footage from an eyewitness showing the mushroom cloud that enveloped the city and a strange blue figure, which was described as some kind of alien being; believe it or not. These strange blue figures have been sighted occasionally in the US and all over the globe. Up until now they were thought to be fictitious, but... well watch the footage and make up your own minds'

The picture was shaky but the detail could just be made out. The footage changed to an apocalyptic scene and a stationary bus in flames, fireballs of debris firing in all directions. Then out of the carnage a blue figure walked calmly and eerily towards the shaky camera, silhouetted by a backdrop of devastation.

'What the fuck! Tell me I'm dreaming' Thorn said to himself as he fell back to the chair like a lead weight hitting a riverbed. His wife stood frozen at the bottom of the stairs, moved her shaking hands from her face and ran to her husband's side. A large blue head and torso now filled the screen, Thorn recognised it immediately. The intimidating figure that filled the world's television screens then spoke.

'This is just the beginning; you are now all witness to the dawn of a new era. I am your future, I am your destiny' the enigmatic agent announced a chilling message to the planet he had decided to rebel against, his voice lacking in emotion the way a robot might speak. The message he delivered was designed to strike fear into all that listened and it did the job perfectly.

'Aliens among us? I know what I think' the newsreader said following the footage and carried on reporting the unparalleled destruction.

'We move now to President Krychek of The United Collaboration of Eastern States' the picture changed to a large conference room glittered by flashing camera's.

'People of the UCES and of the world, a grave act of terrorism has left one of our constituent nations irreparably damaged and millions of our finest civilians have lost their lives innocently. At this early stage all I can do is urge everyone everywhere to stay calm, every nation on the planet is now on high alert and we could not be in safer hands' the leader found it impossible to mask the worry in his voice; he had never imagined an attack of such scale could be conducted on his own soil so unexpectedly.

'I thank you for your attention and I will re-address you all as and when further information comes to light' the screen returned to the frightened news reader.

'Reassuring words there from President Krychek and in a few moments we will be joined by President Schroeder of the United States of Europe'

Thorn switched off the television. Filled with anger he jumped up and pulled back the sleeve of his dressing gown to reveal his communicator.

'Computer get me central command'

Almost instantly the communicator flashed and a fresh-faced young lady filled the small screen.

'General we were just about to contact you, we detected a nucleonic pulse detonation around half an hour ago. I've dispatched the Mark One to pick you up; it will be with you in T-minus five minutes'

'Have we any idea which one it is?' Thorn asked the young lady on his wrist.

'We believe it was special agent Arrin Frost, the other seven have responded'

'Oh fuck' Thorn disconnected and ran to get dressed.

The sound of cracking thunder accompanied a slim black helicopter and shattered the tranquillity of the Generals grounds as it shot past at close to the speed of sound. It was slim and sleek with no landing gear; it had two small bumps at each side that gave it a stealthy almost arrow headed look. The propeller seemed to rotate faster than light, its tail looked like that of a normal helicopter but had no small propeller, just a smooth triangular tail fin. It turned sharply and came to a halt, almost defying the laws of physics and slowly hovered to the ground. The craft was entirely black a highly advanced vehicle sporting alien technology. As it landed hovering just above the ground a small section lit up, it looked molten as it opened up to form a door. The inside looked as impressive as the outside if not more so, with computer screens and head up displays showing uncountable amounts of data. The Mark One was the finest of all the Mark Class Helicopters that the agency had in its arsenal.

Thorn entered and sat himself aside the pilot who sat patiently in the command chair of the dark interior, lit only by the blue light of view screens. The craft could seat six one central seat for the pilot, two just behind it in a pyramid formation and three seats at the rear. The seats were black leather with small command consoles on the armrests for easy computer access. Many display screens surrounded the frontal pilot seat above and below eye level showing various kinds of important information or images. The pilot flew the helicopter with a double handed steering column quite like that of an airliner yet far more advanced and lined with coloured buttons and mini displays.

'I'm beyond words Miller, we took all necessary steps to prevent it!' he said to the pilot whose hands were jumping from one control pad to the other with incredible reflexes. The pilot turned his head slowly and faced Thorn he knew his former teammate was now the most wanted man on Earth. Suddenly they were alerted to an incoming transmission from the Planetary Commission, Thorn accepted the call and an extremely pretty, young lady now faced him.

'General I assume you are aware of what has happened in Europe, please do enlighten me as to why one of your beloved super soldiers gone on a rampage; I thought they were under your control?' The calm but noticeably angry woman was the Commission's Liaison officer to the SIA. The Planetary Commission was a new global authority and was said to be a less westernised organisation than the United Nations had been before its breakdown ten years previous. Thorn disclosed the existence of the SIA to the Planetary Commission following mounting media evidence, they had agreed to keep the organisation classified in return for use of their agents during politically delicate operations. The alliance was beginning to haunt General Thorn; he wished he had never approached them.

'Yes I'm fully aware of what has occurred in Budapest and an urgent meeting has been called. This attack will not go any further and we'll have the offending agent under control in a matter of hours. I'll keep you posted' he responding coldly, he felt this was SIA business and outside the jurisdiction of the Planetary Commission.

'Well make sure you do General you of all people should know the danger those agents can unleash. We picked up a request from the Integral Grid with a clearance code that relates to your organisation, whoever made that request it was minutes before the blast and General Hamza was the target'

'I sincerely hope this was not your idea or the SIA will cease to exist. Jefferson out' she finished, looked at Miller with suspicious eyes and ended the transmission abruptly.

'This is going to be our downfall, Frost's made sure of that'

'I know sir but we'll apprehend him quickly, surely we have systems in place to shut down his equipment remotely?' Miller responded breaking his silence.

'I'm afraid we were perhaps too confident with our genetic designs, we didn't think we'd need them. What I want to know is how and why he has even thought of doing this!'

'Maybe the geneticists made Frost a little too intelligent for his own good'

'You could be right Miller, you could be right'

### Chapter Three

Like the brightest star on a clear December night a tall man in a long black trench coat stood out against the snow covered serenity of Alaska on a dark winter morning. The walking silhouette approached a snow buried building as his coat bellowed to one side in the bitterly cold wind. He approached the base and pulled off his black leather glove, he placed his hand on a black panel which lit up immediately and scanned it. He lowered his head and a tiny beam scanned his iris, a green circle appeared as his identification was verified. Almost immediately the outline of a door appeared and opened, he walked in.

'Special Agent Daryl Troy designation 115 welcome to SIA Headquarters, please remain still while a full body scan is complete' a robotic female voice filled the air, with a grasp for English that would make one assume it came not from a computer but a living person. He folded down the collar of his long coat and revealed his sharp and commanding features his shaved blonde hair blended seamlessly into the darker facial hair of his well-defined jaw line. He looked special op's in black boots with no visible laces, combats and a polo-neck under the padded body armour on his upper half. He stood tall at six four, hiding his steely gaze behind a pair of slim dark sunshades.

Even through his shades he half closed his eyes as two bright shafts of light emanated from either side of the dark room. They flickered over him as they scanned every part of his body and retracted as quickly as they appeared.

'You have contracted the Tuberculosis contagion since your last visit Mr Troy, your body toxicity level is twenty three per cent and you have a high level of alcohol in your bloodstream were you aware of this?'

'Well the alcohol yes but the other two, I'm afraid I had no idea. Computer is the Tuberculosis active?' Troy seemed untroubled by the results of the scan.

'No sir the Tuberculosis bacterium is currently dormant. However these results are undesirable and must be cleaned from your bloodstream. Would you please step into the blue room to your right' the computer gave its directions to a rather agitated agent. In the last month Troy had been working undercover in a remote area of Malawi, monitoring the production of enriched uranium for use in nuclear power plants, or so it had been alleged by their government. He discovered that the uranium was being used innocently and that their secrecy was due to the prying eyes of neighbouring nations. Perhaps that was where he picked up TB he thought privately.

Troy spun around to his right and walked through with a reluctant swagger, entering a room with an overpowering sterile feel about it; the walls were black with a smooth matt finish and had no markings or imperfections. He walked toward two foot-shaped lights on the floor as he had done countless times before to clean his body of various kinds of chemicals and ailments.

'Well computer I must say this pales in comparison to my last visit, toxic levels of radiation and... Oh yeah, a severed Achilles tendon' Troy spoke to the unseen computer with a smirk on his face but the intelligent machine gave no response.

A beam of green light fired the top right corner and slowly made its way towards his head. His Eyes closed, it continued down to his chest and penetrated his body re-appearing on the other side as if he were a ghost. It reached his feet and gained speed, it moved up and down several times and then disappeared. His body tingled all over making him shudder as the lights around his feet dimmed until they could be seen no more.

'Your body has been cleaned of all undesirable chemicals and toxins, your body toxicity level has been reduced to point six percent and your liver has been temporarily reconditioned. Your body efficiency has increased by twenty seven percent. Have a nice day agent Troy'

'Thank you very much'

He continued down a long corridor that resembled those of a twentieth century primary school with all the charm and charisma of that dull era. Images of rare birds found locally to the area and fire alarm activators were all that Troy had for company as well as the odd darkened room filled with camera equipment. Bird research was the facilities cover story and had served it well for eighty years without hindrance and as far as the American government was concerned the facility funded itself and was of no interest. A handful of the SIA's team reeled out sheets of uninteresting data regarding bird migration annually, just to make sure prying eyes were kept far away. Troy reached a silver door when he finally got to the end of the overly long corridor and stepped inside the elevator to be greeted by yet another female voice requesting the floor he required.

'Level ten please computer and quickly, I think I'm late!'

Plummeting into the ground below the rapid elevator carried the young agent to the lowest part of the facility, SIA central command was nearly one hundred feet under the snow plains of Alaska.

In a dark room partially illuminated by a gold art deco desk lamp perched atop an old oak table, Thorn sat watching the huge screen on the wall opposite which displayed all the latest news from the Hungarian attack.

'Come in Janner' he shouted in response to a rather weak treble knock on his office door he knew who it was immediately, Dr Christopher Janner was renowned for his genius with physics but certainly not for his strength.

'What went wrong Janner? The inhibitors were proven to be untouchable. How has this happened? Why did he do it, he seemed fairly content before his annual leave two months ago!'

'Well sir I'm afraid I don't know. As I'm sure you're aware in our tests of the inhibitor chip we were only able to override them by manipulating the microcomputers implanted in their brains and sir let us not forget, they are completely unaware of them'

'Of course I know all about the fucking inhibitor chips Janner it was my idea! I helped design them, build them and I know every weakness; there aren't any!' Thorn loved having someone to shout at and Janner was usually first for the chopping board.

'It could be the armour. I was on the team that developed it. We noticed the alien material began to bond with human tissue and DNA after around seven hours of constant use' Thorn continued, his knowledge of SIA technology was obviously second to none. Janner listened intently.

'In the final trial phase we had a technician from the control room who offered to be our guinea pig if you like. We wanted to see how long we could keep the armour active before it shut down'

'That information is not on file General, may I ask why?'

Thorn rose to his feet slowly, headed toward the display screen and switched it off, clearing his throat as he did.

'It was kept out of the archive by my predecessor. We all knew that to make an omelette you have to break some eggs but he felt broken eggs were not for the SIA database'

'Anything else I didn't know General?'

'Look that's irrelevant; anyway the kid testing the armour started to act real strange and became aggressive after we pushed it to seven hours for the second time. We found that we couldn't remove the belt once the armour was de-activated, it had somehow become a part of him'

'Well the armour is partially organic; the alien species probably used that to their advantage so it worked in harmony with their own bodies'

'You're correct but we guessed the material didn't react with the E.T.'s in the same way it does with humans. We will never know for sure because they didn't survive the crash but if it reacted with them like it does with humans they'd have killed each other during their journey here!'

'He started to change in appearance so we sedated him, his face was contorted by rage and luckily for us the armour was under our full control. If he had activated it I might not be here to tell the tale'

'That explains everything General, Frost has simply gone mad! That's rather easier to stomach than a conscious deliberate decision to kill millions of innocents!'

'I'd like to believe that but it doesn't explain how he managed to get past the four hour emergency shutdown system. A system controlled by the inhibitor chip. He would have to deactivate the chip before he even got close to dangerous exposure levels' Thorn had been stewing this over in his head for some time and it showed.

'Well whatever it is he needs to be stopped before he destroys the planet'

'I agree completely he seems to be on some kind of vengeance mission. His first target was General Hamza, second in command of the jihadist movement; Akhira. I suppose that gives us something to go on' Thorn finished as his communicator tingled his arm to alert him to a call.

'General six agents are here and waiting in the briefing room shall I alert them of a delay?'

'I'll be down there shortly Miss Karim, thank you' Thorn responded and disconnected.

'We just made them too intelligent Janner. Perhaps it's true what they say maybe there is a thin line between genius and madness' General Thorn added a touch of philosophy to the conversation and nodded Janner towards the door.

Janner entered the briefing room followed by Thorn and they approached two empty places at the head of a large rectangular table. Thorn sat down and surveyed his beloved team who looked back patiently, some wore knowing looks of worry while others looked alert and refreshed believing this was merely a new mission briefing. As was the procedure they had been programmed with, the agents began announcing themselves one by one which was something that was beginning to annoy Janner after years of hearing it. The agents thought nothing of the formal register it was all they had ever known.

'Special agent Javier Torres designation 110 at your service sir' all were given a number or 'designation' for use during operations when communications could be compromised. Torres had an aggressive edge to his expressions which his slim features accentuated; he held his head high showing pride at being part of the SIA. His short dark curly hair was neatly gelled into place and added to the Hispanic look, a Spanish rasp in his voice settled it for anyone meeting him for the first time. His abilities centred on a huge knowledge of all forms of martial arts, being trained to a professional level in all of its incarnations. His area of expertise focused on operations in Spanish and South American countries; he spun his pen cleverly and quickly over his fingers, impatience getting the better of him. Torres was unaware of the events that had just unfolded thousands of miles away in Budapest. To his left was the empty chair where designation 111- Frost had been sat just two months before at the last meeting.

'Special Agent Ryu Takuya Designation 112 at your service sir' announced the next agent quickly after Torres had started the roll call, they were not men of pointless emotion or worry and wasted no time continuing procedure without a thought for their absent team mates. Takuya was designed for resourcefulness and athletic ability, when sheer brute force and quick thinking were needed; that was where Takuya came into his own. Trained in much the same way as Torres, they regularly faced each other in the sparring gym usually with Takuya gaining the upper hand. He was renowned for finding people who didn't want to be found, a skill that would be needed soon. His genes were derived from Japanese origin his oriental look was one of sophistication, he blended into eastern locations easily with a fluent knowledge of the cultures and languages of the area. A dark menacing look in his eyes was emphasized by a mildly pointed chin and sharp nose; his hands were folded neatly on the table. Nick-named 'the Ninja' for obvious reasons Takuya scoured the room eerily, he could sense something did not feel right but he had no idea why the meeting had been called.

The next agent along lifted his head up rather rapidly from deep thought, he knew exactly why they all been summoned.

'Special Agent Kurt Miller Designation 113 at your service sir'

Miller was coloured, his presence was a powerful one and his attitude and mannerisms helped it hugely. Fully educated in all African cultures and languages, Miller enjoyed huge success in helping to shape the African continent for the better. His actions helped toward the end of corruption in the governments of its nations, a fact that gave his already inflated ego an unnecessarily large boost. He was designed with strong leadership qualities and they stood out like a sore thumb, following procedure to the letter. In Miller the geneticists had realised that leadership qualities did not always make for a great leader of men, Miller was almost power-hungry and the rest of team knew it. His short black hair was constantly tidy, resembling a young businessman or perhaps a junior politician his comrades had quietly decided. Miller was known for frequently talking over others and making himself heard, feeling intensely that what he had to say was of more worth than the rest of his team. Miller had often sensed disobedience in Frost and voiced it many times to his superiors who dismissed his thoughts as bordering on jealousy.

'Special Agent Adya Sadek Designation 114 at your service sir' Sadek was designed as Millers personality double, as two leader figures were sometimes needed in times of crisis. He stood tall at six four and had respect of all at the table including Thorn. His dark styled hair gave him the look and feel of an investment banker, his controlled demeanour gave away more than just a hint of his area of excellence. Sadek's genetic make-up was Indian in origin, his broad shoulders and regal features gave him the look of an ancient Saracen warrior. Everyone respected Sadek for his patience, ability to listen and incredible intellect. The geneticists had got the mixture of leadership and restraint right with Sadek; he was one of their finest creations. He sat back in his chair and folded his arms, Miller had informed him of what Frost had done. Although they were different in their approach, Miller and Sadek were very similar and it kept them close. The empty seat to left of Sadek was reserved for agent Troy who loved to irritate Thorn by arriving 'fashionably late'.

The room was filled by a Russian voice and the next agent of the SIA announced himself professionally.

'Special Agent Anton Markov Designation 116 at your service sir' Markov was intense looking but his cool professional attitude shone through. His hair was blonde and closely shaven, he resembled some kind of soldier from the German special forces his ability was a talent to glean information from just about anyone. His eyes seemed to hypnotise people into trusting him implicitly, his monotonous accent enhanced the effect greatly. Expertly trained in Special Forces combat, Markov was a force to be reckoned with, as were all of them in their specific area. Markov specialised in the countries governed by the UCES where small territorial skirmish's in the outer lying countries could sometimes break the relative tranquillity of the area, he was renowned for solving matters effectively and above all else, peacefully. Markov sat back in his chair, crossed his hands and regained his cool demeanour; he had no idea of the destruction unleashed just hours earlier in the area of his jurisdiction.

'Special Agent Li Kym Designation 117 at your service sir' Kym was designed to be invisible and was frequently used as an assassin for the SIA when leaders of certain terrorist factions needed eliminating. Known as 'the shadow' by his team mates, Kym could easily infiltrate even the most heavily guarded locations and successfully undertake his missions with ease. Like Takuya and Torres, Kym had been trained intensely in Martial art combat. As well as hand to hand, his training regarding weaponry was second to none, his steady hand and keen eye had settled the fates of many countries world-wide from the barrel of an advanced sniper rifle. Kym was a quiet and methodical man and rarely uttered more than a sentence, it didn't bother the team but it created a feeling of mild suspicion with everyone else he met.

Janner let out a whispered sigh thankful that the role call had finally finished. All of the SIA agents were roughly the same height and build, designed to be genetically superior.

'So where the hell is Troy, he doesn't know the meaning of being on time!'

Suddenly another agent burst into the room.

'Special Agent Daryl Troy Designation 115 at your service sir. That body scanner held me up again. Sorry I'm late!'

'Well if you looked after yourself Daryl the scanner would not have such a problem with you' Thorn barked at Troy aggressively, now it was obvious that something big had happened and Troy had a sneaking suspicion it had something to do with his absent brother.

Troy removed his coat, threw it on a small table behind the door and sat in his seat, he glanced across to where his brother should be sat, he had no idea what had just unfolded in the peaceful city of Budapest. Troy had always felt closest to Frost, Thorn had told them at an early age that they were from the same twin embryo which was purely by accident. Originally the genetic code of the single embryo was created for ingenuity and athletic ability. Both Frost and Troy were designed to work closely in and around The United States of Europe and the US which they did perfectly.

At eighteen each agent was sent to study in the area of the globe that they were designed for, in order to learn the complexities of the cultures they would one day defend. Frost went to Harvard in the US and Troy was educated in England, they kept in touch constantly and had only drifted apart more recently when Frost stopped returning his calls. Troy thought nothing of it, knowing his brother could sometimes shy away from the world and his team mates, enjoying his own time was something Frost had done since he was a teenager.

'If you don't mind General, I'd like to know what this is all about, I can't remember the last time you called a code red response meeting and where's Frost?' Troy did not like being spoken to with disrespect even from his superiors and his disdain shone through. Thorn saw Frost for a split second as Troy fired back, he remembered how similar they were and that it was probably best not to create another renegade agent.

'I 'm afraid I have some bad news, some of you are aware of the situation and some of you are not' Thorn switched on the huge flat screen behind his desk, walked slowly to the opposite side of the room behind his agents and ordered Janner to kill the lights. Everyone's view was now filled by a news report of the Budapest attack which had taken place only two hours before they arrived. Looks of shock were mixed with those of outrage as the team watched intently. Markov broke the silence of the room.

'What? This is impossible, why didn't we know of a plot on this scale? Why did the Integral Grid not detect a nuclear device on the ground, that's what it's designed for!'

The Integral Grid was a system of thousands of satellites in place to monitor and watch over the globe. Many wealthy individuals paid to be fitted with a chip that alerted the grid if they medical assistance was needed, unfortunately for Hamza it could also be used to find people.

'The Grid didn't pick up the device because it wasn't a conventional nuclear weapon, it was one of our own, a low yield type three Nuke Pulse was used in this attack' Thorn answered.

Troy looked at the view screen blankly, colour ran from his face and he gulped quietly. He knew in his bones who had been the culprit of such an outwardly brutal attack, only Frost had the audacity to do something on this scale. But why Troy thought, knowing that his brother would need an incredibly powerful reason to carry out such an atrocity. Torres offered the obvious question.

'This was Frost's handy work wasn't it general'

'Correct. I'm afraid agent Frost has begun a campaign of destruction and we still don't understand why. The best hypothesis that we have is that he's simply lost his mind' Thorn knew more than he was telling Troy concluded in the sanctuary of his mind.

'The Grid recorded a tracking chip request by an unknown person with high clearance, we investigated that request and it came from Frost's communicator' Thorn continued.

'Who was he looking for General? I know of a few top level terrorists who bank in Budapest but no-one who would warrant this level of destruction' Markov was eager to know who Frosts target had been. He was beginning to develop a deeper hatred for Frost that was growing with every second; he had never liked his comrade for his constant disdain and over-confidence.

'General Hamza located in the First National bank of Hungary; ground zero. He has close links to the Akhira terrorist organisation so I think it would be safe to assume Frost has gone on some sort of assassination mission, perhaps this attack was just to get the eyes of the world focused on his cause' Thorn knew deep down that Frost was capable of a great many more attacks with equal levels of destruction but was hopeful the severity of the next would be greatly reduced.

'We need to take him down and we need to do it fast, I have the Planetary Commission on my ass and they want results or they'll expose the Agency and that is not an option. I want you all thinking resourcefully on this one, he has the Mark Two chopper and combined with his armour he is an extremely dangerous threat'

'I'm splitting you into teams, Markov and Kym you're with Sadek, Takuya and Torres with Miller. Troy I want you to find him alone you know him best. Take the Mark One and keep me updated' Thorn knew Troy was the best man to apprehend Frost for obvious reasons. The rest of the team looked quickly at Troy with a glint of suspicion in their eyes, all except for Kym who was his only true friend amongst his team mates.

'Thank you gentlemen, that will be all, I want constant updates on your progress, Troy I'll have a private word please' the suspicious agents looked at Troy again with mild contempt as they left the room and prepared for the hunt.

'When was the last time you spoke to Frost?' Thorn asked Troy in the darkness of his briefing room both his and Janner's eyes were transfixed on the agent before them.

'I spoke to him after the last debrief two months ago, he said he was going away somewhere he didn't say where, to take some time out I think he and Nikita were having some problems'

'Did he seem angry or different perhaps?'

'Different in what way General?' Troy responded, his intrigue growing by the second.

'I mean out of sorts, not being himself, depressed maybe'

'Very quiet and deep in thought but I just thought it best to leave him alone if he's having marital problems. Women can be a real pain in the ass as I'm sure you know General' Thorn nodded and smiled.

'Ok so he made no mention of anything that might point to or indicate what he's done today?'

'No General if there had been signs such as that I would have expressed my concerns immediately'

'That will be all then Daryl, thank you and get him found for me yes?'

Troy stood tall, threw his coat over his shoulder and motioned to the door.

'I'll get him sir don't worry about that. If you find anything more on his reasons for all this I want to know instantly'

'Will do' Thorn answered as Troy nodded in response, the door closing as he did.

### Chapter Four

A series of loud mechanical noises echoed through the snow driven valleys as a huge black chasm began to open beside a small wooden outhouse. With a metallic clank the door opened fully, tonnes of fallen snow vaporised as it hit the laser net protecting the hanger below. Slowly but surely a black helicopter rose through the chasm, its frontal spotlights danced up the granite walls of the cave as it went. All four of the Mark class choppers were thereabouts identical but each had its tweaks and mods for specialised missions, slightly bigger than conventional helicopters but sleek at the same time. The fuselage gleamed like black polished glass with the windshield blacked out also, the stealthy design stank of advanced technology and armed with anti-detection systems the super choppers scoured the globe un-noticed.

The Mark Four was finally above ground and a blast of blue fire shot from the rear as it accelerated at incredible speed into the night. Its sleek bullet-like shape slowly moulded into a rounded arrowhead as the stabilisers formed at each side giving it lift at high velocity. With Torres at the controls it lifted to cruise altitude and approached mach eight gracefully. Inside the advanced vessel task force one was getting ready for the hunt, Miller and Takuya tapped away on terminals either side of Torres. They resembled a covert military hit squad, black combats attached to lace-less boots, padded body armour and black long sleeve polo necks.

'Where are we headed Miller? Maybe we should start in Budapest he may have left some clues?' Torres broke the silence in the darkly lit cockpit of the Mark three.

'I know Frost; this day's work will not be done by any means. He's obviously targeting Akhira's leaders and infrastructure, if I had a million dollars I'd bet that his next port of call will be Mohammed Jaffar and his associates. Lay in a course for Kandahar, Afghanistan' Miller wasted no time in giving his commands, knowing best as always.

'No problem current altitude just over fifty kilometres above sea level, retracting rotors, bringing fusion drive up to full capacity, cruising speed set at Mach twenty three point six' Torres glanced at the monitor above 'We'll arrive in Kandahar in around fifteen minutes'

The ferocious power of the Mark Four's fusion drive propelled it forward at nearly twenty four times the speed of sound, slithering gracefully through the blackness of the upper atmosphere.

Like a bullet from a gun the Mark One bolted nose up from the SIA silo, with Troy at the helm the fearsome chopper was pushed to its limits. He had been warned countless times about vertical take-off from the underground bunker but it always fell on deaf ears, he had an almost arrogant regard for rules and procedures just like his dangerous brother. Although he shared many of Frosts traits, Troy had always been the quieter and more approachable of the two. Frost had never gotten close to any of his team mates unlike Troy who always made the effort to join in; they were all his brothers as far he was concerned.

'Warning Fusion drive reaching critical limits please activate relevant high speed countermeasures, the propeller is not designed to work at speeds over Mach two' a computerised voice filled the air inside the advanced Mark One.

'Relax, she's a dark horse she can handle it' Troy replied as the Mark One headed towards the wasteland of Budapest. Almost instantly the propeller slowed to a standstill and started to retract blade by blade until it formed a single rotor and dropped into a long thin opening in the tail, closing as it did. The sides of the craft began to mould into rounded wings as Troy pulled back on the steering column sending vapour into wisps of cloud behind the tips of the stability cons and tail fin, a large blue flame ejecting from underneath. Now travelling horizontally the mighty chopper corrected itself and levelled off, thundering along at Mach twenty six. Troy worked the controls cleverly as warning lights flashed all around him, alerting him to the dangers of extreme speed and engine use. As the alerts faded out one by one Troy sat back, activated autopilot and gave another command to the machine.

'Computer activate main view screen and show the current image above Budapest, two fifty times magnification' the windshield that filled his vision with dark blue sky and a green heads-up display now showed the latest zoomed image of his destination courtesy of the Integral Grid. The light of the screen reflected on Troy's sullen face giving him a menacing look in the darkness of the Mark One's interior. He knew that Frost would be long gone from the scene of destruction but he needed to get a feel for the madness in his brother's mind.

Hundreds of miles away in Kandahar, Afghanistan the central market place was reaching the height of its daily activity, thousands of people bustling around buying, selling and haggling like they had done every day since as long as anyone could remember. Through the bedlam of the chaotic marketplace a young man shrouded in a hooded black robe blended in perfectly amongst the locals. He walked briskly trying his best to avoid person after person in the organised pandemonium of the shantytown market. His shoulder struck an Afghan trader with some force sending him flying onto the floor at his feet. He looked down at the fallen and gave an aggressive frown sending the trader into a panic, shouting wildly and waving his arms. A bright reflection lit up the trader's petrified face as he looked straight down the barrel of a silver gun. Two silenced shots hit the Asian man squarely between the eyes, he slumped flat to the ground lifeless. Frost did not like distractions which the innocent trader found out the hardest way; the renegade had emerged from the shadows. He continued his journey through the market without a care and headed for a large mosque of obvious importance, surrounded by a perimeter wall. His internal computer alerted him to the fifty plus armed soldiers in and around the target building. He approached the building slowly, pulled back the hood of his stolen robes and threw them to the ground.

'Activate TCA' he announced silently and stood still while the blue liquid metal covered his body rapidly. He had chosen to go about his mission with brute force, ignoring the covert skills he had been fully trained to use. He ran quickly toward the main gates of the huge building some eighty metres away, as his pace increased he eventually stirred some interest from the soldiers guarding the gate. Frost charged the dumbstruck henchmen who were now firing frantically at the metallic hulk racing towards them. Frost approached and two long silver blades ejected from the armour on both fists, he slashed upwards at the guards and sliced them in two. He shoulder barged the gates and increased his speed, hundreds of bullets deflected off his armour but the assassin took no heed. He darted towards the front of the building, leapt nearly twenty metres to the lower roof and disappeared.

A petrified soldier burst into Mohammed Jaffar's office and announced the bad news. 'Mr Jaffar we have an intruder please follow us and try to stay calm, we have the situation under control' The terrorist leader and his highest ranking officials had been holding a meeting about the attack on Budapest and the loss of one their most trusted and loved allies, General Hamza. Little did they know, they were next on Frost's hit list.

Jaffar and his fellow generals were shipped quickly from the meeting room to the central hall where the doors were vastly more secure. The room was large and majestic, high ceilings and elaborate décor loomed overhead while the soldiers formed a circle around the officials of Akhira, the most violent terrorist organisation on the planet.

A moment of silence gripped the room as the inhabitants waited in terror, high above their heads Frost crawled in stealthily from a window on the roof like a wolf stalking prey. He manoeuvred to the ledge below without a sound, took aim and picked off the armed guards almost simultaneously with blasts of green light from his wrist, each one dropped to the floor with a smoking black hole between the eyes. A wave of fear pierced the hearts of the officials as they looked up at the blue figure perched high above, glaring back intently. They ran for the only door in the room which eerily slammed shut as if pushed by some unseen force. Jaffar and his comrades tugged on the handles as they tried in vain to open it, Frost laughed inside the privacy of his head piece and dropped to the floor below.

The highest ranking members of the world's most feared terrorist organisation cowered to the floor begging for mercy, they struggled frantically but found they could not move an inch apart from Jaffar who started to walk backwards slowly, shaking as he did. Frost tapped his left chest plate and a tiny blue sphere began to emerge, dropping to his hand. He rolled it towards Jaffar's men who huddled in fear, the ball stopped and a small explosion shook the building mildly. Body parts hit Jaffar who was now cowering in the frame of the door that was still held fast, he could faintly hear his guards on the other side through the inch thick steel.

'I have been waiting for this moment for longer than you can imagine Jaffar, Akhira is about to become a topic of historical debate' Frost said in the distorted robotic voice his armour gave him.

He lifted his right hand and Jaffar was thrown violently into the opposite wall by a strong magnetic field. The leader coughed blood as he hit the wall of his own room and frantically begged for mercy while Frost ran and dived into Jaffar slamming him through the wall he was pressed against. Mortar rained down on the grounds of Jaffar's headquarters as he and Frost landed on the ground some twenty metres below. Frost landed on his feet and looked down at the feeble middle-aged man on the floor in front of him, who was paralysed from the fall. Two sabre-like blades ejected from Frost's wrist and he thrust them into Jaffar's chest killing him instantly.

Ryu Takuya worked his terminal onboard the Mark Four when suddenly his eyes lit up.

'Miller I've picked up Frosts bio-readings he's in Kandahar, Mohammed Jaffar's headquarters!'

'Bingo I told you he'd be there' announced Miller triumphantly.

'Contact SIA central command and tell them we have engaged Frost' Miller continued. The Mark Four drifted slowly over Kandahar and approached Jaffar's headquarters which looked to be on fire. The crew of the chopper saw Frost stood over a man in Arabian robes and surrounded by heavy masonry as Takuya transferred the image to the main view screen. Frost was suddenly alerted to the presence of the Mark Four, he tapped his chest and a tiny blue ball around the size of a marble formed and dropped into his hand, he threw it into the doomed building and darted off. The Mark Four banked sharply upwards to avoid the huge fireball that Frost had unleashed.

Chunks of mortar from pea size to boulder rained down on Kandahar while Frost ran at incredible pace into the densely populated city.

'Fuck' Torres shouted whilst guiding the helicopter to safety.

'Keep a lock on him and if you get a clear shot take it!' Miller gave his orders to Takuya who watched his terminal like a hawk. Trying his best to make out the blue assassin through the dust cloud Takuya powered up the weapons and waited for his chance. Suddenly Frost appeared fleetingly on his screen and as the final green light illuminated telling him the pulse cannon was ready Takuya pressed fire instantly.

'The computer is reading a direct hit, he should be unconscious at the very least'

Good work activate your armour and get down there, Torres drop the Mark Four on that building to the right. Take the sniper rifle and if he's still alive you can finish him off from there' Miller felt his prey was seconds away from capture.

The side door opened quickly and Takuya jumped from its side, armour still covering his body as he dropped. Frost got up from underneath the rubble that the Mark four had blasted on top of him, slightly dazed he wandered into the street and regained his focus. The armour deactivated automatically to allow him to recover but it left him like a sitting duck.

Suddenly from out of nowhere a huge refuse truck belted towards Frosts position, giving him no time to move. Frost gave the command for his armour to activate but the truck was too fast, hitting him violently and sending him crashing into a row of shops; covering him in heavy debris yet again. The truck screeched to a halt and Takuya got out, deactivated his armour prepared to scour the rubble for Frost.

'We have Frost in custody, he may be a bit of a mess and quite lifeless but he's no longer a threat'

'Nicely done, we're approaching your position now, Torres is taking aim just in case he's had a miraculous escape' Miller replied to his comrade with an air of caution to his voice.

The Mark Four landed on top of a tall building overlooking the carnage and Miller jumped from its side to inspect the rubble, armour activated. As he approached the ground a shimmer of electrostatic discharge surrounded him breaking his fall gracefully, he deactivated the armour and joined Takuya who was searching for Frosts lifeless body. As they searched the debris cautiously Torres watched for any sign of Frost, keeping his advanced sniper rifle fixed on his last location.

Taking Torres completely by surprise a flash of blue filled the crosshairs of his steady gun, it was Arrin Frost the assassin had avoided death.

'Miller he's behind you!' Torres communicated to his comrades in vain, his weapon was no use against the alien armour. Takuya and Miller span around quickly and instinctively reached for their wrist communicator. It was too late two beams of light fired from Frosts wrist severing their arms just below the elbow. They dropped to the ground in sheer agony, there was no bleeding as the beam sealed the cut but it still hurt bad. Frost lifted his right hand and using a magnetic pulse their heads hit the wall behind, knocking them out instantly. Torres plummeted to the ground over eighty metres down, activated his armour and landed in an attack stance as a halo of shimmering light slowly dissipated around him and softened his fall. The armour scanned his comrades and declared them as alive on the visual display of his headpiece, a welcome reprieve from what he had feared. Frost turned to face him slowly and methodically activating his wrist scimitars in the process.

Torres opened his arms aggressively and his scimitars also extended, the only weapon in the SIA arsenal that could pierce the shell of the telescopic combat armour.

'What is all this about Arrin? Why are you doing this?' Torres said loudly through the voice of his armour, Frost did not respond and began walking towards his new target.

Torres knew Frost wasn't of sound mind and now all that stood between them were the bodies of their fallen comrades, it was all or nothing now he thought. Torres began to run at Frost and just before they made contact he flipped himself into the air pushing off the ground with his scimitars. As he spun in mid air Torres lashed out with his right arm exposing the flesh beneath Frost's breastplate, the cut wasn't deep enough to penetrate the skin and the slash marks suddenly disappeared as Frosts armour healed itself and moulded back into place. Torres landed and turned to face Frost with his right arm lifted and aimed at his opponents head, hand to hand combat was his forte.

Frost now took his adversary seriously and sharpened his senses, lifted his blue arm and tempted Torres to attack once more. He ran at Frost again with real intent and as the two adversaries clashed their arms seemed to move at incredible pace sending sparks flashing into the air from the deadly scimitars. Frost and his opponent tried aggressively and professionally to strike a blow but both managed to block each attack perfectly. Finally Frost caught Torres's arms in the middle of his scimitars and kicked him with incredible power sending him into a wall with devastating force. Debris rained down on the shaken agent as he pushed slabs of concrete, bricks and mortar from his chest and legs. He got up and regained his composure, a flash of red appeared in the single black slit that gave him his sight through the armour. Torres ran at Frost with incredible pace and swung his scimitar at his head. Frost cunningly stepped to the side and evaded the fatal blow, as Torres passed unbalanced Frost slashed his back. Torres let out a robotic groan as a deep gash appeared.

Blood trickled from the open wound and after a few seconds the armour regenerated, Torres could still feel the pain but the wound was no-longer open. He hardly had time to regain his attack stance before Frost was running at him at high speed. Frost jumped into the air and slashed aggressively at his former comrade, Torres cunningly dodged the blow and grasped Frost's foot. The attacker slumped to the ground and Torres tried to finish him off. Again Frost evaded injury and rolled away to one side. The dangerous assassin took his stance once again and Torres ran at him angrily. In an instant Frost crouched and threw his right scimitar up into the headpiece of Torres's armour sending blood spraying out the vents of the grilled air intake. Miller and Takuya came round slowly and looked in horror at their fallen comrade as they prepared for the same fate. Frost lifted himself up with agent Torres's now lifeless body dangling at the end of his raised arm. Suddenly Torres's armour deactivated itself and revealed the two silver sabres that protruded from the top of his head. Frost retracted his scimitars and Torres slumped to the ground bleeding profusely.

He turned slowly to Miller and Takuya who were sitting in obvious fear but keeping their heads high as they were trained to do, he walked calmly towards them armour still activated.

'You guys are pretty quiet, Miller I can't believe you haven't fired into a lecture as is usually par for the course. Whatever you say make it good because they will be the last whiffs of bullshit to leave your mouth' Frost had no respect for his old comrades now, they were his enemies.

'Why did you do it what the hell could be so important that you'd kill hundreds of thousands to take out one target, we know you were after Hamza Arrin so you might have beaten us bu...' a flash of green light shot from Frost's forearm and hit Miller square between the eyes before he could finish, the beam passed through his head and penetrated the wall behind slightly.

'I wish they were a way I could let you live Ryu, I always had respect for you but I have an agenda for this planet and all its inhabitants, it's time for a new branch of evolution. This planet has become stale; mankind has become a parasite plundering the planets resources. It's time to take it to the next level and I'm the man to usher it in'

'Do you know how ridiculous that sounds Arrin, we are protectors not killers, mankind will get there one day and we're guiding the way' Takuya had faith in humanity and couldn't understand why his old comrade had clearly lost his mind.

'I don't expect you to understand, you are just one of the herd following everyone else into a bleak future. It's about time for you to go now, you and another few hundred thousand' Frost finished, tapped his communicator and almost immediately the Mark Two shot overhead and landed close by. Frost entered and lifted the impressive helicopter slowly and gracefully into the air. He tapped away on the command console, from the front of the vessel a white light grew steadily and shot down to the ground where Takuya sat waiting for death. Before the blast could envelope the Mark Two the fusion drive kicked in at full capacity and the sleek, deadly chopper accelerated to five times the speed of sound almost instantly. The assassin had struck again and this time the SIA had casualties of their own.

### Chapter Five

The Mark One graced the skyline of devastation high above a previously thriving city, Budapest was now a wasteland. Troy scanned the ground below for traces of survivors and any clues as to the whereabouts of his new nemesis. Sadness filled every corner of his heart as he tried to imagine what it was like when a wall of fire had engulfed everything including the poor innocent peoples of this city in ruins. As a guide he raised a satellite image of the area before and after the blast just to give an impression of what it had looked like before, there was no way of telling amongst the rubble and debris that used to be ancient landmarks.

Suddenly an alert began to sound on the control panel to his right; he turned ninety degrees to face it and tapped away rapidly.

'Life signs?'

'Affirmative, two and very faint underneath heavy debris in the next sector' the computer replied as it showed a satellite view of the area in question. He banked right and headed for the area now on his screen trying to pinpoint the exact place the life signs were coming from. As the chopper reached its destination he jumped out the side door from its height of nearly one hundred metres, he activated his armour and prepared hi8mself for the carnage below. He landed with a thump crushing boulders below his feet and activated his scanning systems to aid in his search for saveable human life. The intricate sensors of his advanced armour immediately picked up two people trapped under heavy rubble. He ran to the spot where the life signs came from and as he approached he activated x-ray visuals, his view was now black and white and filled with grey motionless skeletons underneath the outline of all kinds of fallen masonry and fixings. He spotted them almost immediately and began to remove the rubble pinning them down.

As he got deeper he reached a giant steel mast and could see the foot of one the victims moving slowly, they realised help was coming and the cries got louder. He scanned the steel obelisk and text popped up on his visor indicating a weight of over thirty tons, he activated maximum power and lifted the massive object out of the way of his targets. Finally he reached them and scanned them for vital signs which indicated both were in need of urgent medical attention. He lifted both survivors from the ruins and ran with them one on each metallic shoulder to the Mark One that had just landed nearby, he knelt down and placed them in slowly. He accessed the Integral Grid and located the nearest hospital while simultaneously lifting the Mark One high into the air, his armour still deactivating.

At last he found a hospital a few miles outside of the city, he dropped the Mark One to ground level where it hovered silently and carried the two young innocents to the door. 'These people are survivors and must be seen to immediately' He announced to the hospital demandingly in a believable Hungarian tongue, every agent was educated in all major languages. He returned to the Mark One and lifted it thundering into the dusty sky, as he did the main view screen flashed to another news report.

'It is thought that the controversial political activist Mohammed Jaffar, also believed to be the head of Akhira, has been assassinated in the Afghan town of Kandahar where Robert Davies is at the scene...'

Troy's attention locked onto the screen as he tapped in co-ordinates for Kandahar; he knew the story before he heard it.

'Yes I'm here in Kandahar where it appears Mohammed Jaffar has been assassinated, eyewitnesses say a tall blue 'monster' was seen leaving Jaffar's palace which raises the question, is this the same person or 'thing' behind the devastation in Budapest' The news reporter answered Troy's fears that Frost had struck again and that he was too late to stop another onslaught. Just as he brought the Mark One up to full speed warning lights filled the inside of the chopper as if it were a Las Vegas skyline, the news report ceased and his screen was filled with a black emptiness. Something tragic had happened. The Mark One levelled off at thirty two thousand Kph and suddenly a satellite image from the Integral Grid re-filled his blank screen; it was Kandahar and it was in ruins. He requested a frontal view on his screen and the computer obliged, all he could see was a blue horizon.

'Magnify frontal image to show Afghan Airspace, engage the Curvature Compensation System'

Suddenly the image on the screen made him feel as though he were travelling at the speed of light as the vessels high-tech camera zoomed in on the destruction ahead.

A vast mushroom cloud now dominated his view and he asked the computer to scan for any signs of Frost or of his comrades led by agent Miller, he knew they had headed there after the briefing. The Mark One arrived in Kandahar, Troy dropped the helicopter into the flames and dust of the mushroom cloud which had now reached the upper atmosphere, wisps' of violent cloud filled with electromagnetic energy sparked off the hull and fizzled into smoke as it passed though. The sleek vessel descended to almost ground level, the slim outline of a door appeared in the side of the Mark One and then slid open quickly as Troy activated his armour once again.

'Take off and land nearby I'll be back at these co-ordinates in twenty minutes'

Seconds before he landed a halo of blue shimmering light surrounded him, when he hit the floor it sparked violently and the force bounced him back to his feet.

He walked through the rubble and activated the highest level of his sensor program, setting it to scan for the life signs of his comrades. As he walked through the mortar like desert he again felt the same emotions he felt in Budapest. His head-up display constantly flashed indicating life signs everywhere but they were too faint and each one was about to go silent at any moment; the dead and dying. This brought a tear to his eye a tear that the world around him could not see for his armour, he realised his blue protective suit was incapable of showing his emotions and this saddened him even more. Suddenly his head-up display indicated the remnants of the Mark Four had been located, several hundred feet ahead of him. He ran as fast as his armour would carry him to the fallen chopper with visions of Miller and his team picking themselves up in their armour. The view he saw was a far cry from the one in his mind's eye. He got to the empty shell of the vessel which still had a shine to its outer layer but the inside was a searing charred wreck. The blast had destroyed all its components and only the sleek black shell remained intact, the material the Mark class helicopters were made of was extraterrestrial and virtually indestructible.

'The access door was still open when the blast hit I'm guessing' Troy muttered to himself inside his armour as he tried to work out what had happened to his old friends.

As he walked further on he magnified a view of what looked like three silver belts, seemingly untouched by the blast. As he approached he started to realise that they were TCA belts, he looked to the side of them at a pile charred bones and he knew instantly he was looking at his fallen team mates. He knelt down picked up a handful of ash and held it to his chest letting out a mighty robotic roar and throwing it into the wind of the wasteland.

He picked up the belts and ran aggressively to the Mark One, Frost was a wanted man and as he did his thoughts were interrupted by a communication from Sadek.

'Daryl we're approaching your location have you found Frost or Miller?'

'Their dead all three of them and Frost has gone' Troy responded solemnly as he re-entered the Mark One.

'What? Could you tell what happened to them Daryl? Did they go after him without the armour activated?'

Sadek was dumbfounded that just one man could take out all three and then destroy a supposedly indestructible helicopter in the process, his heart raged with fury that a city close to his heart now lay in ruins as did its citizens.

'I found DNA matches near to the armour belts so I'd guess he tricked them somehow, I've uploaded all I know to the mainframe I have to find Arrin before he rips this planet apart' Troy ended the conversation abruptly, fired up the Mark One and belted off towards the apocalyptic looking sun, shrouded by blast clouds with a deep red hue.

The Mark Three headed towards Kandahar at full speed and the wary agents inside prepared for anything that Frost had to throw at them. Sadek got up from his command console and walked behind the main pilot seat, he placed his hand on Kym's shoulders who looked up at him bemused. He looked straight ahead blankly, his heart saddened to the deepest level that one of his team mates could wipe out so many of his own people. All for what?

'Kandahar has just been wiped from the face of the Earth, Frost has detonated another nucleonic pulse a little larger than the one in Budapest' Sadek informed the team of what Troy had told him, hearts dropped and faces sank as he let them know of the fate of their colleagues.

'What the fuck is he playing at? All these singular targets were earmarked for elimination anyway, why kill millions doing it?' Markov barked from the rear of the helicopter, he had been designed to enter fits of rage for combat purposes, rage that was usually under control but not today.

'He's clearly gone crazy' Sadek tried to give his team some answers but they just weren't available to him.

'Let's see if we can find any survivors, Troy is on Frosts tail I just hope he's as smart as Thorn thinks he is' Sadek returned to his console and began the search for survivors

The sun was setting and beams of bright red light shimmered off the hull of the Mark One as it bolted across the horizon with a vast red ocean below.

'Scan for any signs of the Mark Two attack chopper, anything at all!' Troy announced to the Mark One computer.

'I have initiated a high magnitude search of the globe through the integral grid and the onboard sensor systems, however I do not think it will be fruitful, if the Mark Two has activated the anti-tracking system I'm afraid there will be no way of tracking the vessel'

For ten minutes the Mark One thundered across the sky at incredible height and speed, with no indication of the Mark Two's whereabouts. Suddenly a thought came to Troy's resourceful mind.

'Computer request the Grid to conduct a worldwide search for a concentrated area of tachyons, our attack choppers give off tachyons from the pulse emitter when a pulse is fired' Agent Troy was an extremely capable man in tense situations. With that only minutes later, the Computer of the Mark One announced its results.

'A high concentration of tachyon particles has been traced to the Himalayan Mountains, the Integral Grid is bringing up an image of the area now'

'Bingo, you can run brother but you can't fucking hide. I knew we'd find him, computer take us there full speed'

The Mark One shifted at an incredible pace towards the Himalayas and Troy prepared it for battle. Within minutes the Mark Two could be seen on Troy's long-range viewer, he slowed to attack speed and prepared to brawl.

'Computer aim two full power Taser beams just under the rotor blades of the Mark Two and prepare to fire. That's the only area not protected, it should be easy to damage' Troy finished as he lowered the Mark One into position. Two green beams of light shot from the Mark One and struck the rotors of its sister vessel so ferociously they ripped off the blades sending them high into the air, Frost seemed to be a sitting duck in the snow filled expanse of the Himalayas. The Mark One shot overhead and began to turn for another pass.

Frost knew he was in trouble as his beloved helicopter shook sending him flying from the central console and onto the floor of the grounded vessel. He got back up and brought all systems back on line as the image of the Mark One filled his screen and saw it was heading for another strike. He activated the stability cons used for high-speed flight and activated the choppers Fusion Drive. Two thick beams of light once again fired from the Mark One as it made its approach, the beams hit the snow where the Mark Two had been a split second before; Frost had bolted off at full speed evading destruction. The Mark One turned sharply and gave chase; its prey was going nowhere now. The rotors of the Mark One retracted as it matched the speed of the pursued and made ready to attack again. Both magnificent helicopters now dodged and dived at high speed each trying to outmanoeuvre the other to no avail. Shots of light fired frantically from each vessel as they ripped up the sky. Suddenly the Mark Two banked left and Troy followed as the G-force warning systems kicked in on both vessels, they activated the Inertial Dampening systems almost simultaneously.

The pursuit stepped up a level as Frost fired a low yield pulse at the Mark One, a ball of shimmering light headed for it at speed and narrowly missed. Frost dipped the front of the Mark Two and dived down toward the Ocean below. Troy regained control and plummeted after his nemesis as the Mark Two entered the water. Both glided gracefully through the ocean at close to the speed of sound ducking and diving around the great canyons and volcanoes of the Mariana's Trench. Eventually the Mark Two shot gracefully out from the beautiful blue ocean like a great white shark breaking water. As they regained height, Frost activated an evasion manoeuvre and his chopper banked sharply to and fro, avoiding the Taser beams coming from the Mark One. Whist the computer controlled the Mark Two; Frost charged the Fusion Drive to full capacity and prepared to purge its energy on the unsuspecting Mark One. Suddenly from the exhaust a huge ball of light ejected and hit the Mark One instantly knocking out all major systems. As it fell it shimmered with bolts of plasma and plummeted to the ground at high speed. The Mark Two dramatically lost speed as the Fusion Drive tried to regain power; thought it didn't matter, the assassin had escaped. Troy's vessel fell helplessly to the ground as he tried frantically to reactivate the computer systems with no luck. The Mark One slammed into the Brazilian rain forest, crushing trees violently at high speed before embedding deep into the ground.

### Chapter Six

Troy emerged slowly from the Mark One and brushed himself down as he looked around at his strange new surroundings; he was in the middle of dense forest. His attention returned to the Mark One which was embedded deep into the soft terrain of the forest floor, he shook his head in disbelief that his ex-comrade had evaded him so easily. His communicator started to beep and a stern face filled the screen.

'Any luck with Frost? According to my terminal you're buried six feet into the Brazilian rain forest. Would you care to explain why?' Thorn was eager for information his nerves were seriously frayed by the events of the past few days.

'Managed to get a trace on the Mark Two, I used the grid to scan for Tachyons and that gave away his location. It won't show up now the trace will have dissipated'

'That's smart work Daryl, very nice but why is it not Frost who's stuck in the floor of a forest?'

'I destroyed his rotors but they'll be repairable. He purged his fusion drive and it hit me square on, every system failed Thorn, not a great deal I could have done about it really'

'Ok Daryl you did good, very good but next time don't fuck about. I've got all kinds of bullshit politicians raising the heat on us, I think they may go public and shut us down if this continues'

'That general, is none of my concern. It'll take me some time to get this helicopter flying again but I'll get to it straight away'

'God damn it I want you here yesterday Daryl we need to work on a way of finding Frost again. Thorn out'

Troy now felt an urge to obey his orders without question, the chip his brain housed was now attempting to control his actions as it was designed to do. He quickly set to work on the Mark One; he opened a panel inside the craft and tapped away rapidly on the small touch pad inside. Troy jumped energetically between control panels and after sometime the main view-screen suddenly flashed on. The Mark One regained power.

'Designating start up functions to secondary and tertiary computer mainframes, bringing fusion drive back online' the computer broke the silence of the fallen choppers interior.

'Computer damage report please and get me some propulsion'

'Particle field protection was offline at the time of impact therefore the fusion purge from the Mark Two had devastating effects on various major and minor systems, however the fusion drive is intact and propulsion can be achieved'

Troy made necessary adjustments to the Mark One and attempted to raise her from the ground. He activated the ships now weakened magnetic repulsion system, which was designed to move the craft when all other options were unavailable. The graceful vessel was clearly having trouble lifting itself out of the deep hole it had carved in the rainforest and warning lights filled Troy's view.

'I don't treat you too well old girl do I? '

Almost immediately the Mark One let out a surge of magnetic waves, driving itself backwards out of the hole and onto the undergrowth that surrounded it. Branches and leaves fell to the floor like confetti as it lifted high into the canopy of the dense forest, finally it cleared the trees and the forward thrust engaged propelling the Mark One into the blue expanse ahead. Like a bird with mended wings the super chopper was back in action. As the sleek black vessel roared towards SIA HQ Troy suddenly realised he had no way of bringing her down slowly and safely which excited him in a fiendish way. The rear thrust of the Mark One disengaged and two blue flames now fired from the front of the vessel, Troy was attempting to slow her down for landing. The Mark One reduced its speed to a mere eighty kilometres an hour and slowly dropped to the ground, the only option was to crash land. The graceful chopper came down like a bullet into the soft white snow of the Alaskan winter as Troy attempted to steer her away from the base. Finally the Mark One came to a halt and the technicians ran out to her as if she were alive and injured.

'She needs a little tweak here and there boys get her back to health for me' Troy announced to the technicians knowing they would not listen to him; he had hurt their precious masterpiece.

Troy made his way to the door of the SIA base, placed his hand on the scanner and entered.

'Special Agent Daryl Troy Designation 115 welcome to SIA Headquarters, please stand still while a full body scan is complete' a familiar female computer voice filled the air but Troy was in no mood for such procedures.

'I'm sorry computer I haven't the time nor the inclination right now' he walked to the door ahead, as he did a searing pain rushed through his mind like a cut from a knife, his inhibitor chip that he had no idea existed had other plans. The pain continued until he stumbled reluctantly to the scan area.

'Thank you for your co-operation Mr Troy this will not take a moment'

Troy was shocked and disturbed by this freak occurrence, he thought the computer system must have mind control powers at its disposal; blissfully unaware it was an internal chip monitoring his every move like an over-zealous prison guard.

Once the scan was complete he carried on his way to Thorns briefing room rubbing his head softly with confusion.

'Special Agent Daryl Troy Designation 115 at your service sir' he announced as he entered a darkly lit room and sat in front of Thorns impressive oak desk.

'These are troubled times Daryl and I may have acted rashly towards you my friend, I' am sorry if that was the case, that was a great effort. Frost has become quite a foe to be reckoned with, he took out Miller, Torres and Takuya In Kandahar. Torres was our finest combat expert. It really is disturbing news Daryl'

'I found their remains in Kandahar. It's surreal we've all been brought up to believe we're invincible and harsh reality is a tough one to swallow' Troy was clearly missing a chunk of his soul now three of his brothers were no longer alive.

'I know Daryl I know but we must press on, millions have lost their lives and millions more will if Frost is not apprehended soon. We think he'll lay low for a while now his feathers have been ruffled and I don't think he was expecting that quite so soon'

'Yes sir I agree. I'd like to resume the hunt though it won't be long now before I find him'

'Of course Daryl as soon as the Mark One has had a bit of a pamper so to speak, you can be on your way and good luck'

As he got up to leave he asked the general a question he was itching to ask.

'Sir one more thing do the computer systems have some kind of mind control capability now?'

'Mind control? You've had too many late nights young man, get some rest!' Thorn replied sheepishly as Troy motioned towards the door.

'Oh and by the way Daryl the tachyon detection idea was first class, you are certainly one of the best!' General Thorn continued, trying to take Troy's mind off the issue.

As the door shut Thorn's communicator tingled his arm, it was the Planetary Commission again. He patched through to the main viewer in his office and took a deep breath.

'Good evening Mr Jefferson what can I do for you?' he answered with a forced smile.

'Don't start with your bullshit General The Planetary commission will soon be in possession of everything your agency owns. Just one more attack Thorn and we go public and become the saviours of the human race' Jefferson squirmed back at Thorn who could feel the flames of fury burning his insides like never before.

'We will take him down and when we do our operation will again be secured. We are the best people to take Frost down, we designed him for fuck sake'

'I've lost three, no four of my finest agents and all your commission cares about is power and greed. If you would rather I didn't instruct one of my agents to find your location and pummel you deep into the ground then I suggest you stop calling me' Thorn finished and ended the call, he had met Jefferson at a Commission conference a few years previous and smelt his ambition was verging on madness even back then. Now he was the commissions press director, he like frost had been corrupted but in vastly different ways.

Troy walked down the dark hallway of the nerve centre of SIA Central Command, he had a few hours to kill. He found the mess hall at the bottom of the corridor, as he entered he saw his fellow agents winding down after the hunt for Frost.

'Daryl you're ok! Come and join us we're just remembering the guys, they were fine men, it's such a shame!' Li Kym was a good friend of Troy's and always had been.

'Why should we sit with him, he gave us no help! Why do you think he followed Frost alone? He's in allegiance with that traitor!' Markov announced to the room while he kept his eyes fixed on Troy. He and Markov had a long history of rivalry, Markov had always been jealous of the attention Troy received from his superiors.

Without a word Troy pulled a hunters knife from nowhere and pressed it against Markov's throat so fast no-one, not even Markov, had time to flinch.

'Because we are brothers I will let you get away with saying that once, ONCE! If you ever question my honour again I'll gut you like a pig' Troy put fear into the hearts of all those witnessed his outburst but no one tried to stop him as Markov was clearly out of order.

'Hey hey, let's calm down people we're supposed to be a team this is just ridiculous' Sadek said to them all to calm their nerves and slowly Troy removed the knife from Markov's throat but keeping his steely gaze on his tormentor. The remnants of the elite band of agents sat in silence for a few moments, trying to come to terms with the death and destruction they had all seen so vividly. Finally Sadek broke the silence.

'I really am in disbelief of the last couple of days it's like a waking nightmare, how can everything you take for granted suddenly fall apart before your eyes?'

'I know my friend, we have all been designed to be prepared for anything this world can throw at us, yet I don't think any of us were prepared for what's happened' Kym answered Sadek solemnly. With that Markov broke his silence.

'Well if we weren't all here discussing it all this would be closer to resolve, you can talk as long as you want I'm going to find him!'

'Wait Markov I'm coming with you we'll find Frost if it's the last thing we ever do!' Sadek said as they headed towards the door.

Kym and Troy sat in silence as they watched their comrades leave, half wondering if they would ever see them again. With that Troy's communicator sounded, it was Dr Janner.

'Agent Troy the Mark One is back up to scratch and Thorn wants you to resume the hunt, I'd also like to say well done on the pursuit of Frost you did excellently, you'll get him next time!'

Almost Immediately Troy jumped to his feet and went to shake Agent Kym's hand.

'Well Li look after yourself and I'll see you when this is all over you got that?' Troy said to Kym with genuine concern.

'No-way Daryl you're not doing this on your own! I'm coming with you and besides Markov annoys the shit out of me!'

'You better keep up Li I run a tight ship; there's no talking in my library!'

They ran for the door and headed towards the helicopter bunkers.

### Chapter Seven

Dark clouds split the sunlight into hundreds of shimmering rays that beat down on a dry African desert, the searing heat was about to be extinguished by an oncoming storm. A blinding crack of thunder and a jagged blade of lightening ushered in another day of severe rainfall, cooling the heat driven lands where the first human steps were trodden in the evolutionary ladder. In stark contrast to the untouched landscape a stealthy helicopter brings its own sound of thunder almost drowning that of the heavens. Troy broke the silence.

'I'm sure Arrin had a weapons dump of some kind in this area, computer terminals with links to the Grid so I would be surprised if he was holed up there. Don't waste your time scanning though it won't be detectable'

'You're right the sensors aren't picking up a thing. Hey wait a minute I'm getting recently upturned Earth just north of here I guess it may be nothing but if Arrin has used the bunker lately he would have disturbed the ground surrounding the entrance don't you think?' Kym had a trained eye for this kind of environment; safari was his keenest pastime.

By now the vessel was heavily enshrouded by the might of the African wet season but no force of nature could throw the power of the mighty chopper as it slipped through the storm with elegant grace.

'I think you could be right 117 I remember this area of bush land to the right of it. Let's go down and take a closer look'

'Yeah let's check it out'

The Mark One was already quite low to the ground so it made little effort of turning and landing, however a warning light began to flash as the chopper eased itself to the ground.

'She's nearly out of fuel Daryl nowhere near enough to get us back to base, didn't you think to fill her up before we left!'

'Li she runs on matter, any kind of matter, all you need to do is fill the tank with sand, mud or even elephant shit and she'll run. I thought you were taught all that! Mind you they should have filled her up back at the base'

'I know I know, all it needs are physical particles to heat to fusion temperature thus initiating nuclear fusion and therefore incalculable amounts of energy result, I just can't be arsed to fill her up' Kym started to bore Troy with his time wasting, so much so that Troy had already got out of the chopper without Kym noticing.

'Fill her up Li' Troy announced as he poked his head back into the Mark One doorway and glared at his comrade. Kym muttered under his breath in a jovial manner as he opened the panel of the fuel inlet and attached the suction pipe used for powder intake or in this case, sand.

With the Mark One filled with fuel they were ready to investigate Frost's secret hideaway.

'This could get messy Li there's no telling the last time he was here, he may even be in there now so activate your armour' Troy was the only agent to have encountered Frost for over three months and he knew only too well he was not thinking rationally. They approached the patch of disturbed Earth and tapped their communicators at the same time initiating the blue armour. A clearer view of the surroundings now filled their eyes along with metric information of the terrain and its particulars. Troy looked down at the opening as his head-up display scanned the area he was looking at; the armour worked in perfect harmony with his microcomputer implant. After a matter of seconds the display showed the metallic outlines of a door displayed as a green grid together with its dimensions. Frost had not designed his bunker as well as he could have. Troy scrubbed away the sand covering the door and revealed a metallic panel over three feet long with another, smaller panel in the centre. Troy placed the blue hand of his armour on the front which lit up and scanned his hand.

Suddenly a mounted machine gun sprang from the ground and began to fire ferociously at the armoured agents as they jumped back and evaded the attack. Bullets deflected off his chest and headpiece as Kym lifted his left arm and fired a beam, instantly disintegrating the would-be killer gun. Even though the agents were fully protected from such weapons, it was sometimes easy to forget they were wearing the armour and mild panic was inevitable. With their feathers ruffled they approached once more. Troy tapped on the armour that covered his thigh and suddenly the shape of a blue gun began to emerge from the liquid-like material of his advanced body suit. The gun was nearly the length of his forearm and looked like no Earthly object; he charged his weapon and began to fire at the door. Short sharp pulses of light bolted from the weapon, as Troy's hand shook violently and the door began to give way. The door shattered and sprayed into the air revealing a dark corridor, they proceeded slowly and cautiously their armour scanning the area for fatal traps of any kind.

Both suspicious agents activated the lights on their armour and four beams of bright white light emanated from the black slit they looked through, guiding the way. The walls were covered in human weapons of every kind and looked untouched for weeks, finally they entered the control room of Frosts bunker.

'I don't know about you but my systems are picking up traces of activity from at least the last few days he has been here recently' Kym told Troy of his findings.

Troy was busy tapping away on the main computer console of the bunker looking for clues as to Frosts whereabouts.

'Yeah I got the same reading he's been here alright but there's some kind of encryption on his database, I thought he'd told me all his passwords!' he felt hurt that he now knew nothing about his brother anymore.

Suddenly Troy's terminal flashed to an image of Frosts smirking face. As the assassin began to speak a blanket of shimmering blue light covered the only doorway and they both knew they were trapped.

'Daryl! I knew you'd come here sooner or later. It's good to see you my old friend, although I don't think you share my enthusiasm!' Frost spoke in a calm and monotonous voice, his eyes looked eerie and they could almost feel his eyes burning through the armour.

'We need to talk brother you need help! What's gone wrong? You seemed fine three months ago, why all this death why all the destruction? And why kill Miller, Torres and Takuya?' Troy had plenty of questions, he hadn't seen his brother and best friend for quite some time and even though he was clearly not thinking straight, it was Arrin Frost all the same.

'Dear Daryl if only you knew you would join me I know you would. But I can't tell you yet there's much more to be done although I will tell you everything soon my friend, all in good time. Now I must go I have a great many vengeances to inflict on humanity so... take it easy'

'Don't go yet I want some answers, I deserve them, we all do'

'This is Kym you sick bastard! What the hell are you playing at Frost? You've killed more than Hitler ever did! We will find you and when we do you will die in the most painful way you can imagine!' Kym was clearly both upset and angry with Frost who was now laughing in both their faces.

'What the fuck do you know Kym? What have you ever known? You have no idea of the grand design none of you have! I was going to let you both go but now I think you have reached the end of your use agent Kym, I'll see you again soon Daryl and you Li I'll see you in purgatory, I hope your letter to God is as good as mine!' Frost ended the transmission and almost instantly a vale of shimmering light enveloped Kym, holding him in place unable to move. Just as the field had covered Kym the one blocking the entrance disappeared and Troy was free to go. A box opened at Kym's side and revealed an un-diffusible high power explosive that was set to go off after five minutes. Kym's armour deactivated by itself leaving him completely unprotected. Troy tried frantically with all the means he had access to, trying to deactivate the particle field holding his partner to no avail. It was clearly no use and Troy had one option, leave his friend to die.

The timer on the bomb was now down to the last fifteen seconds but Troy still refused to leave Li's side, he suddenly had an idea. His wrist scimitars sprang from the armour covering Troy's wrist. Troy slashed at the control box three times and finally the field disappeared but the bomb was seconds from detonating and escape was no option as Kym frantically tried to activate his armour. The stormy sky of Africa was lit up like a Christmas tree as the blast destroyed everything in the nearby area. Debris rained down on the blackened sand of the African Plains as two metallic figures slumped to the ground near the Mark One. They had escaped, narrowly. They deactivated the armour and beads of sweat dripped from their foreheads, they smiled at each other and breathed a sigh of relief after out smarting Frost. Escape had its price however, Kym shook violently in shock from the severe burns that the particle field had left all over his body.

'Let's get you back to base Kym you need fixing, besides I think I have a few leads that I need to look into'

'Well I guess I'll have more time to write my letter to God. I look forward to that!' Kym saw the humour in the situation although not forgetting the seriousness of the danger they had just evaded.

Troy lifted his injured comrade and carried him to the Mark One while Kym looked up at his saviour and knew he could trust him more than anyone on the planet.

'You know anyone else would have left me and even if they didn't they wouldn't have thought of using the scimitars' Kym was now in awe of his comrade, he knew he was looking at the only force left in the world that could stop Arrin Frost.

Most of the next day passed away before Kym was again ready for active service, incredible advances had been made by the SIA thanks to technology retrieved from the Roswell UFO.

'Well he's as ready as he'll ever be Daryl we've regenerated the damaged skin but I'm afraid he's still a pain in the arse, we were unable to treat that!' announced the Head Nurse of the SIA Medical Wing as she cleaned her hands with a small towel, Troy responded with a cheeky grin and she left them to it.

'Good to see you 117, how are you feeling? Let's go grab some rest and relaxation! Wadda ya say?'

'Where do you have in mind? How about we hit Miami for a few drinks? Give us chance to wind down after our near death experience!' Kym wanted to go to the place he loved best, he knew the hefty task that was ahead of them all.

The Doctor looked up from his desk disapprovingly as they motioned towards the elevator.

'He'll be fine Doc just don't say a word to the General ok?' Troy made sure their backs were covered as they entered the lift. They talked constantly as if there were no crisis to speak of but Troy somehow knew it would be some time before Frost would strike again. The Mark One lifted high into the air as it left SIA headquarters and headed for Miami; the sun shimmered for one last time before it set behind the snow filled tundra of Alaska. Both agents had barely stopped talking since they left SIA headquarters and they were rapidly becoming great friends. Their ordeal in the African desert seemed to have brought them closer together.

Troy brought the helicopter down on a secluded part of the beach and the downdraft sent sand blasting in all directions. The sun looked picturesque as it slowly lowered behind the tranquil horizon, light shimmered off the hull of the chopper as they emerged from its side. The sun's glare was too much at first but it didn't take long before they were taken in by the deep red sunset of the famous Daytona Beach. It was easy to forget the all the death and destruction thousands of miles away and both agents had firsthand knowledge. The clubs and bars of Daytona strip also seemed unfettered by the devastating death toll across the water; it felt like they had entered another world devoid of worry.

They entered the nearest bar they came to, sat down and took it all in before approaching the bar.

'And what can I do for you boys?' the Barmaid asked seductively.

'Well as you asked so politely we'll have two shots of synthohol, Grade One' Kym ordered the new drink of the age. Synthohol was basically a hypo spray of alcohol that one pressed onto the skin, thousands of tiny needles then injected the substance into the bloodstream causing a temporary high from the drug. Grade One was known to be the strongest and longest lasting and was quite a desirable effect. Two hits later they drifted to the next bar, their legs were clearly not functioning the way they ought to. After some hours of drinking they ended up in Kookoo one of Miami's finest clubs, the synthohol was seriously kicking in and the ladies were looking nicer.

'So are you from Miami sexy lady?' Kym let himself go a little too much for a professional agent as he wandered the club making a nuisance of himself with all the females. Troy sat across the bar and collected his thoughts, for some reason he could think more fluently after a few beers and synthohol, he found himself using words he had no idea he knew. He remembered his old comrades and the death and devastation his weary eyes had seen. He felt a sudden feeling of rage and snapped at the barmaid who he felt was pestering him to buy another drink. Almost instantly he realised his mistake and shut out the unwanted feelings as he had been trained to do in his earlier days. As they both relaxed in their own different ways a shadowy figure dressed in black slowly emerged from the darkness of the club. He pulled back the dark overcoat that enshrouded him and a glimmer of silver was now clearly visible in the darkness. He raised his silver gun and carefully aimed for Kym's head, who was by now surrounded by three women. Frost took aim for Kym's head and a shot of blue light bolted from his weapon. Kym stood up as he went to talk to Troy and the blast hit his upper back sending him to the ground like a weighted jellyfish, stone dead. Frost had done his deed and now he fled, activating his armour and smashing out through the wall of the club leaving hundreds of panic stricken clubbers screaming in fear.

Troy was now acutely aware of what had happened, he half staggered to where Frost had fled from but realised he would be too far away by now, his chief concern was Kym laying slumped in the middle of a ring of worried onlookers. His heart welled with sadness, he had seen those kinds of wounds before and death was the end result from such a weapon. Troy sobered up quickly as he picked up Kym and ran through the hysterical crowds, he wanted to catch Frost badly but concern for his friend took over. Frost was getting dangerously clever.

### Chapter Eight

Troy activated the door of the Mark One and laid his comrade onto the floor of the mighty helicopter. Li Kym was like a dead weight but Troy suddenly noticed something that reinstalled hope; he was breathing faintly. Troy could not contain himself as his body filled with a sudden feeling of relief, he began to realise that the weapon would have killed Kym if it had struck his head, but lucky for the paralysed agent it hit his lower back.

'Computer scan Agent Kym for vital signs, I do believe he's still alive'

'Agent Kym is in need of urgent medical attention his vital signs are faint but he is stable. All motor nerves appear to have been dissolved by a powerful energy surge, however his brain is still intact'

The Mark One lifted off the beach where it had stood for the past few hours and darted off into the pitch black of a warm Miami night. Troy wasted no time in bringing the super chopper up to full speed, she thundered through the night like a shark through water at nearly thirty five thousand kilometres an hour. It didn't take long for the Mark One to reach its destination; the SIA's Alaskan base was now in sight. The Mark One slowed to landing speed, the stability cons on either side retracted and the rotors emerged from the tail and began to spin at incredible speed. The chopper landed gracefully as two figures in white overcoats ran to the chopper with a stretcher.

Troy waited patiently in the mess hall of the underground base as he awaited news of his new best friend. After some time Troy's mind was beginning to ache with all the thinking he was doing, many things ran amok inside the intangible area of his head known as his consciousness. He tested theory after theory in an attempt to work out how Frost had found them it was almost as if he could now read minds. He lifted his black polo-neck sweater and rubbed his lower back. Exactly underneath his fingers was a tattoo of a wolf and 'Designation 115' was written above it. All the agents had gotten tattoos when they were younger much to General Thorn's disapproval. They had all been to see an Indian elder who had told them of their spiritual animals. Troy was told that his spirit animal was the lone wolf the Indian shaman had completely freaked out and ran away gibbering when he tried to see Arrin's.

They both laughed it off but now Troy started to think there was something to it. Troy was clearly missing his dead comrades. General Thorn and Dr Janner broke Troy's solitary debate; they brought news of Kym.

'Hello Daryl how are you doing my friend? I have some good news, Kym will be fine he's in need of a brand new limbic system because his nervous system's fried but that won't take too long, he should be back to active service in a couple of days all being well' General Thorn told the young agent what he was hoping to hear and he breathed a sigh of relief.

'He's quite a lucky guy old Kym isn't he! Cheating death twice he is truly blessed!' Troy was pleased that Kym would be ok and his face clearly showed it. Thorn nodded at Troy and left the room taking a deep sigh as he did, the past few days were beginning to take their toll.

'The General is quite right Daryl, he's lucky to be alive. The weapon Frost used was a replica of one of ours although it was far more powerful than anything we've toyed with. Frost is undoubtedly enhancing technology that we have developed'

'We think Frost intended the blast to hit Li's head which would without question, have rendered him brain dead. However it seems by some force of luck he stood up just in time and the blast hit his back which took him close to death. I've also found a microscopic tracking device which Frost must have somehow planted on him'

'There is something sinister about him Janner he seemed cold, calculating, almost evil. I think he's using armour a little too much; something's taken over his sanity it's almost as though the armour has corrupted his mind' Troy was closer to the mark than he knew.

'We know the material of the armour is partially organic and after prolonged use it attempts to bond with organic matter, we were worried that if the armour was worn too often it would overcome the wearer. We didn't know it could occur so easily though' Dr Janner knew of this side effect but he didn't know how potentially dangerous the alien material could be to humans.

'Well if he has been corrupted, there may be a way to exploit him, it may be his weakness. I'm not quite sure yet but it is something to think about. I'll continue the hunt and think of a new way of bringing him in' Troy was a very dominant person when he wanted to be; his steely gaze and sharp features could pierce anyone's personality.

'Well from all I've seen and heard from you today I'm certain that you are our only hope Daryl, I just pray you don't let us down. Get out there and find him my friend!' Dr Janner sent Agent Troy on his way.

The slender blades of the Mark One began to spin; accelerating rapidly. The snow underneath her almost became a blizzard as the chopper lifted itself away from the base and into the dark cold night.

Troy took the incredible vessel to just under mach ten and activated autopilot he began to work away on the control console in front and searched for new ideas in the pursuit of Frost. The dark interior of the Mark One made Troy look menacing as he cleverly tapped away on his console. After a few minutes his attention was drawn to the main viewer and warning alarms filled the air; for some reason the vessel was now clearly visible to any organisation with access to radar or the Integral Grid. As soon as the device had failed the Mark One slowed down to nine hundred Kph which was procedure so as not to raise suspicion when the craft appeared on radar at incredible speeds.

'Computer please explain to me why the hell the anti-tracking system is offline. We'll have the entire US Air force on us in a matter of seconds'

'This device has failed due to a minor power overload although it is not yet clear as to the reason why this has occurred. Primary and secondary computer systems are attempting to correct the problem. Please do not be alarmed this is a minor failure and will be rectified shortly' the computer told Troy what he more or less knew already, the Mark One was now without stealth and was clearly visible on many a radar screen across the US, it was only a matter of time before the Air force would be onto it.

'Unidentified object please explain yourself and your business or you will be met with severe force' the Mark One was now filled with the voice of a young radio operator from some kind of military installation. Troy was clearly agitated by the situation but was not worried about it in the slightest.

'You are in direct violation of the air traffic code you have no permission to invade US Airspace your aircraft will be destroyed this is your last chance' Suddenly one of the screens flashed inside the Mark One.

'Six Hellcat fighters have been dispatched on a intercept course from McIntyre Airbase they are fully laden with high yield air to air weapons, current speed five thousand Kph, ETA; two minutes' The computer gave the bad news, the military obviously had no intention of letting this one get away with a deadly terrorist still on the loose.

Sure enough as the Mark One computer had announced six of the world's most advanced fighter aircraft sped rapidly towards her. Troy could do nothing but wait anxiously for the repairs to be completed, he had no intention of having a fight with his new guests but he certainly thought a good chase was in order. He made himself comfortable and waited for their arrival with an excited grin.

'Unknown vessel this is your final chance to turn yourself in we will use whatever force necessary to down your

'Well sir I have given consideration to your stern words and I think I will now go about my day as I was, before I was so rudely interrupted' Troy was now beginning to enjoy his 'predicament' and it showed. The squadron of fearless pilots were now bemused where before they were solidly confident of the might of their fearsome fighter jets. There was a slight pause whilst the pilots reported back to their superiors but this was suddenly shattered by a volley of missiles that struck the Mark One so hard the chopper actually lost a few hundred feet of altitude. The weapons were no match for her but they certainly packed a punch. Troy knew how powerful the blast would be it was part of his plan, he and the mighty Mark One were clearly unfettered by the might of the US Air force. The fighters broke pursuit of the fireball that replaced the hunted chopper but they slowly realised that the helicopter was still visible on radar.

The attack upped a level. The Mark One ducked and dived as streams of missiles only just missed her, with Troy at the helm she moved more graciously than she was ever designed to. He directed the chopper upwards and then braked sharply as the fighters unwittingly flew past. Troy manoeuvred up behind the rear wingman and sent his rotors into the aircrafts tail sending it into an uncontrollable spin; the pilot ejected. The other five now feared the Mark One and split off into various directions, just as instantly the Mark One computer broke the fun.

'The anti-tracking device is now operational and working safely within designated perimeters, stealth has been regained. Shall I engage the previous speed and heading?' The computer had fixed the problem and spoilt Troy's game with one clever stone.

'Yeah yeah ok then let's get back on track' like a young boy who has had his new toy snatched from him, Troy seemed glum as he replied to the computer. The Mark One retracted its rotors and thundered off into the new sunrise, leaving the US Air force with more of an enigma than it had started with.

'This is Eagle leader, we have lost all visual and radar contact with the vessel in question, it just vanished!' If the young pilots weren't mystified before, they certainly were now.

### Chapter Nine

Thousands of miles away in the Chinese capital of Beijing the morning was growing old and the winter rain smote down like buckets of it were being thrown. Markov and Sadek were continuing their manhunt although finding time to sit and relax in a European style café sheltering from the driving rain.

'Well from what the Integral Grid can ascertain Knufan Chang is due to give a speech at the UCES convention this afternoon in the Free World Arena, if Frost is planning to take out Chang as I think he will this would seem as good a time as any' Sadek said to Markov as he took his attention away from a computer pad he was looking at.

'Yes that's it he'll strike today I can feel it and Chang will be his next target. He always hated Knufan Chang and the Oriental Triads, I think mainly because they are in league with the Mafia. He always hated the fact that Chang was so closely tied in with the UCES they hold him as a valued peer. I do actually share his hatred as I'm sure you do too Anton but Frost's methods are unbelievable'

Markov thought he was close to getting Frost, so close he could almost taste victory.

'Though I must say I thought that the UCES would wipe out their ties with corruption but they obviously have no intention, oh well I suppose most of them will be wiped out when Frost arrives' Markov continued and drank a sip of his coffee. The UCES was the United Collaboration of Eastern States they were now the governing body of Russia, China, Japan, India and most of the Middle East.

'You know the world has changed irreparably since Frost started his little incursion you can see fear in everyone's face, they are terrified look Sadek'

'I know they are all wondering if they're going to be the next and if we don't get to Frost soon they probably will be'

'Can you remember the good old days Sadek? Before we were agents? Those teenage years are the best memories I've got. I'd give anything to go back to then, no worries, plenty of money and free time. Even the intense training was good at times!' Markov continued his half-thought conversation and began to reminisce.

'Oh yeah they were the good days alright! My favourite times were making new hardware for the computer market and knowing full well that as soon as we released the next processor thousands of companies and families would want the new faster technology. Jeese I remember my first girlfriend's parents being so angry that their six month old PC was outdated already! I remember wanting to tell her but I'd always get a really bad headache; I guess it was my conscience!' He added to the nostalgia and also touched on the first time he experienced his Inhibitor Chip though he knew it not.

'If only they knew! If only they knew. I never worked on the computer enhancement section I helped them build the Mark class helicopters, I did a lot of the work on the Mark One, that is a fine vessel though I better keep my voice down in case the Mark Three hears me!' Markov's mind began to drift into memories past and a smile began to emerge on his face, a smile the like of which had not graced his solemn features for many a day.

'I remember Daryl, Frost, Li and Thorn constantly practising combat training. They never did any work they were always Thorns favourites. Frost used to test the new moves he'd learnt on me, without fail. I used to like him but he was a bit of a show off' Sadek's memory of Frost conjured up an image in his mind's eye. It made him shudder as he remembered what Frost had become.

'Well I never really liked Frost or Troy they were too close for my liking, Li just tagged along' Markov's face became solemn again as he recalled the jealousy he had for them both.

'But the icing on the cake has to be our first mission. That holiday we had was brilliant, our first taste of freedom, although we knew the SIA had its eyes on us in some way. I remember sipping champagne in the red-hot sun and then getting a call from Thorn saying we had to get ready for our first mission. That was our finest hour, destroying that meteorite on a collision course with Earth. Vos Savant Davies Five, I'll never forget that name' Markov continued and recalled the first mission they undertook in which they had prevented a meteorite from hitting the Earth with disastrous consequences.

'Yeah something like that. Just think, though they will never know, the people of Earth owe their lives to us!'

They sat and talked for hours as the day and the citizens of Beijing floated by. After some time they settled the bill and began the fifteen-minute walk to the Free World Arena, an air of anxiety now filled their hearts where five minutes before they were happy. The city had reached its height of activity, cars and pedestrians clogged the streets and the two agents almost felt choked.

'We'll go in the visitors entrance but we'll need a good vantage point so a bit of sneaking around could be in order' Markov began planning their actions before they got inside. The huge Free World Arena now stood before them; it was a majestic building full of twenty first century architecture in a time where originality and style was harder and harder to come across.

It stood tall at nearly two hundred metres and was shaped like a pyramid; only this one was made of titanium and high-strength glass. Markov and Sadek walked to the door and paid the entry fee of fifteen Uceriansx; the monetary unit used by the UCES. They were given visitors badges and were shown in. Markov began to scour his new environment and half admired the artistry on the golden stairwells and glass lift shafts as he looked for a way into the upper section of the conference hall. Security seemed tight but nothing could stop an agent of the SIA. Markov and Sadek entered a fire exit staircase and began to climb the ten stories to the level they wanted. As they approached the door of the upper section a guard barring the door confronted them.

'Hey! How did you get up here this is a restricted area!' The guard was not armed but he had a large baton of some kind. This however did not bother the agents as they casually walked up to the guard and stunned him with an electronic device.

They had an excellent view of the conference and it was well timed as the president of the UCES took the stand.

'Welcome ladies and gentlemen of the free world conference my name is President Mombasa of the United Collaboration of Eastern States which as I am sure you all know as the UCES! I would like to welcome you all to this conference on the new terrorist threat that has engulfed our planet in recent days. I would also like to welcome The UCES constituent nations; Russia, China, Japan, India and the other ten fine countries who form the smaller part of our mighty organisation' The President of the UCES dressed in Indian clothing addressed the hall of multinationals.

The conference went smoothly without a trace of Frost but tension filled Markov's consciousness once again as Knufan Chang took to the main stage. Sadek and Markov now looked through digital binoculars and meticulously checked every nook and cranny for the elusive assassin. The conference ended without event and the two agents left the building even more bemused than when they had entered, they also felt angry that they had to sit through an incredibly boring conference for no apparent reason.

Markov and Sadek headed back to their helicopter; the Mark Three and thought up a new plan.

'Sadek that's it! Why didn't I think of it before! All the major bosses of the Triadic Mafia are meeting up for some kind of get together in New York City tomorrow night Chang is due there, if Frost doesn't strike there then I give up!' Markov announced triumphantly as he played around with his computer terminal.

'You're a genius! Well done Anton, get a fix on Chang's private jet and we'll follow him there'

After waiting patiently the Mark Three rose from a quiet back street and headed for Chang's private airstrip. As they approached they switched to whisper mode and the thunderous sound of the powerful chopper became nothing more than a whisper.

'According to the database Chang's jet is the black one, it's pretty flash actually must've cost a fair whack' Sadek sat at the operations terminal inside the Mark Three, he had the responsibility of the mission's finer points.

The sleek vessel hovered silently and watched from a distance, eventually the crime boss left a huge mansion flanked by armed guards who walked him to his jet. After nearly fifteen minutes the jet took off and achieved its target speed and altitude, invisibly the Mark Three followed at a slightly higher altitude. Both vessels slithered gracefully across the star filled sky at over three thousand Kph, Chang's jet was a fast one but the helicopter above had no trouble keeping up. As soon as they reached American airspace the Mark Three broke pursuit and flew to New York to stake out the building where the cream of the Triadic Mafia would be spending the night.

'This is the building, Chang should arrive any minute I'm focusing the sensors to scan for any sign of Frost, it may take away the effectiveness of some major systems but we shouldn't need them' Sadek announced to his teammate as he was slowly setting the chopper down onto the roof of a high rise building that looked across to the rather spectacular building to the front of them

A dark stealthy helicopter moved slowly into position over the Mark Three, it looked exactly the same, virtually identical. It was The Mark Two and Frost had spotted his spies. Frost smirked to himself for he had guessed someone would be there to greet him, this move was far too obvious to go unnoticed. Frost lowered the Mark Two just metres above its sister vessel and a jet of clear liquid sprayed from underneath. It engulfed the Mark Three while inside the two agents were blissfully unaware they were being entombed by their own helicopter. The liquid suddenly solidified and covered the rotors of the helpless vessel along with the main and only exit the agents could use. Frost had covered the chopper in holding gel, a material designed to render tanks incapable of attack during open warfare, when it solidified there was no way of getting free from it.

Frost set his chopper down on a rooftop high above the Mark Three and activated his armour. He looked incredibly menacing as he jumped from rooftop to rooftop, the stars shimmering on his dark metallic body suit. He got to ground level and de-activated the armour, he then walked out toward the building Markov and Sadek were watching. Frost walked into the view of the Mark Three, he turned and raised his middle finger at the crippled helicopter knowing full well his fellow agents could see him.

'Holy shit! That's Frost down there, ready yourself Markov he's ours now!' Sadek nearly jumped out of his skin as he saw Frost for the first time in over three months and a great deal had occurred since then. They motioned to open the door of the high tech chopper, but it was no use, the holding gel was doing its job perfectly. Sadek jumped back to his computer console to find out why the door was jammed.

'Oh no. No no no! He's covered us with holding gel. Fuck!' Sadek felt an overwhelming rush of stupidity turn his face red rapidly.

'The sensors would have picked it up if you hadn't concentrated their focus on the Plaza, nice work Sadek' Markov tapped away on his console trying to find a way of getting out of such a pitiful situation.

'You dumbass how do we get out now, the door is completely stuck!' he barked again at his superior for the foolish mistake then tried frantically to amend the problem without luck; all that either of them could do was watch from their advanced prison.

Frost headed to the entrance of the mighty Genovese Plaza which was well known to be a hive of activity for the Triadic Mafia. It stood high but was dwarfed by the magnificent skyline that New York beheld. It looked old but inside there were intricate networks of intelligence gathering computers, the Triadic Mafia moved with the times.

Two heavily built men in combat clothing guarded the door to the crime headquarters; they eclipsed Frost dramatically in height and width.

'And where the hell do you think you're going? Punk!' The first guard said aggressively to Frost as he looked to his comrade and laughed.

'I'm going inside this building and if you try and stop me I'll kill you both' Frost replied calmly as the first guard threw a powerful punch. The assassin professionally grabbed the oncoming fist with his right hand and used the power to swing his left elbow precisely into the guard's neck. The hulking guard slumped to the ground coughing and spluttering; his windpipe had collapsed. The other guard jumped back and prepared himself as Frost pulled his silver weapon and fired. A bolt of blue light hit the mans head and he too was incapacitated. Frost left them both on the curb as he brushed down his black polo-neck shirt and walked into the building.

He made his way quietly into the main room of the Triadic Mafia's celebrations, slithering in through an upstairs door he walked to the banister and watched the powerful men below. The room was rammed with every important figure of the famous criminal organisation; classical music filled the air as the bosses talked amongst themselves. Frost walked to the booth where the music was coming from and fired a bolt of blue light from his weapon into the console. The music stopped and the whole room went quiet as Frost jumped from the booth and faced the cream of the planets underworld. An important looking figure stepped forward completely unafraid of the gatecrasher that had just ended the music. It was Benito Colloseo the new head of the Mafia division of the Triadic Mafia.

'O! Stupid fuck, have you got a death wish? Who the hell are you anyway? Boys kick this wise guys ass' Colloseo yelled as he motioned his henchmen onto the stage where Frost stood. Around twenty heavily built men now circled Frost and prepared to take him out. The young assassin laughed and activated his armour, the dark blue Frost now struck fear into the hearts of all the occupants in the room as he had done numerous times of late. The guards although a tad frightened still advanced on him each armed with samurai swords.

Like a synchronised swimming team they all pounced instantly as the blue metallic hulk calmly and methodically broke bones and confidence and the henchmen fell lifeless one by one.

'Your all a pathetic waste of human life just the look of you disgusts me. This is the end; your empire has reached its shelf life. I'll see you all in hell' Frost announced to the dumbfounded room with fallen bodyguards at his feet, Chang and his associates tried the door but it was held shut by a strong magnetic field coming from Frost's armour.

He tapped his left forearm and a blinding flash of light filled the room. When it dissipated, all that remained of the one hundred or so occupants were empty clothes, they had all disintegrated. Frost had used his new weapon, one that he himself had designed and constructed. It was an Orgapulse detonator, the SIA had thought of developing the weapon but never had seen it through to completion, when fired it disintegrated all organic matter within the confines of a closed room. If outdoors its range was anything up to one hundred metres radius leaving all other matter untouched. He headed for the exit while his armour alerted him to the many police squads now on their way.

'Police vehicles have been detected their destination is this building. The TCA unit is dangerously low on power, armour will disengage in three minutes' The computer announced to Frost inside the headpiece of his armour, the Orgapulse had used too much energy.

Frosts dark blue armour disengaged and he was now dangerously exposed to human weapons as the police thundered into the street on which he stood. He jumped into the nearest car he could find, a classic Ferrari probably belonging to one of the gangland giants he had just assassinated, they didn't need it now he thought to himself.

'Computer where's the nearest place I can charge the TCA I need to reactivate to get back to the Mark Two'

'The nearest viable location is a steel manufacturing facility on the outskirts of Coney Island'

He pushed his substitute vehicle to its limits as he headed for the only place with enough power to charge his armour. A police convoy was now in close pursuit of the aged red sports car; although it was a classic the police cars were no match in speed or grace. Frost was an expert driver as were all the agents and it showed as he slid and screeched the car round the streets of New York, drifting around corners and dodging cars like an F1 pro. The convoy swelled to almost thirty squad cars and two helicopters had now joined the hunt as Frost approached his destination. Frost jumped from the sporty car and ran through the facility avoiding vats of molten metal and the searing heat. Eventually he reached a power substation. He tapped a small button on his belt and a line of spark filled electricity began to run into it. Overhead lights flashed and dimmed as the mighty TCA sapped vast amounts of energy. The convoy now blocked the huge entrance of the steel facility; they could see gallons of molten steel being poured into moulds but no Frost. The air was tense; all the steelworkers ran behind the line of police cars in front of the entrance. Police warnings rang out from megaphones and the New York police department waited anxiously.

From out of the darkness of the red hot factory a dark figure appeared and faced the small army of police and swat that had slowly grown in size. They had seen this strange man a few days before on the news and they began to feel a searing fear, the like of which they had never known. Suddenly gunshots rang out frantically and the police helicopters began firing small missiles into the factory. One hit a huge vat of molten steel directly above Frosts head. Gallons and gallons of molten steel thousands of degrees in temperature rained down on the unsuspecting Frost, a waterfall of yellow and red now covered the blue hulk. Everyone held their breath as they waited to see the charred remains of the blue menace. It was a sight they would not be seeing today. He continued walking towards his pursuers as white hot slithers of steel ran down Frosts blue armour, it almost seemed to enjoy the searing hot bath it had just been subjected to. Bullets rang out once again and the sound of hundreds of ricocheting projectiles filled the air as they panged off his invincible armour. Frost tapped both his thighs and two large guns began to emerge as if they were made of molten metal themselves. Less and less bullets now filled the air as Frost picked off each officer one by one with bolts of blue energy from his guns.

He pointed both weapons into the air and hundreds of large green bolts of light volleyed into the police helicopters overhead sending them crashing to the ground in flames. Another swat team arrived and Frost was ready. He placed his two weapons against the area they had originated and they both reverted to liquid and merged back into his armour. His wrist scimitars emerged lightening fast from the backs of his hands as he prepared for hand to hand combat. He ran into the oncoming swat team and slashed them to pieces one by one, they seemed to be endless and Frost was getting angry. A thunderous robotic roar came from the blue figure which drowned out the noise of the conflict and ricocheting bullets. It was deafening and all that heard it cowered in fear. Frost moved faster than light as he wiped out the entire swat team rapidly, haloed by a shower of falling body parts he regained composure and watched the blood drip from the armour on his hands. He stood half in glory and half in anger amongst the fallen soldiers of the law as they lay dead in pools of crimson water. What force had made Frost become such a cold-blooded killer; even he could not answer that.

'Computer order the Mark Two to my co-ordinates ASAP, I don't fancy another battle like that' Frost said to his armours computer system, he sounded drained and shocked at what he had just done to his fellow Americans. The thought passed however as the evil presence that had been dominating his mind returned once again and all emotion disappeared.

The Mark Two filled the sky once again and Frost headed towards his old comrades still imprisoned by their helicopter.

'He's on his way back I've got him on visual, Sadek what the hell do we do now?' Markov was a tad worried about the return of Frost. They were still trying to find a way of getting out of the crippled helicopter.

'Just hold tight my friend that is all we can do' Sadek said in a reassuring voice though it came as no comfort to either of them.

The Mark Two dived down towards the Mark Three and violently rammed it. Frost would have done more had he not been so drained; Miller and Sadek were lucky this time. The Mark Two regained height graciously and bolted off into the night. The Mark Three was not so fortunate. Tonnes of debris and a large black helicopter plunged into the next building rupturing a gas pipe and sending the area into flames. The fallen chopper lay lifeless, still covered in holding gel as the devastation continued with the collapse of the building it had hit.

'SIA Central Command please respond, we're in urgent need of assistance, we have encountered Frost' Sadek tried to contact the SIA, the Mark Three was fully operational but it was immobile and helpless.

### Chapter Ten

The Mark One banked sharply into steep turn at high speed turning wisps of cloud back into vapour as General Thorn informed Troy of his brothers new offensive.

'Daryl, Frost has struck again in New York apparently he took out all the key figures of the Triadic Mafia, including Knufan Chang and Benito Colloseo. Markov and Sadek are there now; they are trapped inside the Mark Three, holding Gel of all things! Honestly, we give you all incredibly advanced technology the likes of which will never be surpassed and still you cannot conduct a run of the mill operation!' A somewhat agitated Thorn confronted Troy, his left eyebrow was twitching slightly, as it did when he was angry. He mocked the agents as all good generals do when their men fail, he did not take Frosts resourcefulness into account.

'Speaking of which Daryl, why did the Mark One appear on ours and therefore everyone's radar screens for nearly fifteen minutes! The Mark One needs to be well maintained but that kind of failure should not occur' Thorn continued and the General began to irritate Troy somewhat.

'I'm on my way to New York as we speak, I heard of the attack from the Planetary Commissions early warning system, you know, the bumbling bureaucrats you decided to team up with and who now seem to be running the show! And as for the Mark One, she is a fine vessel and would continue to fulfil that tough role if your technicians would keep to the monthly maintenance checks. I'll see you later Thorn' He ended the visual link with Thorn, he was a tad blunt with his superior; his patience with the meddling General were beginning to wear thin.

The Mark One entered New York's glittering skyline and almost fitted in with all the police helicopters in the area. Troy switched on the listening equipment used for covert surveillance and tried to find out what the police megaphones were demanding.

'This is the FBI please leave your vehicle slowly and calmly, you are under arrest' An FBI officer announced from a loud speaker to the occupants of the Mark Three which was on its side and helpless, Troy listened in from his helicopter which was far from helpless. He knew the task in hand all too well, he also knew a violent approach was inevitable. Obviously this mission needed some keen planning. Troy kept the Mark One at a safe distance, he had not yet been spotted but if he were it could spell disaster.

Troy contacted the Mark Three and his helpless comrades to tell them his plan.

'Markov, Sadek, its Daryl. How you both doing in there? I bet its quite cosy in that cell of yours, just the two of you!' He said jokingly. A frustrated Sadek now filled Troy's view screen, he felt bitter having to be rescued but a feeling of kinship suddenly resurfaced.

'Yes lap it up Daryl, can you get this godforsaken holding shit off our helicopter please? It would be a great help' like a young man realising the big picture for the first time, Sadek for some reason now felt no contempt for his fellow agent and regained a feeling of brotherly love.

'Yeah sure I'll have to fire a high power energy pulse at you to disintegrate the gel so hold on to your pants!' Troy said and prepared to fire his saviour pulse of energy. A flash of blue fired from the Mark One and hit its sister vessel. The Mark Three shook violently and blue bolts of energy annihilated the material that had imprisoned her, she was now free to move. Almost as quickly as the blast had hit, the Mark Three began to rotate its blades; throwing it back upright and the chopper gained height. A flash of blue bolted from its rear and the magnificent vessel vanished into the night.

'Daryl...'

'Yeah don't mention it' He nodded to Sadek and closed the link.

Troy made his way through the corridors of SIA headquarters; thinking deeply about where Frost could be hiding. The door of Thorn's briefing room opened with a quick sliding motion and Troy stepped in. The room was brightly lit illuminating the SIA's three remaining agents sitting patiently at their places. They all faced General Thorn and a strange man standing behind him. He looked around at all the empty places; the names of his dead comrades were still on the nameplates as they always had been, as a mark of respect. Frost's nameplate was not there however. Kym raised his hand to Troy as he sat in his place sporting a tired worn out look on his weary face.

'Good evening Daryl, good to see you again please take a seat' General Thorn said as he motioned Troy to his place and continued.

'I'd like you to meet Dwight Jefferson, he's the head of operations at the Planetary Commission, and has decided to join us at all times now, I'm sure you don't mind do you?' The General looked on edge as he spoke and just before he finished the strange man with rodent-like features walked forward.

'Hello Designation 115 heard and read a lot about you young man, very impressive indeed. Are you any closer to finding Designation 111?'

This man who Troy had never met had read all his files and knew everything about him, it made the agent feel uneasy to the core.

'I'll have him in good time but it aint easy, I doubt you really know who or what it is you think you're dealing with here. Agent Frost is the most capable threat to all life on Earth since the meteorite that killed off the dinosaurs' Jefferson tried to speak but Troy cut him off aggressively and got to his feet.

'I'd strongly suggest you leave it to the experts to sort this little predicament or you won't have a planet to commission' Troy was suspicious of Jefferson as was the rest of the room.

'Sit down Daryl this man is our friend!' Thorn stood up and walked to the rooms main view screen, inside he fully agreed with Troy but felt his hands were tied.

'Now then gentlemen, another failed attempt in New York! Mr Jefferson is getting very impatient with your lack of ability and frankly so am I! You had the opportunity and your futile attempt ended in disaster!' Thorn almost barked at the agents as they sat dumbstruck, Thorn was putting it on for Jefferson who seemed to have him on a leash. With that Markov stood up and sounded his view.

'How dare you bring us here and dress us down in the presence of this worm, the SIA is an independent organisation and he has no right to be here, I suggest you get him out of here before I rip his throat out!' Markov shouted keeping his stern eyes fixed on Jefferson who began to feel afraid.

'Sit down now Designation 113 or I will knock you down!' Thorn silenced Markov and he suddenly cowered in pain then slumped back to his chair. Troy and Kym looked at each other with very worried eyes, were they under some kind of control they thought. They had no idea that the force that pushed Markov to obey was the tiny inhibitor chip embedded in his hypothalamus. Any official of the SIA could control the agents just by calling them by their designation number. Troy now became very suspicious of the whole incident and ideas in his head began to run rampant. Markov regained his posture, also mystified he remained silent.

'Thank you Sadek, now listen all of you. Mr Jefferson here is planning to blow the lid on the SIA if we don't apprehend Frost soon, as I am sure you all agree that is not a situation we want to find ourselves in' Thorn now lowered his tone and posturing, he was a good man at heart but the mounting pressure from the Commission had changed him and his perception.

'You are all going to leave this room and when you return you will have Frost's head on a stick, are we understood?' Thorn finished without looking at his beloved team of agents, he was ashamed at what he had done. The room emptied without a sound and the solemn agents hung their heads in bewilderment. Troy kept his head high and glared intently at Thorn; he transmitted a thousand words of anger through his piercing eyes.

Once everyone left the room, Thorn called Troy back.

'Daryl I'd like a quick word my friend' Thorn shouted. Troy entered the room once again and Thorn motioned Jefferson to leave.

'A private word with my colleague Mr Jefferson If you don't mind' continued Thorn as he looked at Jefferson who was a little angered by this request.

'Of course General I'll be in the mess hall' Jefferson said begrudgingly as he left the room.

'Daryl I hope you can forgive me, my life's work is hanging in the balance and there is nothing I can do to stop it. I have an idea, our intelligence sources have uncovered something I think may be of some use to us. You remember Nikita Frost, Daryl's wife don't you? Well, I know they split up around a six months before Frosts little insurrection, but for some reason she has left the country on a flight to Tibet, we think she may be meeting with Frost' General Thorn's tone now returned to its usual calm now that Jefferson had left.

'Yes! Of course, why didn't I think of that, his Tibetan Ranch he must have been hiding there. I must get there before Nikita does or he'll kill her for sure, he won't even think about letting her live!' A grave look of concern fell upon Troy's face; his energy returned.

'Get going my friend, I'm sending the others to New York to look for clues, so you're on your own' General Thorn ended the conversation and Troy embarked on his new task.

The Mark One again graced the sky as she headed towards Tibet at full speed. Troy drifted off into a light sleep and jolted back to awareness, days without it were finally taking their toll. He activated autopilot and walked to the back of the chopper, he opened a small panel just above one of the rear seats and pulled out a packet of pills. He popped two and then returned to his console. The pills were an anti-tiredness creation from the SIA's chemists which the agents were given to prolong periods of non-sleep. They weren't harmful and worked perfectly, within ten minutes Troy felt full of energy and like he had slept 12 hours or more. Eventually Tibet was in sight and Troy slowed the chopper and lowered his altitude, the sun was just beginning to peek over the vast mountainous scenery of Tibet.

He took the Mark One almost to the ground and looked carefully for Frost's Tibetan ranch. Finally he spotted it, all the agents were wealthy and Frost used to spend his earnings on luxurious and exotic homes. Troy dropped the Mark One in the grounds of a huge ranch that resembled that of the deep south if a little better kept, it stood out like a neon sign in the peaceful beauty and snow plains of Tibet. He activated his armour and left the Mark One scanning for any signs of life or recent activity. Suddenly a huge lump of snow fell from the roof making Troy jump back with weapons armed and ready.

He calmed himself down when he saw it was a bird that had been disturbed; his nerves of steel had been reduced to cotton in recent days. He entered the house, his metallic feet echoed eerily on the wooden floor of Frost's hallway killing any sense of bravery that he just regained. The house looked untouched for months; there was certainly no sign of the hunted. After some time he concluded that Frost would not be visiting today; perhaps he was hatching a new plan to murder millions high in some forgotten part of the globe.

He walked into what had been his brother's study and pictures of Nikita, Frost's wife of one year covered the walls, she was gorgeous as Troy was again reminded. He suddenly realised that his twin brother had become a stranger to him. Perhaps he had neglected their relationship in recent times, he couldn't really remember the last time they shared a laugh. Frost had taken six months leave from the SIA only four months before the destruction in Hungary. Everyone thought nothing of it. Clearly Frost was becoming what he had developed into, a bloodthirsty psychopath. Had he turned more attention to his onetime best friend and brother then all of this could have somehow been avoided perhaps.

He picked up a small book at the side of Frost's advanced computer system; he opened it and read its contents.

'15th November 2031, have reached an incredible level with the Telescopic Combat Armour, it almost feels like a part of me, I am becoming a higher entity a higher state of humanity. There is nothing I cannot do' Troy read the last instalment of what seemed to be his brother's diary. He was beginning to piece together what had befallen his sibling, as he did he thought he heard a distant whisper yet coming from inside his armour. He jumped and dropped the diary onto the floor. Was he experiencing the first effects of the armour corrupting his mind like Frost had many months ago? Was he about to fall victim to this mighty alien technology just like his brother? He dismissed his thoughts as paranoia and tried to regain his focus without success.

He deactivated the armour, what he experienced frightened him a great deal. He turned to look out of the window and there before him stood Frost. Had he crept silently into the room, maybe he had always been there, he did not know what Frost was capable of now. Troy jumped out of his skin and motioned for his belt once more but it was a pointless move as Frost had a powerful weapon aimed at his head. Troy noticed Frost's armour seemed a lot darker than his own he wondered if it was a result of the transformation that he had become a victim to.

'So we meet again my brother, I have something important to tell you Daryl and it's going to be hard for you to hear but you must listen carefully. I will deactivate my armour if you agree to talk with me, if you still feel the same way after I have spoken then I will understand and you can try and take me in. Can I trust you brother?' Arrin Frost's robotic voice echoed loudly through the house. Troy felt strange in the presence of this assassin whom he had spent nearly all his life with. He felt a kind of pity for Frost and decided he would co-operate.

'Ok Arrin, but no funny business or I will take you out!' Troy's voice sounded weak; this meeting was hard for him to deal with. Frost deactivated his armour and to Troy's astonishment the armour on his right arm did not deactivate.

'Janner was right! The armour is dangerous it's bonding with your body, you're turning into a monster' Troy looked horrified at his brothers blue arm; all his greatest fears had come true.

'Don't comment on things you know nothing about, you have no idea what I have become. I am the armour and the armour is me, I have evolved Daryl. You cannot stop evolution' Frost became angry and Troy caught a flash of blue in his brothers eyes; he truly was becoming a monster.

'Daryl you have to listen to me and listen well, it is vital. As I am sure you are aware, Nikita Frost worked at the Planetary Commission in the SIA department. She discovered that all eight of us have implanted in our brains a Disobedience Inhibitor Chip. I've been away from the SIA for so long because of this, they have kept us like animals Daryl you are no freer than a caged animal. Do you understand what I am saying brother?' Frost had somehow reverted back to his old self; his voice was no longer devoid of emotion. Maybe there was a shred of Frost left in there somewhere. Troy tried to look surprised; he thought that something was inside them all keeping them in line, but he still refused to believe it fully.

Troy placed a hand on a nearby table for support, Frost's words were hard to digest.

'You've gone mad and your talking shit. The SIA are our creators, our friends, they would not. They could not do that. You're lying, you're insane!' Troy's voice turned into a pitiful whimper as he finished his sentence. Frost knew that his brother was acting; Troy was not as naive as he was letting on.

'They can't control us like that, we're human beings! They don't control me' the once mighty Daryl Troy had been reduced to a feeble shadow of himself, not from Frost's dominating demeanour, but because he simply did not want to confront the possibility that he was being controlled constantly by his own family the SIA. In the SIA I trust he had always told himself before dangerous missions. His theology was pressure cracking at the seams.

'Quite the contrary my dear brother, they have a hold on you stronger than you can imagine. An intelligent device attached to your central nervous system, waiting to pounce whenever it feels the need. Tell me, have you never felt compelled to do as they say when they call you by designation?' Frost towered above his brother like a wolf upon its prey.

Troy was like putty in his hands. He began to whimper like a deranged prisoner no longer in control of his own destiny. After sometime as Frost looked down on him, he subconsciously accepted what his brother was saying.

'You believe me I can see it in your eyes. You handled it well Daryl, we are proud men we were specifically designed to be. That is why it is so hard to take on board, I was much worse than you my friend, when I found out' Frost had become like a gentle giant to Troy's weary mind, he finally decided to trust him.

Troy regained his posture and his integrity and once again held his head high.

'Why then does it not control you? How can it be so powerful if you have overcome it?' Troy asked wiping the spent tears off his face in a proud but defeated way.

'The problem is we don't know we have them! How can you stop something you know nothing about? When I found out I removed mine by simple extraction, they never thought it possible that we would ever find out about them'

'If you announce to your wrist communicator that you are aware of your Chip it will class you as a familiar and locate it for you. When I found out my hatred for the SIA began. They are liars and cowards, they have kept us like animals; slave to their every command. That is why I've rebelled. I only wish you could see what I have seen you would understand my actions' the strange blue glint re-appeared in Frost's eyes as he spoke.

'I understand your hatred I'm beginning to share it but why kill millions of people, innocent people. They had nothing to do with the SIA. Why not just overthrow the agency and carry on the good work we do?' Troy asked angrily.

'Daryl it's hard to dance with devil on your back' Frost replied with an evil smirk. He was obviously aware of the evil that had dominated his mind.

'I needed to make ripples to be heard and that's what I did. Humans are mere ripples to me now' He concluded his explanation of the worst atrocities mankind has ever seen. Troy somehow understood his rage and channelled it into his own.

'I don't get it. Why did they do it? Why the need to control us? I'm going to rip out Thorns lying tongue, the lying bastards, I'll rip out all their tongues!' Troy was getting angry and an evil look came across his face as he spoke.

'We will kill them Daryl all of them, come with me and together we will be the lords of this planet. We were genetically engineered, we are freaks of nature, but that is a good thing. We 're the next step in human evolution, five years from now thousands of human hybrids like ourselves will rule the planet and we will be their masters!'

Frost seemed to grow and the armour on his arm slowly began to swell a little and covered nearly all of it. Daryl thought of the possibility of joining his brother; the human will to be free filled every corner of his being; the freedom he thought he possessed had been false. He remembered some of the vivid dreams he had in the past, were they real? Had the SIA used him while he slept, to carry out the missions he thought were nothing more than dreams? He began to feel afraid and then the fear became anger.

He wanted blood. But suddenly the smell of the Hungarian wasteland filled his nose again and he remembered all the millions of faint life-signs in Kandahar, he remembered what his comrade had done. He focused and realised that joining Frost was a ridiculous fantasy that his brother had imagined a thousand times.

'Do you not see how wrong it is to kill millions just because you're angry with the SIA?' Troy wanted to know the deeper reasoning behind all the death and carnage.

'Don't you feel like this planet has gone stale Daryl? Eleven billion people now live here like parasites sucking the life from this great planet. It's time for a new evolution of mankind because this one is going nowhere' Frost had a plan and had clearly thought like this for quite some time.

'Well yeah, I know what you mean but it doesn't justify the level of death you've dealt out' Troy had discussed these thoughts and feelings with his brother from time to time but never thought he'd actually go through with the idea's he came out with.

'I didn't expect you to understand yet Daryl but in time you will, I'm certain of that'

'No Arrin I'll never turn my back on my own people, you've become a cold-blooded killer of millions and I cannot bear even to be near someone like you' Frost looked shocked as Troy dived out of the door as fast as lightening activating his armour as he did.

'Then you will die' Frost shouted angrily as he fired a shot of blue light from his weapon. The blast struck Daryl on his right arm and he yelled in agony as his armour began to cover his body. Frost broke out of the glass window behind him, activated his armour and ran off. Troy lifted himself up he was in obvious pain and it was noticeable even through his armour. He ran in pursuit of Frost; his right arm slumped against his blue chest.

Frost bounded away at high speed towards a nearby snow capped hill and Troy magnified it in his headpiece, he could see it was a quite well camouflaged bunker of some kind. Troy activated his scimitars, forgetting his arm was still pressed against his chest the curved silver blades shot out from his right forearm and pierced the armour, stabbing his arm deeply. He dropped to the floor in pain and once again he lifted himself, it was no use the blast had begun to take more effect on his upper arm. It was slowly working its way into his nerves as the weapon was intended to do. Frost now entered the Mark Two and was as good as free; he lifted the fine vessel out of the bunker and into the air, he fired holding gel onto the Mark One's rotors, rendering it immobile. Troy had just enough energy left in him to turn and look at his beloved helicopter. He forced his rapidly draining muscles to take him to the Mark One. He got within touching distance and then collapsed. The blue hulk of Troy was now powerless as he lay next to his helicopter, the morning sun gleaming off his armour like a shimmering star.

Troy opened his eyes; the sun was beginning to wane in its dark blue heaven. When he regained full vision, his view was now filled with a beautiful young lady, more beautiful even than the sun he thought still partially in a daze. He immediately took his attention away from all the green numbers and uninteresting facts that filled the headpiece of his armour. The lady was Nikita Frost, her bright blue eyes looked deep into Troy's even though he was still in his armour he could feel their warmth penetrating the TCA. He could not hear what she was saying because his hearing had not returned and nor had any of his motor function, for all she knew he could have been dead inside the tomb of his bodysuit. He had no way of letting her know he was alive. She tapped hard on his helmet and from what he could make out she was calling him Frost, perhaps she thought he was her ex-husband. He did the only thing he could and admired her beauty. Her hair was dark brown and long, it seemed to flow like the waves of a tranquil ocean. Her face was like that of an angel but sophisticated at the same time, he realised why Frost had been so mad for this woman but now his mind must have forgotten his love for her.

Suddenly he began to feel a twitch in his arms and rapidly his muscles started to return to normal function. He lifted his battered body and sat up, he deactivated his armour and blood began to trickle from his wounds, he looked up at Nikita and smiled.

'Daryl? Is it Daryl? I don't suppose Arrin's hair could have grown back that fast!' The young lady said with a fearful tone.

'Yes its Daryl, Arrin has just this minute parted my company sadly' Troy replied feeling a little worse for wear, or maybe it had something to do with the blast of energy he had just been subjected to.

'It's good to see you Daryl I thought I would find Arrin here, I haven't seen him for months and I've just lost my job at the Planetary Commission because of my links with him. Anyway there's plenty of time for stories, you look like your hurt pretty bad' Nikita said in an alarmed manner.

'If you could just go into the chopper there is a skin regeneration unit that will sort out the bleeding' Troy seemed to find even talking a chore.

'Arrin told me about those regeneration units. I wanted him to steal me one but that was when he began acting strange' given the situation Nikita seemed very calm and methodical.

'How was he able to talk to you about our technology? You're an unfamiliar' Troy replied.

'I'm a familiar I know all about you and the SIA, I worked for the Planetary Commission. I mean haven't you realised?'

'Realised what' He answered

'You just told me about it!' Nikita continued with a beaming smile as she entered the Mark One. Troy spotted his mistake and started to remember what Frost had told him about the chip inside his head.

They walked back to the house with the small device Nikita had just taken from the Mark One. The house seemed a lot more homely as soon as Nikita entered; there was a kind of energy that emanated from her with the force of a storm but the tenderness of a feather. They sat down and she tended to Troy's wounds. He showed her how to use the regenerator and explained how it worked.

'Basically it speeds up the healing process by a factor of a thousand, it can heal any part of the body in less than hour. It automatically finds the damaged tissue when it is placed in the right area. It also replenishes the genetic codes of the relevant area, so that the skin looks exactly the same as before; no scars!' Both Daryl and Nikita were getting on incredibly well, he had not known women could be so enjoyable to be around, he had never had the tenderness of a real mother and all the girls he knew were either shallow or uninteresting. He realised he had been picking the wrong girls all along. After an hour his wounds were healed and his energy had returned dramatically; just being around Nikita was medicine in itself.

She recalled how Frost changed from day to day and how he hadn't taken the news of the Inhibitors very well. Troy realised she could have been the main catalyst for Frost to turn evil but she was not to blame, how could she have known.

She told him about Frost's training gym where he had created holographic simulant's to practise his fighting skills on and how he had used the armour more and more.

'He used to train every day morning to night at one point. He would come and tell me how much he had advanced in combat skills and anticipation of a person's movement. He spoke of his armour as if it were his son. It used to bore the shit out of me if I'm honest!' Troy looked shocked at her language but he imagined the situation for a second and laughed, she sent a beaming smile back to him.

'Eventually all he thought about was the suit, he forgot about me and I went back to work. He never answered my calls, letters, emails I knew it was over. He seemed to get smarter as well somehow, ill show you his training gym it's incredible, the simulant's have actual mass if they hit you, you feel it!' she was obviously a little angry with Arrin but she still seemed to speak highly of him.

'Can I see this gym? We were taught a little about hologram manipulation by the SIA but even they hadn't got even close to creating a hologram with mass! He really has evolved, if only it were for the better!' Troy was in awe of the idea of such a training facility.

'Yes I'll take you just you rest a little while, would you like a drink?' The gorgeous lady in front of him asked.

'Yeah why not. I'll have the strongest thing you've got, you got any synthohol?' He asked.

'I'm afraid not, but I think we should still have a bottle of whiskey somewhere. I'll have a look. I was expecting you to ask for a cup of tea what with your accent!'

Troy was now fully revitalised the whiskey did its job perfectly and he lost the feeling of worry, he felt like nothing could touch him and his new friend in this Tibetan homestead. She took him to Frost's training gym deep underground. As Nikita flicked the switch hundreds of bright lights filled the huge room. Suddenly a figure appeared in front of them both and began to speak.

'Good evening Arrin, what program would you like to access?' The hologram looked incredibly lifelike. It was designed in Frost's likeness, which made Troy feel edgy. Perhaps the armour had made Frost vain as well as psychopathic he thought to himself. Nikita requested a combat program to the simulant. All of a sudden the room changed into an image of a dark slightly cramped room, it resembled a prison hallway, the kind that Troy had seen many a time on television.

'I'll be over here if you need me' Nikita said as she motioned towards a doorway and left the room. The images were incredibly lifelike in every way; he could almost smell the stale air. The image of Frost appeared again and asked what aggression level should be activated.

'Maximum' Troy said aggressively, activating his armour. From out of nowhere his mirror image appeared and kicked him with incredible power, sending him flying into the wall. As he picked himself up he saw the hologram made to look like one of his fellow agents in their armour.

He activated his wrist scimitars and began to fight gracefully with the imaginary enemy. Energy began to flow from every cell in his body, his rhythm was flawless and the computer controlling the simulant's actions was incapable of countering Troy's moves. He began to move so fast that his hands were barely visible; his armoured suit was working in complete harmony with his body. As he finally reached his peak he delivered a ferocious blow, knocking the simulant's head clean off. Troy let out a robotic roar as the hologram disappeared. He was angry again; the little fight he had just endured reminded him of what Frost had told him about the SIA. The next simulant appeared and before it could strike a sly blow Troy rammed his right fist into the blue robots chest, sending it flying across the room. The simulant regained its posture and ran towards Troy quickly, when it approached he jumped high into the air, as he flipped over gracefully he lashed out with his left scimitar and slashed off its arm. With only one arm the hologram attacked again but Troy was on a higher plane. He lashed out his left arm and the simulant again lost its head. He requested the game to end and suddenly the room returned to its former glory. Nikita joined him and they headed back up to the house; he was now fully confident of his abilities. Frost's days were numbered.

The lonely ranch in its harsh but picturesque surroundings seemed timeless. He felt that time had truly stopped, that his mission could wait and time would again return to normal only if he left its four walls. He thought this so vividly that when he checked his communicator for the date and time he was almost shocked to find that time was actually passing as it had always done. He glanced out of the window of his room catching the last glimpse of night time as the sun was again preparing to warm the world. He recalled the previous day, why had Frost not killed him he wondered; perhaps he still had something up his sleeve. He recalled the previous night and his stomach seemed to fill with butterflies. He recalled Nikita's face in his mind's eye, the microcomputer implants that all the agents had, gave them a crystal clear photographic memory. He remembered all be it shakily, that he and Nikita had finished off the bottle of whiskey. He remembered that they had not experienced a single silent moment; he felt they had developed a strong bond in just one day. He recalled that she had dumped him in this room though he did not know what time it had been, anti-sleep pills and alcohol did not mix. He looked down at his beloved Mark One and saw that it was covered in holding gel; he hadn't noticed it the day before.

Eventually he got to work on removing the gel that had encompassed the helicopter, using a diamond cutter he had found in Frost's gym, it melted quickly and ran down into the snow, his beloved Mark One was free once again.

'Good morning Mr how's your head today?' He was startled by Nikita's presence, creeping up behind him without his knowing, his hearing was usually acute but the howling wind of the Tibetan plains was muffling his ears.

'I feel like there's small man with a big hammer banging the shit out of my head' he answered as he turned to see Nikita in her dressing-gown. She seemed in awe of something when she looked at him. She smiled shyly and walked back into the house. Even with his lack of knowledge for women he could feel her affectionate feelings towards him; the butterflies in his stomach returned with a vengeance.

He finished the repairs on the Mark One and returned to the house. He made for the kitchen where Nikita was preparing something that smelled great. As he got nearer he saw she was preparing an English breakfast, she brought the ingredients with her. Perhaps she intended to stay at the ranch for a while and bask in old memories, perhaps she wanted to temp Frost back with a mean breakfast, either way it was Troy's feast today.

'Something smells good! You're quite a talented lady aren't you!' Troy said as he entered the kitchen. The smell reminded him of his days in England when he spied on Mohammed Jaffar's son who was in university there under a false name.

'Well the proof of the pudding is in the eating as they say' she said bashfully.

Troy did something that he could not resist; he put his arms around her and kissed her.

'How about we take a little holiday for a couple of days, I'll take you to some of my favourite places'

'I'd love that' she responded bashfully.

### Chapter Eleven

The Mark One thundered up into the mountains hugging the landscape as it rose high into the winter sky. Wisps of snow blew out like a long white veil as Troy piloted the elegant vessel. He decided to take it easy and travel at cruising speed, a mild six thousand kilometres per hour.

'Come and look at the view its spectacular!'

Nikita was rummaging through her bag checking she had not forgotten her toothbrush or something just as trivial.

'I know but I've seen it all before, I used to live here you know and Arrin sometimes brought the Mark Four, which as I gather was no different from this one' Nikita was not at all impressed by the Mark One she felt she had seen it all before.

'You'll be in serious trouble for talking like that if she hears you, the Mark One is the finest of all the Mark Class helicopters' with that Nikita sat at Troy's side and placed her hand on his as he steered and guided the mighty helicopter.

'Where are we going then Mr secretive? I can't stand surprises!'

'You won't get round me that easily lady! It's a secret but one you will like I assure you. Mind you I hope you brought some warm clothes because it does tend to get a little cold at times'

The Mark One was in her element, smoothly following the contours of the land at a comfortable pace.

'Arrin told me the Mark Class helicopters can submerge below water and still travel at high speed was he telling the truth?' Nikita asked Troy.

'Yes they can would you like to see the bottom of the ocean?' He said in an excited tone.

'I would love to!' She finished. The Mark One increased speed and changed from its previous western heading to a southward heading. Still only two hundred metres from ground level the helicopter took hardly any time in finding its Mediterranean destination. The craft shook for a second on its entry into the water, prompting Nikita to grasp Troy's hand once again. Down the vessel went maintaining its speed, the rotors retracted and propulsion engaged from the rear engines. Finally he pressed one of the many grey buttons on his control console and the vessel slowed down rapidly sending alarm lights flashing. The forward view was pitch black, for all Nikita knew there could have been a whale looking in, they could see nothing. Nikita was unmoved by the jet-black environment that Troy was showing her and she looked at him as if he were insane. Suddenly the Mark One's flashlights illuminated the view. Nikita sat back at the astounding sight, a vast array of colourful minute sea life and tiny plumes that resembled miniature volcanoes.

Nikita at that moment realised they had only just stopped short of the sea floor. Was it luck or precision she thought? She looked at Daryl Troy cleverly working the controls at lightening pace and her question was answered. Troy spent some time explaining the environment they were now looking at, an environment that only a handful of humans had ever seen. Nikita looked upon Troy with incredulity; she was amazed his knowledge was so vast. She remembered how her husband had never paid the same attention to detail.

Finally when they had admired the ocean floor for long enough Troy once again guided the Mark One up to the shallows and eventually into the sky once again. He regained the previous speed and found that what they had just seen stirred an inquisitive cord in Nikita.

'So explain some of the technology of the Mark One for me, once Arrin was able to tell me about it all he lost interest and became more interested in his armour!'

'Let's start with how and why the hull material on these helicopters is invulnerable to any weapons even weapons of another Mark Class helicopter' Nikita obviously knew the basics.

'The hull of a Mark Class helicopter is primarily made from Americium, which was found on the hull of the Roswell UFO. I don't know if you were aware but the UFO was around fifty metres long, its height in the centre of the disc was thirty metres, this gave the SIA a lot of material to work from. I believe eighty percent of it has now been used' she sat forward and looked genuinely interested in what he was saying.

'We still have no idea where it came from, like which planet or even which galaxy I guess but the materials that were found have never been found anywhere on Earth or beyond, to this date anyway. The material has such a powerful magnetic field which strengthens the material by vast amounts. The scientists at the SIA tell me the material could withstand entering the Suns Coronosphere which reaches in excess of a million degree's c' obviously never been tested but I'd say they're right'

'The material really is that strong. When bombarded with neutrino emissions at an extreme level Americium will mould however or where ever you want it to, that's how the doors work on these vessels, the material is bombarded with neutrinos in the relevant areas then they can be controlled by plasma electronics' Troy seemed very wise for his years as he spoke to Nikita, he reminded her of a favourite teacher she had except Troy was much more attractive and youthful she thought.

'Obviously the material is at risk from attack by someone hitting it with neutrino emissions, imagine this helicopter slowly merging into a strange shape as it flew. This is where Dymantium Crystal comes in .The Americium is coated with Dymantium Crystal, the scientists found a great hoard of it in liquid form inside the UFO. We found that it was liquid until blasted with tachyon rays, after that it solidified and could not be penetrated or remoulded whatsoever not by high temperature or by any other method we tried and we have tried them all' her eyes looked deep in concentration as he continued with his science spiel.

'We believe it to be the diamond equivalent of the Alien species the UFO belonged to i.e. their strongest substance. Janner has however posed the theory that a laser directed through a lump of Dymantium Crystal could damage another object made from the same substance. But it is just a theory' Troy continued he was beginning to enjoy his little science lesson. As he spoke the Mark One glided across the Earth peacefully and methodically as its technological complexities were revealed.

'So how does it travel at such speed, I know it can do Thirty Thousand Kph at top speed, but how come the fastest aircraft us humans have produced can only manage ten Thousand?' Nikita was well versed in technology of all kinds although it had been her job at the Planetary Commission up until recent days.

'Just for the record, I've pushed Thirty Six Thousand Kph out of the Mark One' He answered smiling.

'Mankind not as advanced as the Aliens who previously owned the UFO, they are ahead of us by leaps and bounds. Their space propulsion system seemed to have exploded killing the crew but leaving the shell of the vessel intact so we'll never know how they got to Earth or how long it took them. However their fusion drive was functional and we incorporate that technology into these helicopters. You must know what fusion energy is because we use it now for electrical power' She nodded intently at him.

'Well the fusion drive delivers incalculable amounts of energy when it reaches its peak performance at ninety eight percent efficiency. That's a full ninety eight percent of all the matter put in being transformed into useable energy, an incredible feet of engineering. That energy can then be thrust out with phenomenal propulsion as a result'

'We also have ion drives onboard that can propel our choppers at one tenth the speed of light, but they can only be used extra terrestrially due to the radiation it gives off' Troy

continued. At this Nikita stooped forward in awe.

'You mean you can travel into space? Arrin never told me that!' She said energetically.

'Yes, we prevented the 'World Ending Meteorite' of 2012, which was our first mission. We entered orbit around it and bombarded it with high yield nucleonic pulses, all four of the Mark Class Choppers were used. That is how it eventually fell to Earth as thousands of smaller pieces' a gleam of pride filled his eyes as he remembered the halcyon days of years ago.

'You guys did that? Why does the Planetary Commission not know this?' Nikita thought she knew all of what the SIA had done or accomplished.

'We were selective in what we told your bureaucratic organisation and with good reason' Troy had an obvious dislike for the Planetary Commission.

'I understand. So tell me about the armour is it made from Americium and Dymantium?' She no longer cared for her old job; it showed as she carried on the conversation.

'The TCA units are made from another material that we found. It was moulded in the distorted shape of small humanoids and the scientists believed them to be space suits. The material was named Orgaricium because it was similar to Americium in many ways except for a few vital points. The material of the space suits were originally solid and grey in appearance, however when the suits were charged with a constant flow of neutrinos they became solid but allowed free movement for the wearer'

'That's why the armour requires so much energy, because of the vast amount needed to keep the material flowing with neutrinos. Testing revealed how the material actively tried to bond with organic matter and work in harmony with it. The scientists revealed that prolonged use by the same organic material results in the armour trying to bond to the host wearer. The material of the finished TCA wasn't coated in Dymantium Crystal because of its solid properties. I mean you'd activate it then you'd be a statue for the rest if your life!' Troy finished.

Nikita sat back in her chair and collated all the data her ears had just absorbed.

'Amazing it really is! So why didn't the SIA share all this knowledge? I mean all these scientific advances and especially the medical breakthroughs; why not let the rest of the world in on it? The world would be such a better place, our standard of life would increase tenfold' She continued her inquisitive questioning.

'Well unfortunately I do not decide such matters, but imagine if all this technology were released, do you honestly think life would be better? The power this technology gives us can and would corrupt everyone who has access to it. Take your husband, my best friend and brother, he was one of the finest people I know and now he's a mass murderer corrupted by power and a delusional ideal'

'I 'm starting to come round to the possibility that the Alien material is not the evil force here; it's human weakness to the gift of absolute power. I don't think the human mind is ready for what this technology can give; it is no more Frost's fault than it is the Alien material's fault for corrupting his mind. It's just a bad mix of civilizations that should never have met' Troy again looked wise and intelligent as he finished his philosophy on the current situation.

'That's why Arrin needs to be stopped before he wipes out all life on Earth. Though it may mean my life as well as his' His face changed to one of grave foretelling, a hundred blackened skies could be seen in his eyes as he realised his fate. A flash on his computer terminal broke the tense atmosphere much to his relief.

'Excellent we're here!' Troy announced, perking up dramatically. The Mark One dropped to near ground level and at the same time reduced its speed. The super chopper had delivered its occupants safely as always, to the Lake District in England. Troy took her down in a remote area of forest hemmed in by trees but for one side. He made sure the forward view was of the beautiful countryside. Nikita was surprised at his choice but at the same time was amazed at the winter beauty of the snow-capped mountains and the ice-covered lakes as she looked through the viewer.

It was now late January and the English winter was harsh though it restrained no beauty.

'This is incredible Daryl I've read about this part of England and indeed heard a great many things about it but I had no idea it would be so picturesque and wonderful!' Nikita said as she left the helicopter with awestruck eyes like a young child opening a long anticipated Christmas present. Troy just smiled he knew she would like it as much as he did. For a moment or two they stood in awe. Lakes that seemed to run on forever, bare, snow covered trees circled the lakes like guardians of nature. Something sweet but fresh filled the air; birds sang optimistic tunes. Troy knew that he must succeed, he must triumph over Frost or the entire world he loved so much would perish. They walked back to the Mark One and behind the super chopper was a grand Edwardian style house with huge windows facing the wonderful scenery.

'This is my Tibetan ranch' announced Troy proudly.

Nikita was awestruck by the beauty of the house and its surroundings, so much so she was nearly overcome with marvel. Troy made them both a traditional English cup of tea and they continued the seamless conversation they initiated the first time they met. They sat in the main room of the house; it was covered in antique furniture and olden day paraphernalia. It was almost like being in a time warp; stuck in the past, although it was incredibly homely. The striking view captivated one's vision. It was still early Troy made it 10:30 local time on his Wrist Communicator. The SIA wrist Communicator was designed to change time zone according to its position via the Integral Grid.

'I know a great place for food and drink I think you'll like it, mind you its pretty oldie worldy and they don't stock Synthohol!' Troy said with a smile. He got up and walked to the door at the rear of the room.

'I'm just going to check on my baby, back in five' He said as he left the room. Nikita thought this very strange, he didn't have children did he? Then she realised how dim the thought was, of course he had no children, she would have know.

'She's still in one piece and purring like a wildcat waiting to pounce' Troy said joyfully. The comment only served to increase Nikita's curiosity.

'What on Earth are you talking about Daryl!' She exclaimed.

'My wonderful motorbike, touched up with a little SIA ingenuity!' Daryl was clearly proud of his vehicle that had been in storage for God only knows how long.

'Oh right and I suppose you want me to join you on it?' Nikita said in a concerned tone.

'I'd expect nothing less young lady!' He finished motioning her towards the door he come in from.

Eagerly she waited on the front porch of Troy's magnificent summer dwelling, looking in anticipation at the garage door. Finally the door opened and out came Troy straddling a large motorcycle. She knew it was motocross style, but she had no idea what make or more to the point if it had a make at all.

'My older brother had one of these, it's a crosser, am I right?'

'Actually it's an Enduro but you were close!' Troy said shrewdly as Nikita sat on the back and made herself comfortable. He revved the engine and it seemed to purr gracefully like a tamed beast. When her arms were securely around his waist Troy sped off into a wide country lane hemmed in by ominous snow covered trees.

The bike hugged the terrain perfectly and sped around corners seeming to defy the laws of gravity. Nikita held on tight and the more she did, the more Troy pushed his favourite weapon of joy.

Wind blasted their helmets and this gave Nikita a serious feeling of speed, she looked down at the speedometer and she saw one hundred and seventy three displayed digitally. She recoiled and kept her eyes fixed forward, she thought she would leave the ride to Daryl; he seemed to know what he was doing. After what seemed like a long but enjoyable ride, Nikita found they had arrived in a quaint town she thought it may have been the small houses she had seen from Troy's window. Troy stopped the bike and they got off. They were now in front of a big building built by age-old stones each rounded and as big as a small boulder. If it were not for the modern vehicles that lined the roads, she would have believed they transported back to the past. She half expected to see a horse-drawn carriage of some kind come round the corner at any time.

They entered and sat at the bar, the inside was as olden-day as the front.

'Mr Troy! We haven't seen you since July! It is good to see you, is this the long-awaited bride?' the Barman clearly knew Daryl well and was happy to see him.

'No this is Nikita Frost she is my... friend!' Troy paused as he spoke and Nikita looked at him and laughed quaintly.

'Anyway my old friend, it is also good to see you! Two pints of your famous ale please!' Troy said joining in the great atmosphere of the homely pub.

'Nice to meet such a beautiful young lady my name is Howard Smithson, but you can call me Smithy, all my friends do!' He said while pulling them two of his famous pints. Nikita wasn't really keen on Lager but perhaps it was overly special she thought.

'This is surprisingly nice! I've never liked beer it usually has a chemical taste, but this is almost exquisite'

Troy motioned to hand over some European money but the Barman Refused. They sat in the front of a huge window at the front of the room that looked over the frosty lake. Troy eased his mind into the relaxation only this place could give him.

The warmth of the room and the strength of the drink wooed Daryl Troy into a realm of philosophy and he shared the contents of his now calm mind with Nikita.

'You know how time seems to pass quicker when you're having fun?' Troy asked Nikita.

'Yes and time passes slower when you are bored, what of it?' She said confused at this random statement.

'Well I believe that the human biological clock judges the passage of time from beats of the heart. When you're enjoying yourself, your heart is beating fast with excitement or movement and therefore the brain perceives that time is elapsing faster, because the heart is beating faster. And when you are bored your heart is a lot slower, the brain thinks time is passing slower. Well it's just an idea' He continued.

'That is true! That's amazing how did you come up with such a profound idea? I think I have read about that theory somewhere, is it called circadian rhythms or something like that, we touched on it in my old psychology lessons at college' Nikita was impressed by Troy's insight.

'Really? So my idea is backed by physical research! Great stuff!' He said laughing as the Barman caught their attention from the bar.

'I got that bloody Synthohol Daryl. Would you care for a couple? On the house of course'

'That would be excellent Smithy, bring 'em over!' Troy shouted back.

'I don't think I want one Daryl it's bad for the liver' Nikita said just after the Barman had brought them over.

'I mean they kill brain cells and I hate the idea of that, it worries me' She continued.

'Well let me tell you my theory on losing brain cells' He said smiling.

'Imagine the brain is a piece of rock and Synthohol and other things that kill brain cells are sculptors. As the sculptors chip away at the rock they care not for the pieces they chip away, for they are making a masterpiece. Think about it' He finished, proudly basking in his genetically enhanced view of the world as he sprayed the Synthohol into his arm.

'Ok then Daryl you have me persuaded. Where do you get these ideas?' She said as she too sprayed the Synthohol, almost instantly she felt a tingle down her spine and felt great, these won't be legal for long. She thought privately.

They exchanged many more ideas and philosophies and the alcohol flowed. The pub was eventually bustling with people, probably locals and they fitted in easily, joining in their stories and humour. Troy slipped into another world one where his troubles did not exist. If he hid away in this remote part of England could he disappear and forget the world? He knew it was folly and returned his mind to the last few days of peace he may ever know. Their hearts were full of joy and were beating fast, the time seemed to fly by as Troy had foreseen. When they'd had enough they moved on to the centre of the small town to fill their stomachs with more than just liquid. The Synthohol had worn off and they were both talking sense once again.

'Does it not worry you that Arrin will strike again? I mean he could do another Hungary anywhere in the world' Nikita said worriedly as they sat at the table laden with tasty food.

'I don't think he'll try anything like that for some time, he is up to something but there's no way of finding him even if I wanted to. He has made his ripples as he said'

'Tell me did he mention me at all when you saw him? I couldn't really care much for him anymore but it's quite hard to forget the two year's we spent together' Nikita could hold her feelings no longer.

'I don't think he can ever revert to old feelings Nikita, he is something else now something different. What I did see though were many pictures of you in his study and the times I saw him he would only speak of you. Though he may have changed, no-one can deny his love for you Nikita, no-one' she smiled and touched his hand, he said exactly the right thing just when it was needed.

They sat for hours and talked about anything they could think of, they were becoming more than just good friends. The sun began to set in its dark blue horizon and the optimistic birds sang no more as the night wore on.

'Come on lets go home my belly is going to burst!' Nikita said in a loving way to Troy. They left the restaurant and set off back for the house. Images of Frost's smirking face entered Troy's mind as he rode his beloved motorcycle. His rage welled up and the speed increased. Troy's mind was working faster than light as he took the rapid machine to full speed, nearly forgetting about his fragile passenger. Nikita held on for dear life, closed her eyes and hoped for the ride to end.

As they got off the bike Troy removed his helmet and Nikita saw his eyes, they were wider than the moon in the sky. Fire rippled through them, his steely gaze had become the embodiment of the wrath of Frost. She almost felt them burn her eyes, so much so she had to turn away. Troy realised his task once again, he was truly ready to match Frost in body and min, he regained his calm look transforming instantly.

'Sorry I got a little lost in anger there for a moment' He said sorrowfully to Nikita who was clearly shaken by what she had seen.

'Don't do that again, you reminded me of him then' She said tearfully.

'Of whom?'

'Of Arrin, he looked like that when he started to change, don't listen to the voice that consumed him' she finished as she walked into his arms. They headed into the house which was a welcome heat change from the freezing outdoors. Troy went to kitchen and poured them both drinks as a peace offering, although it wasn't needed she had already forgiven him.

The night wore on and tiredness gripped them both, although the chemistry between them gave them a new energy and zest for life. Troy now had something worthwhile to fight for.

'I'm going to find your room. I'm ready to go to bed but I'm not tired' she stood up and looked at Troy seductively.

'So I'll be upstairs' she continued, walking towards the spiral stairwell that looked incredibly out of place in Troy's timeless house. He knew what she was implying and he felt great warmth where the butterflies had been the previous day. It was the first time he had felt such feeling, all his other encounters were of lust. This one it seemed was love perhaps. He looked in the mirror above a burning fireplace and psyched himself, he was nervous but he was determined not to show it. He thought about his brother, Nikita was his ex-wife but he knew that Frost was warped beyond hope, uninterested in love and besides, they were facing the end of the world he concluded. He walked up the stairs double-checking he had reads the signs correctly in his mind. He opened the door of his modern looking bedroom, there she lay naked on his luxurious bed. Her body was incredibly slim with slight curves in all the right places, he had not noticed before; he could not help but notice now.

The sun rose from behind a picturesque horizon and gleamed off the water on the frozen lake before him as he sat on a small hillock in front of the Mark One, in complete awe. He was for the first time experiencing a new love for life, he was genuinely happy for the first time in months. He knew that the SIA would need a report very shortly; he also knew that his time to confront Frost was imminent. He did not worry about it like he had the previous day he had a new energy that gave him strength. Suddenly he heard a movement, jumped up and pulled a small weapon from inside his armour-plated jacket. It was Nikita, his finely tuned senses had alerted him to a presence and his abilities were as sharp as ever. He returned his gun to its holder and walked to greet Nikita.

'Good morning! A little jumpy aren't we? 'Nikita said chuckling.

'Sorry, I need to be on top form for the road ahead' He replied apologetically. They made for the house and began to pack their bags; their little break was at an end, but their newly kindled love was certainly not. They kissed and cuddled in front of the television for a few hours, they did not wish to part though it was inevitable as well they knew.

'American and British Intelligence have today revealed they are close to finding the mysterious terrorist that has, in recent days, plunged the world into sheer horror. It's been well over a week since the atrocities witnessed in Hungary. Some believe he's an Alien being or even a robot but until this psychotic assassin is caught we will continue to live in the fear that we will be next' the news reader on Troy's dusty flat screen television looked scared as he gave his report.

'Close to finding him! Ha! Can you believe they are saying that?' Troy said sarcastically.

They walked reluctantly to the Mark One for the homeward journey. Troy activated the rotors and they began to pound the air; slicing it into wisps.

'Hang on, the sensors are picking up a presence in the house I better go check it out' He said as he tapped away on the console.

'Be careful you don't know who it might be!' she said, obviously worried.

'Don't worry it's probably Smithy, he has a key' Replied Troy reassuringly. He left the chopper and ducked under the thundering rotors. As he approached the house pat the wooded area to his left, he felt uneasy as though he were being watched.

Suddenly he was surrounded by four heavy built men dressed in black suits. It was too late to reach for his communicator they were upon him with weapons raised and aimed.

'Don't move! So you are human after all though your technology is pretty exotic. I'd love to know where you got it!' another agent stepped forward with a small handgun pointing at Troy's head, the very people he and his comrades had successfully evaded for years had finally caught up with him.

'How on Earth did you buffoons find me? You need to take a sideline fella's. I'm the only person that can stop agent Frost' Troy said confidently.

'We caught you flying below radar through Italy yesterday, we knew your heading so it was only a matter of time before the Integral Grid located your vessel visually. Maybe you should have hidden it better; you could have been free now to carry out more terrorist attacks!' the agent replied equally as confidently in a well-spoken English accent.

Troy suddenly became aware of many more armed agents taking aim on his captured body.

'Oh yes I mustn't forget the pleasantries! I am Special Agent John Sloan of the British Intelligence Division Six. You are coming with us to stand trial for the atrocities you stand accused of. If you make any movement at all you will be killed instantly' Sloan announced with equal confidence.

'Did your organisation really think they would go unnoticed? Anonymous access to the Integral Grid, honestly! It was just a matter of time before we found you out. I will personally make you pay for what you have done' Sloan continued as Troy was beginning to tire of his 'capture'. Suddenly he pulled the four men holding his arms into each other and dropped to the ground underneath them, shielding him from gunfire while he activated the armour. The agents around the perimeter struggled frantically to find Troy in their cross hairs, they could not hit the target and bullets shot past Troy's unprotected head.

After a few seconds he was covered in his blue armour. He rose slowly as if lifted by an unseen hand; he was using his armours magnetic force system. Bullets pinged and deflected off his invincible body as he began to walk slowly and methodically toward the Mark One, taking no heed of the helpless agents around him. As he approached the mighty chopper a group of agents grappled his arms to hold him.

'Computer prepare to purge a full power magnetic pulse on my command' Troy ordered to his computer in his headpiece as the agents frantically tried to hold him down.

'Now' Troy commanded as a dull static noise filled the air like that of oncoming thunder. The agents surrounding him were thrown into the trees violently. Troy stepped inside the Mark One, deactivated his armour and took the chopper high into the air.

'I was so worried, I didn't know what to do Daryl!' Nikita said as he lifted the Mark One out of harm's way.

'You did the right thing and waited, there was no way they would have taken me in. It seems I've underestimated them though, i didn't expect that!' Troy said with a smile.

The Mark One carried them safely without incident and eventually Tibet was again in sight although Nikita wished it would never arrive. Troy had travelled at top altitude and speed, that way the Integral Grid had no chance of spotting them. They touched down in the frostbitten lands of Tibet and they got out of the chopper.

'I wish you didn't have to do this, I will pray every day that you come back safely' Nikita said as she kissed Troy on the lips.

'I can't promise anything but I will do my best. I have something to work for now!' He answered with a return kiss on Nikita's lips. She watched the Mark One rise gracefully and dart off into the distance; it gained height and then seemed to vanish instantly into a dark Tibetan sky.

### Chapter Twelve

The jet black Mark Two slithered at high speed across the wind driven snow plains of Alaska carrying the renegade assassin to his next port of call. His eyes fixed on the view screen; Frost was focused on the task he was so eagerly waiting to accomplish. His next undertaking had two main functions, revenge and supplies for the final onslaught. The image on the view screen was enhanced as he worked the control panel slowly and methodically without looking at it. The image was of SIA Central Command and he glared at it with evil eyes. All his anger, all of his focus was bent on his old masters. They had no control over him now, he was their worst nightmare. The Mark Two skulked around the snow-hidden base at high altitude and Frost emerged from her side with his armour activated. As he fell to the ground he thought of his old commanders and former friends, they had no idea of the oncoming onslaught.

As ground level got closer he activated the magnetic repulsion system that was part of his armour, armour that was rapidly becoming a part of his body. He slowed down gradually until he landed softly on his metallic feet. The Mark Two turned slowly and moved away from view, the SIA could not detect it but if it were seen it would spoil the surprise. Frost stood for a moment and accessed the SIA's schematics on his internal implant, he wanted the stealthiest entrance to his old home from home. Frost was no longer a creature of nature he was a cold calculating mix of man and machine. How fitting that the technology man had blindly manipulated was now a threat to all life on Earth. He motioned to an emergency exit at the rear and placed his blue hand on a terminal panel, he accessed the base computer system. He worked his magic. Virus after ingenious virus flooded the SIA's 'impenetrable' computer system, terminals shut down, doors opened and closed and lights flickered inside the high-tech control rooms. The door in front of Frost that was usually alarmed and magnetically locked was now putty in his hands. With a powerful kick the four inch door ripped from the frame and smashed against the wall opposite. Frost entered and wound his way invisibly into the dark recesses of the secret facility.

The central control room of the SIA was its very nerve centre, advanced computers with cunning operators worked away keeping abreast of current affairs and anything of interest globally. The inhabitants had become accustomed to safety and knew, or thought they knew it was completely safe. Suddenly all systems were down and the whole facility panicked as the lights fluctuated.

'Control room this is General Thorn, what the hell is going on?'

'We think it's some kind of computer virus it originated from just outside the base, could just be nothing but I wouldn't bet on it' Dr Janner replied, he was already down there.

General Thorn entered the control room and immediately accessed the mainframe.

'Yes we seem to have a nice little collection of super viruses that have wiped out just about every system we have. I would think we have an intruder Janner, take a few men and have a look around, protect the classified hanger at all costs'

Suddenly the base shook ferociously as the Mark Two laid down its first barrage of high power Taser beams. Thorn brought up the perimeter surveillance systems after much deliberation and searched for the attacker.

'It's the Mark Two. It's Frost! Get me agent Sadek immediately' Thorn was now aware of the inevitable assault and wanted backup. Ground zero of the base was now in roaring flames, deep underground the corridors of the main SIA stronghold were being rocked ferociously as the Mark Two kept up its solitary assault. The Mark Class Helicopters were capable of automated assault on any decided target, they were smart enough to invent strategies and tactics independently.

Thorn accessed the defence system after some time. A great beam of green light filled the black of the Alaskan winter night and struck the Mark Two violently, sending it plummeting to the ground. The Mark Two slammed into the snow and was rendered out of action temporarily, the power of the blast had knocked out some major systems.

'Sadek get your team back to base Frost is here and he's attac...' the general managed to reach Sadek and his task force but was suddenly cut off.

'Too late Thorn my old friend I'm already here and you are a dead man. It was you who created me and now I have become the physical manifestation of all your darkest nightmares' Frost entered the room and cut off all communications. He spoke in the robotic tone of his armour which was becoming darker by the day.

'Just give me one decent reason for all this Arrin you owe me at least that' Thorn said with a tremble to his voice.

'I have a problem with the human race, it's had its chance and I 'm the next phase of our evolution, I have seen it in dreams and I feel it inside. It's like a presence but a benign one that has shown me so much more than I have ever imagined. I've seen the future Thorn and it's a great one, no more petty war or the division of nations just the exploration of space and a greater understanding of the universe'

'You sound like you've been smoking crack Arrin seriously, that is the ramblings of a mad man'

'I really don't expect you to understand Thorn you're generation old school, the ones who fucked this planet well before I did. Mankind must progress before we stagnate in this fishbowl we call Earth' Thorn looked at Frost in a different light for a second before reverting back to his usual pre-programmed thoughts and announcing his own theory.

'You're angry Arrin, you're angry at us for trying to control you and overusing the armour has polluted your mind, perhaps a power that humans aren't yet ready for but that doesn't mean that everyone should die. Help to usher in a new era and change the world' Thorn was old school and humanity was by far his greatest attribute but it was futile. A flash of red flickered in Frost's eye and even through the armour Thorn could tell he was raging.

'I'm afraid General there is a time bomb ticking away at the foundations of every culture on this planet and your next in line'

'Fuck you Frost' Thorn shouted and ran at the menacing figure with sheer courage and aggression. Thorn was not a small man but he resembled a dwarf in Frosts towering shadow. He feebly began to punch at Frost's invulnerable body suit. Two curved blades appeared slowly from Frost's right arm. The petrified computer technicians behind their terminals gasped synonymously as if it were rehearsed as his silver scimitars appeared from the back of their General's head. Blood ran down Thorns back, he went limp and fell to the ground as Frost retracted the ominous blades from his old master. He smiled intensely inside his headpiece.

Of all the people he hated in the world that he had in recent days eliminated, Thorn was his finest kill. He took no heed of the other in the room who were quaking visibly with fear and walked toward the main computer terminal. One of the technicians started to whimper uncontrollably, Frost's arm lifted faster than light and a green beam shot from his wrist penetrating the terrified woman's head and she was silenced. The act did not bother him at all but the room fell deadly silent. He was looking for something he had always wanted to find, he had tried before but Thorn was the only person who had access to such files. This time however the security had been eliminated and all the files were at his mercy. He downloaded the file he was looking for into his armour's memory bank and left the room.

His movements were swift and cleverly placed as he walked through the corridors of the facility he had practically grown up in. As he motioned towards a door at the end of the hallway his eye caught something. There were eight framed pictures of young men; they were of course himself and his old comrades. For a split second the old Frost resurfaced and he felt a little sad that it had all gone so wrong, if only the SIA had not sought to control them in such totalitarian ways maybe things could have been different.

A piercing shrill scream inside his head shut out the old Frost again and he didn't recognise the people in the pictures, they were nothing to him now. He dismissed the past few moments as a figment of his imagination. He carried on his way to the door and entered the SIA's weapons storage facility and got to work. Blissfully unaware of the situation that was unfolding thousands of miles away in Alaska, Troy was in a lucid daydream of the past few days he had spent with Nikita. This daydream was shattered however by Sadek's frantic voice.

'Daryl, Frost's attacking SIA HQ, Thorn's transmission was cut short and I fear we may be too late. We should arrive there in fifteen, get yourself there' Sadek said frenetically to a shocked Daryl Troy.

He thought for a moment and a small voice in his head wanted them to die, but he overcame it he was not Arrin Frost and he was no cold-blooded killer.

'Computer SIA Headquarters, maximum speed' Troy barked to the computer system. The Mark One retracted rotors and engaged the stability cons at either side, it looked slightly triangular as it pushed out thirty six thousand Kph and rocketed toward the besieged base.

'No computer I said TOP speed!' he demanded and pushed for more thrust from the already stressed fusion drive. The darkness of the super chopper started to shake mildly as warning lights and alarms filled the air. Troy took no heed, he needed to get there as quick as possible.

Frost emerged from the remnants of the base and ordered the Mark Two to his co-ordinates she was finally back in operation after the blast from the base. He dropped a metallic ball identical to the one he unleashed on Hungary and ran for the Mark Two. The side door opened and Frost grasped the side as it sped off at high speed, the dark blue menace held on tightly. In hot pursuit the Mark Three had arrived and Frost's vessel was in sight. Just as Sadek and his team were in firing range the Nucleonic pulse their prey had unleashed suddenly engulfed them. The area lit up brighter than the sun and the blast destroyed everything in the area. The Mark Three was directly above as it erupted and was thrown violently to the ground a few miles away. The helpless vessel rolled and rolled with the force of the shockwave and finally came to rest. Markov, Kym and Sadek struggled back to their seats and carried on the pursuit. The Mark Three rose back into the air amidst the debris and destruction, which had only a few moments ago been their headquarters.

The pursuing agents had recovered and were now directly behind the Mark Two. Sadek and his team closed in on the runaway assassin they had been pursuing for days and whom had outwitted them at every turn. Sadek was determined that was not going to happen today as he brought the Mark Thee into firing range. A barrage of Taser beams from its pursuer suddenly pummelled the Mark Two. Frost manoeuvred his helicopter with great guile, evading the attacks from Sadek's team. Sadek took his vessel above the Mark Two and fired a low yield Nucleonic pulse directly at it. Just in time Frost evaded the powerful weapon and it impacted on the ground devastating the area. Frost decided it was time to finish his final task for the day and dropped the super chopper to the snowy ground below.

'He's landed directly below us Sadek, do you think it's a trap of some kind?' Kym said to his team leader.

'I don't think he can be trusted at all but let's go down and see what he wants, he can't harm us with the armour activated' Sadek responded and dropped the Mark Three one hundred metres from Frost.

He stood motionless, glaring at the Mark Three with contempt as its operators got out the side, their armour activated. They stood staring back at their old friend and fellow agent with equal hatred. Kym stood to the right of Sadek and Markov was to his left, Sadek activated his Wrist scimitars, Markov and Kym charged their powerful handguns. Markov and Kym stood slightly behind the fearsome looking Sadek with their weapons aimed for Frost's head as they approached their dangerous adversary. None of them felt fear; their intense training of years ago was in full swing. How could Frost possibly escape now with three armoured SIA agents in his wake, surely he was a dead man. Frost walked briskly toward them with not a care in the world as he did so he activated his scimitars slowly to induce fear in his attackers.

As Frost got closer Markov and Kym motioned sideways with their sights directed on the approaching assassin. Like cautious armed police they flanked Sadek who was clearly ready to spill blood, if Frost even had blood now. Perhaps alien fluids now filled his veins Sadek thought. Frost was now within twenty metres of them, he stopped and tapped his left wrist. Sadek and Kym began firing frantically but the weapons did not even knock Frost back a millimetre, the blasts just deflected off his dark armour. Suddenly Markov and Kym's armour began to deactivate, they jumped back shocked at what was happening. They would be exposed to Frost now, how did he do it they wondered. Both agents fell to the ground as their legs scrambled to push them further away from the huge dark menace. Sadek looked down at them and dropped his guard in sheer horror.

'How did you do that' Sadek shouted to Frost in his robotic voice.

'I am capable of a great many things that you have never even dreamed about. I've developed a device that can deactivate the TCA leaving you like sitting duck's' Frost answered in a deeper robotic tone.

'Oh that's just fucking brilliant!' Sadek answered as two weapons similar to Kym and Markov's emerged from Frost's dark blue thighs. With one in each hand he aimed them at the defenceless agents who were now running as fast as they could. They headed for the Mark Three but as they did the Mark Two jetted over and fired a powerful Taser into their only sanctuary. The blast entered the door and erupted the fusion drive, the super chopper was destroyed in a mighty blast which threw the helpless agents clear into the air. Only the shell of the Mark four remained. Markov and Kym landed painfully back on the snow covered ground. They got up again and tried to run although both were now hobbling; there was no-where to run and certainly nowhere to hide. Two bolts of thick green light fired from Frost's guns and virtually dissolved the fleeing agent's heads.

Their lifeless inanimate bodies dropped to the ground and looked weak and pitiful. Now there were only three of the original eight agents of the SIA. Their leader dead, their Headquarters destroyed. What hope did mankind have now, everyone on Earth a mere distraction to the now unstoppable Frost. The planet as it had been for billions of years was about to change beyond all recognition. Thousands of new beings genetically enhanced and physically connected to alien material, dominating every corner of the planet. Frost's incredulous plan was now coming to fruition and there was nothing in his way, he had the material to kill every last living thing stolen from his old home. Sadek regained his guard, his attack was probably useless but he had no choice.

Frost left Sadek's armour activated, he wanted to finish him fair and square.

'A fight to the death then, you never liked me did you? Now is your chance to kill me, if you can that is you monster' Sadek said.

'Adya Sadek Designation 113, Ambassador for the Specialist Intelligence Agency, Designed Leader of men. All your honourable titles are about to become nothing but history'

Sadek lifted his scimitars and charged for Frost. With a swiping action Frost knocked Sadek to the ground violently. He rolled and then threw himself back onto his feet regaining his stance.

'I didn't even see him move how the hell can I defeat him!' Sadek said to himself inside his headpiece. He again ran at Frost, stopped short and jabbed with his right scimitar, Frost motioned to block the attack but it was merely a distraction as Sadek quickly jabbed his left scimitar deep into Frost's abdomen. Frost did not flinch he intended to show Sadek that he was invincible even to the wrist scimitars. He unleashed a magnetic pulse sending Sadek flying into the shell of the once mighty Mark Three. He did not even wish to regain his fighting stance, what use was it? Frost was truly unstoppable.

Eventually he got up, his previous move was cunning but it was a feeble attempt against this adversary. Frost ran at Sadek and began slashing at him as the scared young agent defended himself with his scimitars. Their hands moved rapidly, gradually getting faster. Sadek could not take the pace and eventually Frost sank the blades on his right hand deep into his stomach. He dropped to the floor in pure agony. Blood suddenly spurted out of the grilled air vents on each side of his headpiece. The TCA was designed to expel any liquid that came from its user to prevent drowning. Sadek again lifted himself up proudly, his left arm clutching his stomach. Blood was trickling down his armour, his life flashed before his weary eyes and Frost walked slowly towards him. Sadek was surely minutes from death and Frost was ready to make his kill. He curled in a ball, ordered his armour to use the last of its energy in a large magnetic purge and waited for Frost. As he approached Frost could make out tiny electrostatic ripples over his victims armour, he suddenly realised what they were from but it was too late. The blast of super-charged particles from Sadek's armour erupted and sent the assassin flying at great speed finally slamming to rest inside the wreckage of the Mark Three. Sadek returned to his feet, still clutching the wounds underneath his armour and with only minutes before his armour de-activated he knew he must finish Frost once and for all.

He walked to the outside shell of the Mark Three where Frost lay awkwardly and motionless, he peered inside and looked for the weapons compartment. It had been opened by the violent blast and just inside the lay two small nucleonic pulse spheres, he took one and started to tap onto a small digital display that appeared when he held it. Sadek set the devastating weapon for thirty seconds, threw it into his old helicopter with Frost. He had only limped fifty metres away from the wreckage when a magnificent blast erupted and sent him high up into the air for what felt like an eternity. Landing with a devastating thump his armour was barely still active but without the help of a particle field to cushion his landing he would certainly die from the fall.

When he came round he could feel practically every bone in his body was shattered and the armour de-activated moving his body a tiny amount but enough to cause searing pain in every corner of his dying body. The helpless agent looked and felt pitiful as he lay dying in the Alaskan snow surrounded by a crimson halo of his own blood and breathing as if through a straw. He looked at the sky for one last time and admired its beauty when a dark shadowy figured blocked his view of the heavens. It was Frost, he had proven his own invincibility to Sadek who prepared himself for the final blow. Only seconds away the Mark One was thundering to their position. Troy zoomed in on Frost and his heavily injured captive, as he did so he saw him sideswipe Sadek's head with his scimitars. It rolled lifeless across the snowy ground spraying a fine mist of blood as it went.

Troy let out a mighty roar as he watched his last team-mate die horrifically from the display screen of his helicopter, he was fired up and ready to rip Frost apart. He fired two high powered Taser beams at Frost taking him by surprise and sent him rolling along the ground violently. Frost slashed his scimitars outwards and flung himself back to his feet majestically, he turned and ran towards the Mark Two while Troy was turning round for another hit. Rapid blasts of light and energy pummelled the snow behind Frost as he ran at high speed towards his helicopter which was beginning to take off to pick him up. The barrage struck Frost and sent him smashing into the Mark Two interior with a thump, he was safe now but he needed to get airborne quickly. Troy hovered over the Mark Two waiting for Frost's next move, he could bombard the vessel but it would have no effect on its armoured hull plated with exotic alien materials. A blast of blue flame shot from the rear of the Mark Two turning masses of snow into running water as it shot off at high speed into the dark Alaskan sky.

It was not long before he got the Mark One into the firing range of its sister helicopter, he was now a lone soldier in the last battle humans would ever know. Both choppers were at full speed and both pilots pushed the vessels as fast as they would go. They were now travelling too fast for conventional weapons at thirty eight thousand Kph. Frost decided to take out his brother as he had done before with an energy surge, it was successful before and it surely would be now. Troy was expecting such a strike and tried to push the Mark One even faster to bring himself up alongside Frost. It was no use, a ball of white light burst out from the exhaust of the Mark Two. Troy tried to swerve frantically but it was too late, a greater part of the blast had hit his helicopter side-on. The Mark One plummeted uncontrollably to the ground. As it did, Troy worked away on his command console; his fingers moved quicker than his eyes could register. He diverted power cell after power cell, conduit after conduit.

He finally managed to divert auxiliary power to the fusion drive to give a kick-start. It worked. The ingenuity of the young agent paid off and his vessel was again functional. He regained speed and height and it was not long before he had again reached the Mark Two which was now low on power and had lost a great deal of speed. Troy fired a pulse of high-powered tachyons underneath Frost's vessel; the blast absorbed into the hull and devastated the Mark Two's sensors. Troy had an idea, with its sensors down the Mark Two was now blind. Troy guided the Mark One directly underneath and activated the Umbilicus System that linked Mark Class helicopters together.

Frost was startled as the floor of his mighty chopper began to open and Troy climbed in with his armour activated. Frost had obviously not thought of all possibilities, he may have evolved but he was certainly not perfect Troy thought to himself smugly. Frost was defenceless without his armour while Troy held his gun inches from his brother's face.

'It's all over Arrin there is not going to be a new race, humans are a lot more resourceful than you think' Troy barked robotically at Frost.

'Daryl, Daryl, Daryl, my dear brother. You are greatly mistaken' Frost said calmly.

Troy's eyes were fixed on Frost's head and he missed Frost tapping away on his communicator. Suddenly Troy's armour deactivated and his gun melted back into his blue hand. He took a few steps back in fear and began to tap on his own communicator.

'TCA Unit has lost all power via an external energy drain' the communicator announced its horrifying news.

'How the fuck did you do that?' Troy said sheepishly to his brother. Frost stood up, pulled out a weapon from his black combat trousers and pointed it at Troy.

'I told you Daryl but you didn't listen. Now I'm afraid it's too late, for you that is. My plan is in its final stages and you're all that is left of the SIA. I think you'll find your Inhibitor Chip is no longer functional now the mainframe has been destroyed. But why would you care about that just moments from death?' Frost said with an evil smile perched smugly upon his face.

'What will you do when I'm gone Arrin? What is this big plan for mankind?' Troy asked anxiously.

I've been working on a new type of weapon, a weapon that annihilates all organic material within a certain radius. I have enough to kill every living thing on this globe and I'll guide the planet towards its future' Frost seemed to be thinking clearly which was a frightening thought to Troy's mind. Troy managed to tap his communicator and suddenly the Mark One detached from its sister chopper and dropped a great distance. The Mark Two was shaken violently and Frost fell back to his chair, a green blast shot from his gun hitting the side of his beloved vessel and knocking out its guidance systems in the process. Troy jumped from the opening where his helicopter had been attached and fell toward it. He ordered the Mark One to move itself into position to catch him and instantly it turned on its side and began making minor adjustments trying to catch its master.

Frost managed to climb back up to his tactical post at his choppers main control panel. He regained stability and activated the weapon systems. As Troy fell towards the Mark One a flash of white light streamed past him. He shuddered in fear as the Nucleonic pulse entered the side of his helicopter and erupted violently, destroying the SIA's masterpiece. Troy was knocked unconscious by the blast and fell helplessly toward the ground far below. With no armour he was sure to die. The Mark Two had done its job and bolted off into the deep red sunset of the far off horizon. Frost had won again.

Troy suddenly regained consciousness and shook with fear at the realisation of his new peril. The fight took place at ninety thousand feet, virtually in space, so Troy had at least another three minutes before he slammed into the ground below.

'Computer activate armour' he shouted as he had trouble speaking in the thin air, he was struggling to breath to add to his worry.

'The TCA Unit is completely drained of power and cannot function' he barely heard the reply but he had feared that answer. Suddenly an idea came to him.

'Computer access the Integral Grid, order it to fire a high power microwave to the following signal' he replied to his communicator hopefully.

'Working' the computerised voice announced from his wrist. As the ground came nearer, the people that had looked like ants were now clearly visible. He could see many people were crowded around the burning wreckage of the SIA's finest work of art, the Mark One. Troy felt crushed by the sight of his beloved chopper that he felt was almost like a brother to him. There was only one Mark Class Helicopter left and it was in Frost's possession.

Eventually a beam of red light hit his silver belt and after a few moments the armour was charged enough to function. The ground got ever closer as the blue organic metal alloy quickly covered his body.

'Computer activate the particle field' he gave his communicator one last request as his armour solidified. Troy was only metres from the ground when he was surrounded by a halo of shimmering light that sparked furiously as it hit the ground and threw Troy back to his feet. His armour again saved him from certain death but what good was it now, he had no Mark One and all his comrades were dead. A handful of onlookers surrounded Troy with mixed feelings of fear and curiosity as he brushed himself down. He deactivated his armour and stared back at them with mocking eyes.

'Do I have a cabbage on my head or what?' He shouted angrily pushing himself through the crowd.

As he walked a tear formed in his eye as he recalled the sight he had seen, his dead fellow agents. He felt incredibly alone. He remembered Nikita. Should he live out the rest of his days in solitary Tibet with his only friend? How could he possibly stop Frost, to even try would be futile he thought. His communicator warned him of the incoming police squads that had been alerted to his presence. He again activated his armour and fled at great speed into the streets of the small southern American town he landed in.

Fleets of police cars pursued him but they could hardly keep up with him, the armour was carrying him at nearly seventy Kph. Eventually he managed to get into a small wooded area hidden from view, he would still be found but it would take them a while he thought. He accessed the armour's computer system and pulled up a map of the area, he found there to be a nearby airstrip for small aircraft. This was his only chance. He ran at high speed towards his last hope, he pushed aside branches and knocked over trees as he ran.

Finally he was in sight of the airstrip; he ripped the strengthened steel fence down as if it were thin air and looked for a suitable vehicle. He saw an old fighter plane, he had seen them before in history books and was rather fond of them, a stealth fighter filled his view. It was obviously reconditioned and would be no match for the fighters that would be dispatched to intercept it but he had no other option. He got in and found much to his joy that it actually worked and had a full tank. He fired up the engines and the aged but timeless aircraft began to roll towards the start of the uneven runway. Police cars steamed into the area knocking down the main gate. He had little time and he knew it, the afterburners fired and the old fighter accelerated rapidly. He got into the air after what felt like a long time compared to his old helicopter and as it rose slowly the landing gear struck a police van roof and sent the wheels and brackets smashing to the ground.

Troy flew the plane close to the fields below trying to avoid radar, it drained his energy as he guided the aircraft skilfully over the ground he was only metres above. His armour gave him directions on the head-up display showing him the way back to SIA HQ or what was left of it. He thought the lower parts of the base could have survived. His armour's computer system alerted him that intercept fighters had been dispatched to the old airstrip. They struggled get a lock on the old jet fighter thanks to the buildings that Troy's new aircraft flew amongst hiding his tiny radar signature perfectly. After nearly two hours of weaving around obstacles Troy was finally in Alaska. His armour alerted him that in five minutes he would arrive at what used to be his base, he pulled the rip cord blowing the off canopy and violently firing him and his seat skywards. He started to lose consciousness as he drifted slowly to the snow below. The fighter that carried him home continued streaking across the sky which Troy hoped would put his pursuers off the scent and the armoured blue agent smashed to the ground with a thud.

### Chapter Thirteen

A weak looking man dressed in tattered clothing ravaged by some kind of disaster gazed at the young agent laid before him with great sorrow. White as a sheet and heavily bruised, survival did not look good for Daryl Troy. Janner worked hard with what medical equipment was now left after the destruction of the headquarters and he worked with great skill, but it seemed useless. Agent Troy had been left to the elements as he lay unconscious, his armour had deactivated after some hours and pneumonia set in.

He shook violently on the operating table in the once clean medical lab of the SIA, it was now stained with soot and a smell of burnt plastic. Janner wrapped Troy in a thermal blanket and hoped for the best, he had done all he could and it was now in the hands of fate. The majority of the underground quarters had been saved protected from destruction and Janner was lucky enough to have been in one of the most protected parts, the classified bunker. Janner ordered one of the remaining workers at the facility to stand over Troy and watch him for progress.

He left the room and headed for the remains of the control room perhaps there were survivors in there, he didn't yet know. It didn't seem likely however, considering the control room was much closer to the surface. The only reason he found Troy was his communicator. The device which was arguably the SIA's most useful tool was designed to alert everyone with a communicator if a wearer's heart rate fell dangerously low. He knew that the other three were dead, his communicator alerted him for a few seconds until their hearts stopped and the signal ceased. There were only five workers left as far as he knew and they had all joined the one hundred-metre climb up the remnants of the lift shaft to the surface where they found Troy. For the first time in over twelve hours he had chance to reflect. Fires still raged in the corridors, he took no heed and merely held his breath when it was too much to take. He missed General Thorn; he had classed him as his only best friend and looked to him for advice. Boy did he need Thorn's advice now.

Janner pushed the door with all his strength and finally he got into the devastated control room. There were no human remains which surprised him; maybe the blast incinerated them he concluded. To his surprise Janner found that one of the terminals in the control room was still partially intact. The machine was not part of the mainframe but it was responsible for some important functions. Janner scanned the system as best he could, re-writing the wrongs that Frost had unleashed on it. Some systems were irretrievable but he managed to repair a great deal more than he expected.

Eight hours passed, his fingers were sore and his eyes were as dry as desert sand. He was suddenly broken from his intense work by a familiar but despised voice.

'Hello Janner I guess Thorn didn't make it then? Oh well I guess this place is mine now!' a slimy voice that sent shudders down even the most rigid of spines filled the stale air of the control room. It was Jefferson of the Planetary Commission with four heavily armed soldiers at his side. He looked even more rodent-like than before and his face seemed to squirm like a jellyfish.

'Jefferson. No Thorn didn't survive but I fail to see how the remains of this facility now belong to you!' Janner responded with a mix of anger and surprise at this pitiful excuse for a man who obviously had no respect for Thorn or the great facility he had commanded so well.

'I have personally decided that the facility is mine. If you cause a fuss Dr, my good friends here will fill your scrawny body with lead. Are we understood?' Jefferson continued.

Green laser-light illuminated the blackened room and four guarding soldiers fell to the ground in a heap. Troy rescued Janner from his plight.

'No we are not understood Mr Jefferson. The only thing that belongs to you is the shallow grave I' m about to put you in'

'Well er, let's not be rash about this we are all gentlemen here. I'm sure we can come to some sort of arrangement' Jefferson squeaked and as he looked at his dead minders his pointed chin began to quiver uncontrollably.

'Yes we can make arrangements, funeral arrangements' Troy shouted at the skinny weakling before him who screamed and dropped to the ground. Green light again filled the room and Jefferson slumped like a dead weight next to his henchmen.

'They are in charge of us now Daryl that was not a wise move!' Janner said meekly, looking at the dead men before him.

'Wake up and smell the coffee Janner, Frost is loose with no one to stop him and he intends to wipe out all human life. What is the harm in getting rid of a few worthless idiots before that happens?' He was not in the mood for fooling around nor did he have the time. He had recovered from his near death experience and his life force was back in full swing.

Troy and Janner walked back to the medical lab, he was now more or less back to health but it was the only place where the musty smell of the fried base did not consume them.

'So Janner I want to know all about the Inhibitor Chips. Frost told me all about them and I must say I also quite fancied a bit of a rampage, knowing you're kept as a pet is not exactly the nicest thing to hear' Troy wanted answers, answers he rightly deserved.

'We decided we needed to control you just in case. When you were all children how did we know what you would turn out to be as adults? You could have rebelled and that would be no good to anyone. I mean it didn't stop Frost in the end but that couldn't be helped I'm sure' Janner was ready to open up and tell Daryl everything he wanted to know.

'How did he find out about them anyway?' Janner continued with curiosity.

'Your alliance with the Planetary Commission let many more people in on our little secret. Frost removed his chip and a new twisted vision of the future is all he thinks about now. His armour didn't help either, wearing it too much has made it bond with him and I would say that is the biggest catalyst for all of this' Troy told Janner the ins and outs of the demise of Frost.

'I knew we should never have joined them Daryl, I knew they would be the death of the SIA I just knew it!' Janner said energetically.

'Then why didn't you stop it from happening Janner, you knew the possible consequences!'

'But I...'

'We have no time for this Dr what options do we have left?' Troy cut off Janner in an elegant and forceful manner.

'Well there is some good news we have a prototype helicopter in the classified bunker. I don't think it's entirely safe yet, we put too much power into her but that's our only option I'm afraid'

'Too much power is exactly what we need Dr' the young agent's eyes lit up like headlights as they both ran towards the bunker.

'So why did Frost come here apart from wanting to destroy the base, he must have had another motive' Troy said inquisitively.

'He accessed a top secret file on the SIA database just before he destroyed it. He was searching for the file's on, I suppose you could say, his mother. If I was frank about it she merely donated the egg for his embryo'

'That would make her my mother as well Dr. For some reason I feel compelled to know her, I've never had anything like these kinds of feelings before today' Troy was clearly shocked to find out the main reason his twin brother had attacked SIA HQ and now the mention of a mother, he wasn't prepared for such emotions and they hit him like a slap to the face.

'I had no idea you had such files. I mean I knew that me and Arrin were from the same embryo and it ended up as twins but I've never thought about where it came from!'

'We expected such emotions to come to the surface when you we're all teenagers but the day just never came. I want to apologise Daryl for not letting you know but you all never asked. What's the saying? What you don't know...'

'Doesn't hurt you Dr, so do you think he's going to kill her?' He finished Janner's words

and pondered why Frost had wanted to know who had donated the embryo that eventually became them both.

'I think there's a good chance it's all that is left of Arrin's human side. Maybe he's trying to fight the control of his armour, maybe he will change his mind when he meets her?' the Dr was renowned for thinking optimistically but Troy felt differently.

'No I think it's more a case of one first hello and one final goodbye, he's changed too much now, inside and out' Troy felt he knew his brother better than anyone and he was on the mark.

Janner looked into a dark slit next to the huge titanium door that housed the SIA's most secret technological developments. The slit scanned his eye and the huge doors opened slowly. They entered a darkly lit bunker that felt huge from echoes of their footsteps, Janner remembered some other important points and quickly voiced them to Troy.

'He also took a Nucleonic pulse generator, he must be constructing some kind of doomsday

'He intends to create several Orgapulse detonators with which he intends to wipe out all the life on this planet' Troy recalled Frost's words causing Janner let out a gasp that echoed for a few seconds around the pitch black hanger.

'We developed that weapon but had no use for it, this is disturbing news Daryl' Janner looked scared as he spoke but the agent was far too eager to see Janner's little surprise and didn't respond.

Janner flicked the lights and there it was hovering above the ground inside a huge rock walled cavern that seemed to go upwards for hundreds of metres in one wide cylinder.

'Behold the Armageddon Class helicopter; the Gunship as I've called her' Janner was dwarfed by the huge black vessel he stood in front of. Indeed it did not look like a helicopter of any description; it was more like a space shuttle of some kind. It looked like its Mark Class predecessors but for the front which resembled a huge smoothed-out arrowhead. It had three small openings on either wing which Troy concluded must have been part of its weapons systems. It had no landing gear and was hovering just above the ground; it struck terror into Troy as Janner powered it up. He felt an enormous throbbing pressure on his chest; he had felt this sensation before from powerful music speakers in his youth, only that sensation was far less nauseating. He walked up to the sleek black behemoth and placed his hands on the side. He could feel a dull but powerful pulsating hum coming from inside, like the slow beat of a tremendous mechanical heart.

'That's the plasma drive you can feel, highly experimental and extremely dangerous but we think we've tamed it enough to use. In principal it's the same as a fusion drive but it generates ten thousand times more energy from the same amount of matter. One hundred percent efficiency!

She also has new weapons on board; we've developed An-Tam Torpedoes for devastating destruction but you use one of these on Earth and you'll wipe out an eighth of the planet, no shit' Janner said smugly.

'They consist of two compartments one containing matter and the other containing antimatter. When it approached the target, it lets the two sides mix which if you remember from my science lessons results in the most powerful energy discharge we humans know of; the total annihilation of matter' Janner was loving the introduction of his new masterpiece.

'She also has a particle field generator which encompasses the vessel and protects it from any weapon assault from anything, including the Mark Two! And the finest addition I have made is the visual disruption system. Basically the particle field is activated around the vessel, it is stretched to a width of fifty metres and the light that hits it slips over and around it, making the Gunship completely invisible!' Janner was reaching boiling point with excitement and so was Troy.

'But I thought that was impossible!' Troy said in disbelief.

'No not at all. I'm sure you're aware that when you look into space there are stars whose light is bent and distorted by a huge object like a black hole. It makes a star appear in one place when it is really in another. Their light is distorted and bent around huge gravitational forces. The same principle is use in this system. I assure you Troy it works' Janner knew his physics and Troy believed him.

'The Mark Class helicopters were used for attack and defence. The Gunship has only one function; annihilation' Janner said dramatically.

'Well this is jaw-dropping stuff Janner but does this pressure on your chest stop or what?'

'As soon as you get inside Daryl the feeling will cease. Take her and be careful, the An-Tam torpedoes are not to be used on Earth they will wipe out whole continents like I said. Try and lure Frost into space, you could use one to wipe him out up there without a problem. Make sure you're at least three K from the blast though Daryl, with the particle field activated or you too will be destroyed by the blast' Janner continued, while Troy opened the side door and stepped in.

'Oh and by the way I've created a device that will stop Frost from deactivating your armour. That should surprise him a bit!'

'Makes a change' Troy answered as the slim black door slid shut behind him.

The steel roof of the Kilometre-deep cave opened slowly and awkwardly due to the power loss of the devastated facility and the Gunship's rotors thrashed the air aggressively as it rose. Troy could feel the power surging through the mighty helicopter as he took hold of the control column. He felt incredibly small and insignificant as the black beast manipulated the planets elements like a God. For a helicopter of its size it was nimble and agile. The Gunship rose slowly to its target height and Troy tapped in the coordinates for Frost's Tibetan ranch where Nikita would be waiting patiently for him or at least he hoped so. He logged in full speed and the plasma drive let out a deafening banshee-like noise, he activated the sound diffusion system and the engine noise ceased.

The rotors retracted and the nose of the helicopter moulded into a sharp, sleek point. It now resembled a sharpened arrowhead. Troy was rammed back against his command chair and after four seconds the Gunship had achieved fifty three thousand Kph. A wide, slim blue flame ejected from the rear and the Gunship rode the sky like a swordfish through water. Whole cities flashed by in the blink of an eye as the devilishly powerful chopper pelted across the new morning sky. Only fifteen minutes had passed and already Tibet was near at hand. The Gunship slowed rapidly and halted directly over the small box below that was Frost's ranch. Troy activated the invisibility device and see how well it worked. A large ball of blue shimmering particles encircled the vessel, its image began to get thinner and finally the Gunship had vanished. He switched to whisper mode and dropped to the ground below. Nikita suddenly felt a thudding pulse change the air pressure in the huge house. She ran to the main window and looked outside, she could see nothing but she felt the pulsating feeling even more on the windowpane. She ran outside to get a better look but all she found was the same sensation and a strong downward wind. She fell to the ground in horror as a huge black helicopter slowly shimmered into view.

The nose of the strange vessel began to merge back into a softer shape and the door at the side slid open.

'I'm back! Sorry if I startled you, I wanted to try out some of the new gadgets on my new toy!' Troy said as he ran towards her and held her in his arms. They gripped each other tightly, both unwilling to relent the happy embrace.

'You're still alive!' Nikita said as they eventually loosened their grip of each other.

'No shit Sherlock!' He responded laughing, then his face saddened slowly.

'I wish I could say the same for the remnants of the SIA' Troy informed Nikita that his comrades were now dead. She had not known them well so the loss was Troy's but she was sure she could feel his hurt like it were her own.

'Anyway let's not dwell on such matters, what's done is done and cannot be changed. How about I take you on a little journey to the stars?' Troy wanted to relax a while before his final confrontation with Frost and a day with Nikita was just what the Doctor ordered.

'The stars! Wow! Will this get us there?' Nikita said looking over Troy's shoulders at the magnificent helicopter before them, still pounding the air with its awesome rotors.

'This is the Gunship, it will take us to anywhere your mind can conceive. It has an Ion Drive like all the Mark Class helicopters but in this vessel a plasma reactor helps it along so it can achieve one eighth of the speed of light. It could reach Jupiter within a day! And according to Einstein we ought to be a little younger than the rest of the planet when we get back!' He said jovially. They ran to the Gunship the door slid open automatically and they got in. Nikita sat to the right hand side of Troy and watched him curiously as he worked the controls sending an almighty helicopter high into the air.

Hundreds of towns streamed by, all the small specks of dust were people going about their everyday business Nikita thought to herself.

'Life seems so easy from up here. No instant chance of being knocked over. No aggravation from ass-holes. If only life were as easy as it seems from up here!'

'They are all so enveloped with their unimportant lives they have no idea what is going on behind the scenes. I mean a pulsar millions of miles away in space could rotate into the path of the Earth and fry the atmosphere away in minutes, yet none of them are in the least bit aware as they go to their meaningless jobs or do the weekly shopping buying shit they don't need' Troy added a little philosophy to what Nikita had said.

'Or a power corrupted maniac with alien technology at his fingertips!'

The Gunship reached the maximum speed that the fusion drive could handle; Troy lifted the craft nose-up towards the blackness of space. Up she rocketed losing no speed or grace, her sharp nose piercing the sky like the arrow she resembled.

The Gunship finally left the Earth's atmosphere and Nikita gasped in awe as she saw the stars more clearly than she had ever done in her life. Troy activated the gravity generator that prevented weightlessness and they again felt their own weight.

'This is amazing Daryl it really is. Thank you for showing me a place I thought I would never see!' Nikita said in amazement to the man she had grown to love in such a short space of time. Troy slowed the vessel down and little blue flames burst out from small holes in the side of the Gunship in all directions as it manoeuvred itself in the vacuum of space. He turned the craft about to face the Earth and they sat and looked at the colourful goldfish bowl that was the birthplace of the human race and everything they had ever known. They felt a great feeling of grandeur and they knew it was a sight mankind would never get tired of looking at. Was man ever meant or designed to see such a sight? One which shows him how small and insignificant he is in the blackness of space?

For a second they saw the big picture, the meaning of life and how simple it really was. They were dumbstruck. Troy wondered if it all really mattered, future events that may or may not take place on the planet before him would never have an effect on the rest of the Universe or even the Solar System.

'It makes you wonder you know, what if civilisation had seen this centuries ago, would they have gone to war if they knew we were all just one big family, animals plants and all?' Troy broke the deep reflection and again tapped away on his command console. A powerful roar came from the rear of the Gunship the Ion drive had activated. Safety lights began to flash as the Ion Drive picked up its pace.

'What are all these lights Daryl it looks as if it's about to blow up!?' Nikita said worriedly.

'No not at all they are just alerting me to make sure I have activated all relevant systems for the velocity we are about to endure. Jeese I sound like such a dick sometimes, it's telling us we're good to go!' Troy felt a little pang of introspection and realised that a lifetime talking to geeks must've been contagious in some way.

They laughed it off and the Gunship picked up speed rapidly, Troy guided it over the curvature of the Earth. Nikita did not feel the sensation of speed for some time until she took a passing glance at the main viewer and saw the speed they were doing.

'Seventy thousand Kph? Jesus it doesn't feel like we're moving that fast!' Nikita announced with surprise in her voice.

Suddenly they were rammed into the backs of their seats as the Plasma Drive kicked in and the Earth Slowly got smaller and smaller until it looked like a large star. The vessel accelerated like a bullet from a gun, the Gunship's inertial dampeners which prevented the harsh effects of acceleration were working overtime. Nikita took another look at the main screen the speed was now registering in Kilometres a second. After some time the speed reached forty three thousand Kilometres per second and the Earth was far, far behind them. 'This is unbelievable I never knew humans would ever be able to travel so fast' Nikita said to Troy with a smile. Troy just kept his eyes on the state of the engines which was being displayed on the panel to his left.

'The silent atmosphere of the Gunship suddenly changed to one of frantic alarms and warning lights.

'Damn! The Ion Drive's overheating! Janner and I never discussed using this in space so erm. We'll be fine don't worry!' he responded and attempted a confidence boosting smile failing miserably.

'What do you mean?' Nikita replied sensing something was seriously amiss.

'Well Janner said that there was too much power in the Gunship for her own good. I guess he was right. The computer says the only option is to eject the ion drive completely but if we do that it will take us weeks to get home!' Troy gave the bad news as he tapped away trying to find some other way of saving them from oblivion. she became more and more worried as a loud thunderous noise started from the rear of the chopper. Troy did all that he could to avert the seemingly inevitable explosion. Nikita watched with worried eyes at Troy's lightning-fast fingers working the complex computer systems. After only a moment or two the noise suddenly started to reach deafening levels and if they weren't scared before they certainly were now.

Plumes of purple and green balls of plasma began to eject from the rear exhaust of the Gunship like a cascade of beautiful light. One would believe they were at a firework display of some kind although the light was riddled with radiation. The noise stopped abruptly and the Gunship was now without ionic propulsion but it lost no speed due to the nature of space.

'That certainly was close!' Daryl Troy said to an obviously terrified Nikita at his side.

'What happens now then?' Nikita said sharply, nerves fraying.

'Well I guess we just have to restart the Ion Drive when it's cooled and try again. I ejected all the overheated material and it seemed to do the trick, I suppose it could happen again though. I'll check if there were any systems offline shouldn't have been'

As Troy spoke the computer announced that they were approaching the vicinity of Mars.

'Good we're here! I just hope we can get back' he said hoping Nikita's nerves had settled. A ball of white light shot from the front of the Gunship and erupted. It was a Nucleonic pulse the very weapon that Frost had unveiled to the world killing millions in the process. This one however was intended for much more peaceful uses.

'What speeds up must eventually slow down' he looked at Nikita and smiled again as the Gunship shaded the view screen to protect their eyes, they looked forward and a dim blast rocked the vessel. Troy had used the destructive power of a Nucleonic pulse to slow them down to a measly sixty thousand. He now had a new respect for powerful machines and wished he had treated the Mark One better.

A halo of blue shimmering light surrounded the Gunship as the blast enveloped it and slowed it down by thousands of Kilometres per second. The halo was the Gunships particle field system which was doing its job of protection perfectly. Troy brought the Gunship around so the huge red planet was before them on screen. They sat for sometime in silence as they studied the planet ahead, a planet that only a handful of humans had ever seen with their own eyes. Nikita pondered fantasy after fantasy, perhaps there were alien beings on Mars hiding beneath the rock away from the prying eyes of the beings from its blue sister. Troy broke her concentration.

'You know scientists believe that Mars once resembled Earth billions of years ago. It had an atmosphere and oceans and micro-organisms such as amoeba's and the like' Troy said.

'Then why is it so barren and lifeless now? Isn't the water all ice?' Nikita replied curiously.

'Apparently Mars had a thick atmosphere just like Earth does but with Mars there wasn't enough molten Iron in its core to keep a strong magnetic field. Once the iron cooled and ceased spinning there was no magnetic field and Mars was ravaged by radioactive solar winds from the sun, making the planet what it is today. Barren, lifeless and hardly any atmosphere' Troy was well versed in matters of the solar system, it interested him immeasurably.

'The Particle Field generator on this vessel is based on the same principle; it holds electrically charged particles in place with magnetic fields. Magnetism will defend you from everything including radiation' He finished.

'That's incredible! So you mean there could eventually have been organisms much like us on Mars had it kept its magnetic field?' Nikita said inquisitively.

'Yeah I suppose there could have been. But there are many slight and major differences between our planet and this so they would probably be built or 'designed' a little differently' Troy answered her question but added a little reality also.

The Gunship was stationary just outside orbital range of the red planet.

'Did you know there's an obelisk on Mar's moon, Phobos?' Troy asked

'An obelisk? You mean a man made structure?'

'Well that's what people thought it was but if you take a closer look it's actually a pointed asteroid comprised of Iron and other heavy elements. That's if you believe NASA of course'

'That's amazing I want to see it for myself though!' She replied and he obliged.

The Gunship turned and headed towards an object a little smaller and darker than the moon Nikita was used to back home. As they approached the moon it was clearly a huge body and it started to take up the whole view screen. They watched awestruck as the mighty helicopter turned star-ship carried them to within two kilometres of the dark moon's surface. On the far horizon a tall striking object came into view and grabbed their attention. As it slowly made its way towards their position they both surveyed it carefully.

'That looks man-made! I mean even Iron rich asteroids have some rock on them and that edge there' she pointed out a perfect square edge and the front section of the object was perfectly aligned with it.

'Obvious geometry'

'That's exactly what I thought when I saw the images Arrin brought back, he took the twenty day trip in the Mark One when we we're in our early twenties' Troy started to reminisce and it brought back old feelings for the brother he now had to kill. He remembered how his twin had always been someone he looked up to, someone he respected enough to ask advice.

'So what is it? I'd say a shard from some gigantic spacecraft considering we're here thanks to technology from one ourselves' Nikita felt inside she knew exactly what it was.

'You might be right you know' He answered.

They continued looking at the curious and mysterious object now leaving their view and finally Troy decided they must try the ion drive once again. He had a deadly assassin to catch and time was of the essence. He realised an extremely important cooling by-system was not engaged and that was why the drive had overheated. Clearly Janner's new helicopter had not been booted up properly. The vessel turned around sleekly and Mars was now at their left, Nikita kept her eyes fixed on the red mystery as the Gunship's engines began to roar. Its monstrous noise did not travel through space but the shockwave certainly did, if there were any hidden aliens on Mars then they would be cowering in fear at the black beast that had unleashed such power.

Mars shot out of view as full speed was reached. There was tension in the air, both passengers were anxious of whether the engines would hold up this time as well as deep thoughts about the near future and what it may hold for them both. The Gunship did not disappoint and she carried her precious cargo back to Earth. Troy was the only thing that could stop the murder of every living thing on Earth. He was now equipped with the tools necessary to defeat his brother but if he were killed; the indestructible Frost would be unstoppable.

A familiar blue and green planet came into view overshadowed by the radiant power of the sun. The sun that had given life to all the organisms that had ever lived in the Solar System. Troy looked at it and realised that someday the sun would go supernova and take away the life it had at first given, all would perish. He also knew the planet they had just visited could have looked very much like its sister planet had the Sun not destroyed its atmosphere.

'The sun giveth and the sun taketh away' he said in his mind. His fight with Frost would only become known as one of Earths minor setbacks in a dossier of many. One day the blue planet would have a disastrous date with the great yellow ball of fire and it would not survive.

After some time Troy directed the Gunship down towards the ocean-covered planet that was their home. Neither of them said a word as they gracefully re-entered Earth's atmosphere, sheltered completely by their guardian helicopter. Streams of red-hot light flew over the front of the mighty chopper though it took no heed of the high temperatures it was being subjected to. Troy headed straight for Tibet, he and Nikita knew what was going to happen next. Nikita understood but she did not dwell on it, she knew she might lose her new love. As Tibet came into range the Gunship plummeted to the ground below like an eagle in a steep dive; the dark chopper graced the sky inexpressibly.

'Well I guess this is it then, we ought to say our goodbyes now' Troy said sorrowfully as he landed the Gunship.

'Just in case' he finished glancing at Nikita trying to instil a little confidence in her troubled mind.

'Don't think like that. What happens now? What happens if you don't stop him?' Nikita began to realise the full consequences of the next few days.

'Just leave it to me Nikita, I'll take him out and then everything will be back to normal again' Troy's words were meant in reassurance but no words could reassure Nikita now. She kissed him on the lips and a tear formed in her eye. He kissed her back and smiled, he was under no illusions that this final undertaking would be easy, but Frost would smell his fear if he let it get to him. The Gunship rose from the dusty Tibetan plains as Nikita watched woefully, like a child abandoned by its parents she looked lost.

Thunder had nothing on the mighty Gunship, rising to a comfortable height powerfully and yet gracefully. Troy had to find Frost but had no idea how he would do it, he had no idea what the Gunship was capable of. He was about to find out.

'Computer try every means possible to locate special agent Arrin Frost and or the Mark Two helicopter' he announced.

### Chapter Fourteen

The beautiful blue moonlight of a warm Australian night beat down on the Mark Two helicopter as it bolted towards its destination. Arrin Frost slowed the mighty vessel to cruise speed and prepared to land in the pitch-dark desert below. His armour was activated, it was now completely black and the corruption of both man and machine was in its later stages. He looked menacing as he worked the controls. After some time the Mark Two stopped dead in the air and dropped to the ground rapidly. As it did he turned and looked to the back of the chopper at six large silver balls in a steel container. Orgapulse detonators each with a huge magnitude; he intended to put them all in designated places so they would disintegrate all life on Earth.

'Time to go forth and change the world my little friends' He said in the characteristic robotic voice of his armour, half to himself and half to the objects before him. His voice now sounded dark and enigmatic.

The Mark Two looked as like it would crash into the sandy ground below but just before it did he regained the controls and stopped her just above the ground. He loved living on the edge. He emerged from the side of the helicopter holding one of the balls under his arm. He set it down on the desert floor and tapped a few small illuminated panels on the top. The device was now activated and at the touch of a button aboard the Mark Two it would form a synchronous detonation with its five counterparts. Each device was designed to use the Integral Grid to spread the death wave further, the very device that protected everyone on Earth was now a mass murderer in waiting. Nothing organic would survive, all would perish and Frost found the thought pleasing. He re-entered the Mark Two lifted her into the air and headed for the next location.

Thousands of miles away on the other side of the planet, Frost's twin brother was embarking on his own mission although he knew it not, Frost was about to be hunted. Troy presumed a scan of the planet would not turn up any clues as to Frost's whereabouts but suddenly the computer broke the solitary silence of the Gunship's interior.

'Special agent Arrin Frost and the Mark Two helicopter have been located in Sector twenty four nine five, in the Australian outback' the Gunship had somehow found Frost and Troy nearly fell from his seat in astonishment.

'What? How the fuck did you manage that?' An evidently shocked Troy asked the computer of the Gunship.

'A Neutrino sensor sweep is capable of penetrating any substance known to exist and agent Frost's pheromones were picked up one hundred percent match. Will this suffice or do you require another search?' the computer told Troy how it had located the previously untraceable Frost. It was equipped with Neutrino based sensors which could penetrate anything in the known Universe.

'Computer explain how Neutrino's work?' Troy said bashfully as he felt slightly embarrassed at not knowing a great deal about Neutrino's.

'Neutrinos are a part of everyday existence; they constantly move through the Universe penetrating everything without interfering with atoms because they have no physical mass. The sensors aboard the Gunship manipulate Neutrinos which are individually programmed to locate specific things, in this case an individual's pheromones' The computer explained. Troy realised that Janner must have programmed the computer system to have a little intelligence and improvisational skills.

'Well then take me straight to his co-ordinates maximum speed, when we get to within one hundred Kilometres of the Mark Two activate the invisibility device. You clever twat' Troy gave his orders and jibed the computer at the same time, he was mildly jealous and showing it. The computer didn't respond which gave Troy the impulse to add some more for effect.

'You can't fuckin' answer me back though can you? Eh?!' He said laughing at himself triumphantly.

'No I can't' the computer responded unexpectedly to a shocked Troy.

'Clever fucker' Troy finished wanting to get the last word in before focusing on the job in hand.

The Gunship turned one hundred and eighty degree's and bolted off so fast that if on-lookers blinked it would have seemed to vanish. Troy had now forgotten any feeling of fear he had previously experienced and a searing drive to complete his mission filled every corner of his hammering heart. After just fifteen minutes the Gunship was closing in on the Mark Two and the invisibility device activated. The Gunship's image began to gradually fade and eventually it disappeared completely.

The Mark Two was pulling twenty five thousand Kph on its way toward the next destination as its evolved big sister closed in undetected. Using the advanced sensors Troy accessed the Mark Two's computer system without trace of intrusion and tried to find out what his brother had been working on. He discovered Frost had put his doomsday plan into operation and one of the Orgapulse devices was already in its tactical place. Time was clearly of the essence. Troy decided it would be a better idea to deactivate all the devices before he confronted Frost. Just after Troy broke his link with the Mark Two the pursued helicopter darted down to the ground below. Troy was shook from his seat as the Gunship mimicked the Mark Two's movements seamlessly, as it was programmed to do and plummeted to the ground with it. Frost emerged from the side of his helicopter once again and carried another silver device to its place while Troy hovered the Gunship at a higher altitude so as not to be discovered.

Frost hid the silver ball behind a large lump of rock that was protruding from the grassy African ground; he had no idea that his fate was in the hands of an invisible black helicopter high above his head. Troy knew he could use this opportunity to his advantage and wipe out his brother neatly and safely but he felt it was neither the time nor the place to take such action, he had to face his brother equally. Frost got back into his chopper and belted off into the night. Troy decided not to follow; he stayed to deactivate the device his brother left behind. The Gunship was visible again and dropped to the ground where the Mark Two had been. Troy emerged from her side and walked to where Frost's footprints still left imprints in the sand, he found the silver ball and after a few seconds he deactivated it. He took the device back to the Gunship and ordered the mighty vessel to Frost's Australian location ten minutes previous; off it went into the night. Streetlights below streamed off the hull of the Gunship as it darted towards Australia at nearly fifty times the speed of sound.

Troy stepped from the Gunship and found the silver ball straight away. He deactivated it and placed it next to the other, inside his advanced helicopter. Again the chopper's sensors found Frost without difficulty, he was setting down another device in Brazil and the Gunship relentlessly thundered off towards his location once again. The sky was beginning to lighten and the moons bright light lost some of its potency. The Gunship disappeared and closed in on Frost's vessel. Troy watched as he had done before while his brother planted another device and again when Frost had left, he dropped the chopper down to the ground and took possession of the silver ball of death. Frost was now headed for Alaska, he obviously wanted to plant a device near his old headquarters; a place he had clearly not finished with yet.

Troy followed in close pursuit, he laughed to himself at the measly speed that the Mark Two was capable of. When they approached the Alaskan snow plains Troy looked down at the ground with an ironic but mocking smile.

'The ground is full of Frost and so is the sky' he said under his breath. The Mark Two dropped to the ground and Frost delivered another device, he only had two more to deposit and then his plan would be set, or so he thought. After Troy had taken the next device into his custody, he carried on until all six were in his possession and the stage was now set for a final showdown. Even if Frost could not be stopped, the Orgapulse detonators were no longer operational and the world was safe from harm, at least for a while. Troy broke off from the rear of the Mark Two and took off towards the remnants of SIA Headquarters; he had a little time to spare before his final assault.

The Gunship dropped silently into the Classified Bunker of what used to be SIA HQ, Troy kept the Invisibility Device activated to try and take Dr Janner by surprise. As Troy hoped, Janner was in the classified bunker in deep thought. He lifted himself to his feet to see why he could now feel a powerful draft. Small fragments of rock rained down on his head and he was even more mystified. Janner suddenly fell to the ground in fear as the Gunship became visible, Troy laughed at Janner's fright as the trembling man before him realised it was his creation with Troy at the helm. He emerged from the side of the Gunship, Janner forgave him straight away and they shook hands professionally.

'It's good to see you Daryl how are you?' Janner said to the young agent before him. Troy just smiled and took three of the Orgapulse detonators out of the Gunship and showed them to Janner, a look of fright once again filled his face.

'Are there any more of these devices? He could wipe out every organic thing on this planet!' Janner said worryingly.

'I've collected all six of the devices that Frost planted, so we're safe for now'

'Did you take him out? You would have had many good chances by the sound of it!'

'No, it's not time yet, he can and will do no wrong to the planet for at least a day or two now, his plan is in place or so he believes. Don't worry yourself Janner, he'll be dead by tomorrow' Troy concluded. They walked towards the remnants of the old mess hall talking without pause all the way.

'So tell me, what is Mars like? It must have been surreal seeing it from such a close distance!' Janner was enthralled by Troy's description of his little journey into space. The Dr had been into space before but had only seen the Moon; Mars was one of his greatest interests.

'Dr you should have seen it Mars is amazing, I didn't stay long but I did stay long enough to fall in love with that red planet. Which reminds me, the Ion drive nearly imploded, you hadn't uploaded all programs!' Troy said ending with a concerned tone. Janner looked back at him and gave a cheeky smile.

'Sorry!' Janner said finally.

They carried on their conversation all the way down the long corridor towards the mess hall. When they entered Troy found much to his surprise and relief that it was still virtually intact after Frost's assault. They sat and talked for hours. They discussed memories past and the nearing final showdown with Frost. Troy felt that he could have sat there talking with Janner for days and for the moment he forgot the task ahead.

'I was thinking about the first holiday on our own the other day, it was just before our first mission. I miss those days. We knew that you and General Thorn would be watching us from the Grid, but none of us were scared we felt free none the less. Arrin, Kym and me had an awesome time, not a care in the world, wankered every night' Troy began to reminisce he thought that if he were to die in his conflict with Frost then this would be the last time he would get the chance to remember his colourful youth.

'Yeah we were watching you and we knew full well that there was an asteroid on its way towards a collision course with Earth, but we thought it was only right to give you all a holiday before we sent you out into the world or space as it were, to protect the public. Thorn and I looked at you all in complete awe you were all masterpieces, I felt like some kind of modern day Picasso!'

'You and Arrin were not supposed to be twins, when we realised that the embryo had grown into a twin there was no question that we would keep your embryo's and let them live' Janner seemed miles away as he remembered the early days of the agents.

'There was Miller, who was designed to fit in on the African continent his voice sounded out of place when he spoke in the Afrikaans accent but he did fit in over there. Then there was Kym who was oriental, his accent was quite a masterpiece and he perfected it to a tee. Markov was designed Russian; he perfected that and was a credit to the soviet missions we gave him. He actually became a member of the United Collaboration of Eastern States didn't he' Janner showed a love for the agents he helped to design at the genetic level, a love that his soft exterior had never before revealed.

'Agent Sadek Indian in culture and appearance, he brought wisdom and clarity to you all. Not enough of it given to Arrin though I suppose!' he continued.

'I think he was beyond anyone's help right from the start if I'm honest. Too stubborn for his own good' Troy

He thought for a little while about fate and concluded that despite his rigid scientific beliefs that Janner himself had taught him he knew there must be some other force at work it the Universe, perhaps not a conscious God but something very similar.

'My favourite memories were of my missions in England. I remember Mohammed Jaffar's son assumed a false identity so he could study in an English University. It was my third assignment and was meant to last a year, It ended up lasting three because I wanted to stay longer. Living like a student for those three years with the best people I have ever met was truly amazing! Those summers in the Lake District with Zoe, my girlfriend at the time and all my friends were dreamlike. Experimenting with chemicals and the final year when we all graduated that new super drug Zion came out. Jesus Janner, I know you're a straight living man, but you should have tried that stuff before it was made illegal. Fucking mind blowing' Troy revealed a side of himself that Janner did not know, or at least did not want to know.

'I knew all about that Daryl and we nearly disciplined you that time after you returned one autumn and the body scanner went ballistic when it identified all those toxins and drugs. You were a tad rebellious to say the least' Janner was softer than he used to be but he was still none impressed with Troy's past behaviour. Janner immediately changed the subject; he feared the use of drugs and was more against it than anything else.

'I was most impressed with your assassination of Andre Mischkin in Geneva, it was you and Arrin wasn't it very impressive you both showed your true ingenuity when you took out that difficult target. You both became Thorn's favourites after that!' Janner continued the memories.

They talked late into the night and finally they fell asleep in the very places they had sat for hours. When morning came they awoke with a jolt, their bones ached from the awkward positions they slept in. It was not the best night of sleep that Daryl Troy had ever had, but he did feel refreshed. They did not know it was a beautifully sunny morning outside as the mess hall was one hundred metres down in subterranean SIA HQ. They walked to the Classified Bunker and Janner said his goodbyes, perhaps this would be the last he would see of the only person left that he could call a friend. Troy entered the Gunship once again with great confidence; Janner seemed to be more afraid than Troy as the mighty chopper rose slowly and efficiently up into the bright sunny day high above.

#

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# Final Chapter follows this page

# Look out for the sequel

# Devolution - coming soon

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# Revolution

# Is dedicated to everyone who believed in me, you know who you are

#

# End game

The Earth looked incredibly placid and quiet like a blue and green marble it resembled from Arrin Frost's unique vantage point. He looked enormous as he stood proud next to his helicopter, his armour was now as black as the Mark Two and his eyepiece was glowing red. The reflection of the Earth hugged his body armour like a warm image of peace and hope which couldn't have been further from the coming reality. Everything that happened in everyday life upon the blue planet, thousands of tiny humans being born at any given second, thousands of people dying and every kind of weather that Frost had ever known were all happening before his eyes. He felt like a god as he stood on the moon looking out as if on a watchtower peering out across a huge black sea. Countless particles of dust would lap his metallic feet if there were such a thing as wind on the white mini-planet where he stood.

He lifted his black thumb and forefinger to the image of the Earth before his eyes and pretended to crush it between his metallic digits.

'All the Earth is about to become mine' he said to himself dramatically. He looked around at the stars and felt at home perhaps it was the alien material that had now become a part of his very soul.

He turned his attention towards the Mark Two, the helicopter that had faithfully aided him all the way through his anarchical rampage. He had transformed from one of the best agents of the SIA into the world's most deadly renegade. He knew what was about to ensue, Daryl Troy was still alive he could feel it but would he find him? As he looked at the Earth he knew that whatever happened this would be its last moment of peace before all life was extinguished. He felt like pummelling nucleonic pulse after nucleonic pulse into the whole globe until nothing remained not even buildings. His rage was reaching boiling point and his eyepiece beamed bright red giving away the anger that welled up inside.

He placed his cold hands on the side of the Mark Two and whispered a vow of brotherly love to the lifeless machine that had become his only friend. He entered the black chopper and started up its main engines, the Ion drive kicked in and the Mark Two bolted back to Earth a dizzy pace. The moons gravity had no effect on the speedy vessel as it slipped away like greyhound from the traps. After only a few minutes Frost disengaged the engines and reverted to the fusion drive for propulsion. The Integral Grid was in sight, there were no visible connection cables between the satellites but Frost knew that it was all connected by invisible laser light. He and his doomsday helicopter avoided detection by the Grid and re-entered Earth's atmosphere, his final act was on the very edge of fruition and to his mind there was nothing that could stop him now, not even his brother. He took the Mark Two down to the huge built-up area below, as it came into view he smiled inside his headpiece. He could see the high-rise buildings bordering the sea; he was going to attack New York.

He was now oblivious to the fact that only seven months ago New York had been his most favourite place in the entire world. But the armour was in control now and it was hell bent on death and destruction. Finally the Mark Two dropped to the level of the highest buildings and scoured them like a predator thirsty for blood. The black helicopter stopped just before a high-rise commercial office block and waited patiently. All the innocent workers sat staring at their computer screens ignorant to the dark menace just outside the floor to ceiling windows. Frost magnified the forward view and spotted a worker looking back with a perplexed face, seconds later the man returned his attention to his computer terminal believing the helicopter was some kind of police chopper.

'So this is what the Human Race has been reduced to. Thousands of years progressing, diversifying, conquering and all for what? All so the greatest animal the Earth has ever spawned can live out its over-lengthy life in greed and squalor, working miserable jobs they hate for things they don't really need. How very droll, how very pitiful' Frost said in eerily prophetic way. Suddenly a column of green light shot from the front of the Mark Two and the office worker that had paid no heed to the chopper before now had no choice. Windows shattered and rained down on the unsuspecting pedestrians below as four whole floors erupted into flames. Another beam again entered the building and yet more flames engulfed it ferociously. Frost lifted the Mark Two skyward and darted off into the bright blue expanse. After only a matter of seconds he was again in space and positioned the Mark Two above a member satellite of the Integral Grid. He downloaded one of his super viruses into the advanced machine and waited for it to work. System after system failed as a blanket of silence suddenly enshrouded the entire globe, nation by nation. For the first time since the advent of the telephone the only way of communication was now person to person. The global powers that be had interlinked all the communications systems and now they all depended on each other. No one realised how vulnerable this would make the global communications grid. Back the Mark Two plummeted to Earth and it headed for New York once again.

The black chopper skulked the skyline again once and hunted its next quarry. Intercept helicopters had been dispatched but now they had no way of communication, if only they had kept the radio devices that they had used decades before they would not now be deaf to the instructions of their superiors. The Mark Two followed each of the defenceless police choppers as they looked around for the mystery black helicopter that had been sighted. Frost picked them off one by one he was just playing around now, he felt like being cruel and tormenting for a while. His armour was black and so was his heart. After he picked off the final innocent helicopter he darted off towards the nearby sea. The super chopper seemed to move faster than light itself as it changed direction swiftly and dived into the ocean below. Down the sleek vessel went, into the depths. Just before the Mark Two struck the seabed it turned about to face the dark weed-covered rock that New York stood on and fired a nucleonic pulse. A bright ball of light shimmered through the water leaving a trail of huge bubbles in its wake, Frost waited patiently inside the Mark Two that was now illuminated red from his eyepiece. The blast erupted and millions of tons of shattered rock splintered off in all directions. Before the debris could smother the Mark Two it again bolted off at high speed towards the surface. It broke water and as it did it was just in time for Frost to see the destruction his attack caused. He watched with an evil smile as New York began to shake more violently than any Earthquake that man had ever endured. Office blocks tumbled and windows shattered, people, cars and chunks of aggregate fell into huge cracks that opened in the city streets. All that survived picked themselves up and brushed themselves down but the innocents who survived the first onslaught looked up in horror at an eighty-metre tidal wave that was about to engulf them all. The waves came crashing down and drowned nearly all of New York's inhabitants, the mighty city of New York, the cultural and financial capital of the world was now reduced to ruins and sea water.

'Well you all would have died soon anyway. Better that you all died in style' Frost said to himself with a cold grin. He turned the helicopter around and darted off towards the next destination.

An alert popped up on Troy's screen showing that a pulse of unknown magnitude had been unleashed on the city of New York; he ordered a satellite image of the area from the Integral Grid but got no response.

'Why is the grid offline?' Troy asked the computer of his helicopter, bemused.

'There seems to be a malfunction of some kind, possibly a virus but a complex one to be able to do this level of damage to the infrastructure' the Gunship responded. Troy knew instantly who was responsible and entered the co-ordinates for New York.

When he arrived a deep scan of the area showed that Frost had left and was on the way to the little town where their mother lived.

'He's headed to see our mother. Jesus it feels strange saying that!' Troy said to himself as he re-directed the Gunship to reach the location before his brother did. After just under ten minutes he overtook Frost on route to his target and found a sheltered place behind some tall red-brown conifers. The area was peaceful and serene, vast ongoing lakes passing through grand snow capped mountains, eagles flying overhead. Troy took it in for a second but time was of the essence. He exited the Gunship, activated the armour and ran towards where Frost was sure to land.

He found the perfect vantage point and hid himself in a large tree where he surveyed the area and caught a glimpse of his brother's target. He had never met this woman who sat at the edge of the huge lake, throwing rocks into the water while singing happily to herself. He felt an urge for an introduction but Frost's arrival was imminent. What would happen now? He had no idea, all he knew was that he was facing the biggest test of his life and he might not survive it. A dark black helicopter thundered overhead and then slowed down completely turning as it did. Frost had arrived. The side of the Mark Two opened and Frost jumped out. Just before he hit the water below he slowed steadily and then seemed to float over the surface. The Mark Two moved off toward the hills in the distance. The lady by the water edge jumped up screaming at the alien before her, she ran backwards and fell frozen like she couldn't move. As he approached both Troy and their mother could see that Frost's eyepiece was glowing red; Troy knew his brother was now beyond any hope of returning to the man he once knew and loved. He prepared for the final onslaught, the armour that had corrupted his brother was now the only thing that could protect him from his lethal enemy.

As Frost approached his armour deactivated. Troy thought this would be a ploy to show he was still human but as Frost had said before the armour had become him and he had become the armour. The woman looked closely at her misguided unknown son and the tears flowed even more, she seemed to sense that this was someone she knew but didn't know at all. His skin looked metallic and his eyes seemed to glow red just like his eyepiece had. Troy jumped from the tree that concealed him and fired a large quantity of holding gel at his brother's hands. Frost seemed unfettered by the presence of his brother, he almost didn't recognise him. He looked down at the holding gel that had now solidified and held his arms tightly; he looked back at Troy and laughed robotically.

'Hello Daryl you survived your little fall I see. Wonders will never cease' Frost said calmly and methodically, not a hint of emotion touched his robotic accent.

'Here is our darling mother that gave life to us both. I 'm incapable of compassion now but I still understand respect. And I do respect you our loving embryo donor. I mean that in the nicest possible way' Frost said forcing a cold smile while the fear in his terrified mother's heart reached epic proportions.

'You have given birth to something far beyond your comprehension. Your genetic codes have become the next step in human evolution. For this reason I will spare your life although you will die with your son here when I wipe you all out' he said looking at his brother as he did. A red gleam flashed in his eyes and a black knife-like object seemed to emerge from his stomach which sliced away at the holding gel rapidly. Frost's arms were now free; he lifted his right hand to his wrist communicator which now looked embedded in his arm.

He tried to deactivate Troy's armour but after a few seconds he was shocked to find his brother's armour was still very much active.

'Not this time Arrin this truly is the end. The next stage in Human evolution won't be your doing, your just nuts Arrin that's all there is to it' Troy said confidently.

'Then I guess it's time. I'm sorry that you have to see your mother disintegrate before your eyes when you've only just met but they've got to go, all of them' Frost said as his dark armour quickly slithered over him. He tapped his arm once again to fire all the Orgapulse detonators that Troy had so cleverly disarmed only a day before. Frost tapped away frantically wondering why his devices were not working, the blast was designed to travel at the speed of light and one would have easily reached their location by now he thought.

Troy began to laugh robotically at his bemused brother as he tried and tried fruitlessly to activate his weapons of mass extermination.

They're all inactive Arrin, like I said this little game of yours is finally over' Troy was extremely happy with himself at what he had done to his unsuspecting brother. Frost swung the blade of his right scimitar frantically at Troy's head. Troy ducked and sunk his left scimitar into his brother's abdomen and with his other fist he punched him violently into the lake. Frost fell with a splash and Troy decided to divert the fight to somewhere more remote. He jumped high over a fence and ran down the picturesque street lined with ornate lamp-posts, he knew Frost would give chase. As he passed the second house along he saw two sports bikes sat in the driveway on their stands. He sat on one of the bikes and placed his blue metallic hand on the ignition, after a spark and a flash the engine revved and he darted off towards the nearest highway.

Their terrified mother ran into the house screaming as Frost picked himself up. He took no notice of her, his target was Troy. As water droplets dripped from his huge black body his red eyepiece glowed brightly and lit up the whole area. He let out a deafening roar and all the nearby windows shattered. He thrust his hands skyward and his body began to shake. Forks of thick blue electricity began to jump from his hands and eventually every part of his armour was rippling with electricity. He regained his concentration and ran rapidly in pursuit of Troy. His armour was integrated into his brain now and its computer transferred knowledge to his own brain at the speed of light. He magnified the forward view of the street and saw Troy turning off a minor street road onto another. Frost kicked the stand from the motorbike and started it up, roaring after him.

Wide country roads were unexpectedly full of traffic but Troy took no heed, he knew his brother was behind him somewhere and he needed to find a good place to face him finally. Frost gained slowly and tried to control his bike with one hand while at the same time attempting to aim his gun at Troy, unsuccessfully. As the strange bikers carried on their frantic chase onlookers were both shaken and mystified by the sight that flashed by them in the blink of an eye. Finally Frost gained on his most deadly enemy and aimed his weapon at Troy's rear tire. A blast of green light shot from Frost's weapon narrowly missing the target as Troy manoeuvred cunningly around the cars. Frost fired again but this time the blast hit a car to the left of his target, crushing the bonnet and throwing it out of control. The car spun into the path of Frost's motorcycle leaving him no time for options.

As fast as his mind now worked he could not stop time or the oncoming collision. He was thrown violently into the road at great speed, onlookers watched in amazement as the black terror rolled energetically and then threw himself to his feet, skidding backwards but perfectly controlled. Troy was now quite a distance away. Frost walked slowly and methodically towards a huge truck cab that was now honking its horn for him to get out of the way and travelling at quite a pace. As the cab passed he grabbed an exhaust pipe and held on tightly. Using the momentum of his swing he smashed into the cab and kicked the occupants through the opposite door. He could see Troy in the distance; he magnified the view and snarled robotically at his prey who was now way ahead. Frost pushed the truck to its limit ramming cars out of the way and into the barriers at the roadside. Troy looked miles away but surprisingly the truck was gaining on him. He maintained his pace and guile as he continued to slip around the busy roads. Troy was not the scared rabbit that Frost thought, he knew exactly what was going on behind him. Frost finally got close and they were now on a huge highway with spaghetti-like junctions all around them.

Frost pushed the truck to its limits and it wasn't long before he could almost ram Troy's motorcycle and knock him from it. Troy jolted forward as the truck clipped the rear of his endangered vehicle and he knew he must do something quickly. As Frost gathered momentum for another attack with his truck Troy turned sharply to the right, jumped the bike into the air and over the roadside barriers. There was a sheer drop to the motorway below, another three-lane highway filled with traffic snaked away to the right. Frost was beginning to get a little frustrated at his elusive brother as he aggressively screeched the truck to a halt. Troy held on tightly as he fell forty metres to the ground below. The bike slammed into the ground violently and sent Troy rolling into oncoming traffic that was now braking desperately to avoid him. He landed awkwardly and damaged his arm as he rolled. He regained his stance holding his arm and looked up to where he left Frost, taking no notice of the oncoming vehicles that swarmed around him. All traffic screeched to a halt and everyone who looked upon the mighty blue figure gasped in terror, though it was not Troy that they should fear.

'Not sure that was good move!' Troy said aloud.

Suddenly Frost's truck appeared from above and broke through the barriers at great speed. Troy had no time to move and simply dropped to his knees for protection. The truck slammed into the highway where Troy crouched and a large portion of the road gave way. Troy, Frost, the Truck, a few cars and a lot of debris rained down on the ground level highway, smothering unsuspecting vehicles in a shower of destruction.

Mystified onlookers got out from their vehicles as the dust began to settle. Nothing was moving in the mangled mess that had previously been a section of the road above. Finally they looked up to see a blue figure hanging on to a small steel railing just next to where the highway had collapsed. Troy managed to grab a steel fastening rod as he fell and avoided the destruction below. He hung in pain; although he was wearing his armour the force of the truck was not easily endurable. The twisted wreckage began to move and Frost was beginning to re-surface from the maze of concrete and awkward steel. Troy dropped to the ground below and ran across the highway dodging vehicles on the opposite side. He leapt over the steel girders and ran into a dusty field; he stopped after a kilometre or two and waited patiently for Frost. The assassin eventually clambered from the wreckage and a concerned onlooker ran towards him to ask about survivors, Frost sideswiped the innocent man's head and it flew into the air as his headless body slumped to a heap. Frost continued the pursuit and finally they were face to face with scimitars engaged, they prepared for battle.

Both menacing figures started circling each other, Frost's eyepiece locked onto Troy's and Troy's locked onto his. The adrenaline was pumping frantically through Troy's veins now and so was something else, after a week of using his armour he could feel it beginning to bond with his body and he started to feel stronger. Frost leapt into the air and started firing his gun at Troy with cunning precision sending beams of green light from Troy's armour dissolving into the ground. Troy's left leg blasted from under him and he fell to the ground face first, Frost came down quickly and tried to slam his right scimitar into his brother's head. He rolled away just in time and regained his stance.

Frost turned again to face his brother and began to run quickly towards him, scimitars aimed at his head as they passed, Troy ducked as fast a lightening and jabbed his left scimitar deep into Frost's lower abdomen. Black liquid poured from Frost as he dropped to the floor awkwardly. Troy seized his chance and sunk his right scimitar into the back of his brother's head. The tips of the silver blades appeared suddenly from the front of Frost's black head and again black liquid fired out in all directions like a burst water pipe. Troy stepped back and Frost lay lifeless at his feet. He retracted his scimitars, the black liquid from Frost's inanimate body slid off them and dripped to the ground as the silver blades returned to his blue hands. He stood in awe at what he had just done. He had defeated his brother and saved the planet with one decisive blow.

Frost's black blood trickled at ever increasing speed towards its owner and he began to re-generate, Troy stepped back in amazement as Frost slowly got back to his feet. Troy now knew beyond a doubt that his brother was truly indestructible.

'It will take much more than that Daryl, I assure you' Frost said like a soulless entity bent on world domination. With lightening fast speed Frost jumped to his feet and slashed both his scimitars at his brother's head. His body had completely healed. Troy had just enough time to knock Frost's scimitars away with the back of his hand and dived away from his attacking brother.

Cunning move after cunning move Frost attacked with all his strength and skill, Troy tried frantically to block each attack and somehow managed to keep his angry attacker at bay. Frost let out a sly kick and knocked Troy from his feet. He slumped to the floor on his chest and quickly rolled away from certain death. He regained his stance and this time he made the attacking moves. His reflexes matched his cybernetic brother's perfectly and he fought with a guile that no machine could ever beat. Their scimitars were barely visible to the many observers that had now run from the highway to inspect the commotion; they kept their distance and watched the fight. After some time the blue part of the brawling blur was sent flying backwards with awesome power, Troy skidded along the ground and came to rest fifty metres from Frost who stood glaring at him through a glowing red eyepiece.

He got up and a smokescreen of sandy dust flowed from his armour like a cape in the cool autumn breeze. He regained his posture and once again prepared for battle as Frost ran at him quickly. He jumped into the air and prepared to finish the fight; Troy activated his right scimitar and ejected it powerfully into his attacker in mid air. Both blades stuck deep into Frost's armour just below his neck and the sheer force sent him backwards uncontrollably. He threw his arms out to his sides and gained control of his fall. He flipped backwards in mid-air and as he did he poised himself for landing. He gracefully landed on one knee and waved Troy over to his position with his scimitar. Troy ran and jumped in attack and as he passed over Frost's head he landed an unexpected blow on his brother's shoulder with his one remaining scimitar, spilling some more of his black blood. As he passed Frost he didn't realise his brother had also landed a sly slash on his right leg. The wound was quite deep and as he tried to regain his stance his injured leg gave way.

Frost walked towards his brother who was now clearly in a great deal of pain and prepared to finish him off. Troy managed to get to his feet once again and he to prepared for the final onslaught. Their arms seemed to merge into one as they moved faster than before each trying their utmost to land a fatal blow. Troy could feel his neurons burning as he skilfully defended himself from his attacker with only one scimitar. Finally the fight reached boiling point and Frost seemed to drop his guard temporarily, Troy threw his scimitar quickly at his brother's head. Frost beat his brothers speed and thrust his right scimitar, catching Troy's arm in between the two blades of his deadly weapon. Before Troy could counter the move Frost sank his left scimitar into Troy's chest, piercing his right lung and rendering him defenceless.

Blood gushed and spurted from the grilled mouthpiece of his armour and as Frost moved back to watch his pitiful brother die, the armour deactivated to prevent the fallen agent from drowning in his own blood. Troy looked up at Frost who was clapping slowly and sarcastically, he knew his time was up.

'So here we are Daryl, the end of the line. I can sense your armour is starting to bond with your body now' Troy's ears picked up, he could feel a tiny presence in his mind and he knew that if he didn't die soon he would be corrupted like his twin brother. He sat silently, defeated with his arms at his sides wishing for the nightmare to end. Frost lifted his hands in the air and bolts of blue electricity began to ripple over his body, he lowered his hands as if holding a football and the electrical energy started to collect. After sometime the ball of light had grown and Frost let it go at the speed of light into Troy's armour belt sending him skidding violently across the sandy floor once more.

He laid lifeless, blackened by the blast when suddenly his wounds began to scab up quickly and heal, his armour started to pour from his buckle once again. The surge of energy that Frost had unleashed on him was enough to cause his armour to continue the bonding process.

'Like brother, like brother' Frost said to Troy who still wasn't moving just thirty metres from him.

Suddenly a beam of blue light filled the air and struck Frost powerfully from behind. Frost was taken completely by surprise and as he rolled on the ground awkwardly, thousands of blue beams struck him, he had no idea what was happening. The black vessel that was responsible for the assault turned around for another pass. Frost looked up at the black mysterious chopper that had come from nowhere. He immediately ordered the Mark Two to his location on his communicator but for the moment he was vulnerable. The Gunship came back and as it got close a constant beam of blue light hit the ground just in front of Frost and then struck his left leg. As he rolled over to move away he realised the beam had severed it. Horrified he grasped for his lifeless limb and as he did another blue beam sliced his right arm from his body. Incapable of getting away Frost lay severely damaged, he may have become invincible to all weapons that he knew of but he had never met the Gunship.

The timely helicopter lowered itself to where Troy lay; the side door opened and a halo of shimmering light covered the agent's bleeding body. He was suddenly lifted into the air and carried into the Gunship. Troy could not manage speech now and he wondered how the Gunship could possibly have come to his aid. Blood still dripped from his mouth although he felt much stronger. He lifted himself to the command console and took control.

'Gunship to the rescue!' Troy said trying to lighten his mood, he tried to de-activate the armour without success and knew that his fate was sealed. If he weren't destroyed by Frost he too would be wiping out whole cities just for the hell of it.

Down below, Frost's severed limbs began to slowly re-attach themselves as if by some kind of magnetism, they watched as he got up and climbed aboard the Mark Two.

'The Mark Two is moving into attack position' the computer announced. Suddenly the Gunship was rocked violently by the newly arrived Mark Two and its barrage of powerful green light, Frost was at the helm and the battle was far from over.

'Let's finish this evil bastard once and for all' Troy said finding a new strength from no-where.

The Gunship rose into the air and pelted the Mark Two with a barrage of Neutron beams, all six of the small openings on the Gunship's wings fired beam after beam relentlessly. Frost could not control his chopper effectively and knew he was outmatched. This was only child's play for the Gunship and it had in no way unleashed all of its fury into the humble Mark Two. Frost took his vessel to full speed and the Gunship gave chase, Frost tried to fend off the attacking chopper with an energy surge as he had done many times before, he felt threatened and it was showing. A large white ball ejected from the exhaust of the Mark Two.

'You're like a broken record Arrin' Troy said as the ball of sheer energy dissolved on the Gunship's shielding system. Frost had nowhere to run and certainly nowhere to hide. He decided to take Troy on a wild goose chase to try and shake him but he had no idea what the Gunship could do.

Frost ducked and dived over the rocky terrain of the Grand Canyon. The Mark Two cut so close to the terrain that every so often it struck the tops of the mountains and sent fragments of rock careering down to the ground below. Troy kept hot on Frost's tail and managed to avoid the tops of the craggy rocks. Troy fired another barrage of Neutron beams at the Mark Two, knocking it off balance completely and sending it crashing into one of the orange canyons. The black chopper smashed at high speed against the rock, it rolled awkwardly and finally hit the floor of the canyon. Incredibly, Frost managed to regain control and again sped off to escape. The Gunship began to speed up rapidly and Troy rammed her into Frost's dying vessel. Frost was knocked from his command chair and he rocked inside the shell of his helicopter as it rolled uncontrollably.

He scrambled back to his seat and prepared the Ion Drive for action. After a few moments the Mark Two bolted upwards at incredible speed towards space. Troy knew this would be the ideal chance to use the An-Tam torpedo that Janner had told him so much about. After a few moments the Ion drive aboard the Gunship thumped out its mighty roar and within seconds the Mark Two was in sight. A thick stream of green light blasted from the Gunship and hit the fleeing helicopter, the beam cut straight through the hull and damaged the Ion Drive. Frost knew all he could do was return to Earth as he had no chance of using the Ion drive again, it was damaged beyond repair. A ball of shimmering silver light fired suddenly from the Gunship. It was an An-Tam torpedo and it was heading straight for Frost's doomed helicopter. Frost had started his decent back into Earth's atmosphere and the deadly torpedo narrowly missed his hull. The weapon exploded some two thousand Kilometres from where the Mark Two had been and the explosion was the like of which Troy had never imagined let alone seen before.

The Gunship followed Frost's helicopter back to Earth, they were now just above the Antarctic continent and the Mark Two entered a steep dive. The Gunship followed matching in speed and skill, Troy could clearly see the huge gash in the side of the pursued vessel and he knew that the battle was close to conclusion. As he continued the steep dive Troy fired another An-Tam Torpedo in sheer rage, not thinking about the consequences, he was too close to Frost and he too would be destroyed. The two finest creations of the SIA rocketed to the ground below flanked by the most powerful weapon in the known Universe. There was a fraction of a second before the weapon exploded just above the atmosphere ahead. Troy's only chance was to activate the Ion drive and power the Gunship away to safety. The fearsome might of Janner's An-Tam torpedo unleashed itself above the white continent below turning ice into vapour. A huge ball of dust filled the sky and turned day into night, the seas rose and swallowed whole cities. Thousands of tiny droplets of black americium from the fallen choppers rained down on the scorched desert below. Neither vessel could have survived in the mighty blast. Millions died in the huge wall of fire but that was billions less than what Frost had planned before his efforts were thwarted.

Two months passed, the seas returned to normal and the sun's rays once again immersed the Earth with their radiant glory. In the middle of a gigantic crater in the new Antarctic desert a middle-aged man in a cream trench coat walked around kicking rubble and dust into the path of his understudy, annoying him greatly.

'Have you found anything Dr Janner?' The younger of the two impatiently asked.

'Yes I'm afraid I have. The blast would have been too intense for any biological remains to survive but I think I've found enough material to say they both died in their armour. There's definitely enough debris to substantiate the theory that both the Gunship and the Mark Two were destroyed. I suppose it was too much to hope for, Daryl did his job and he did it well. He sacrificed his own life for the good of the planet' Janner said half hopefully and half sorrowfully.

'What now then Dr? Rebuild the SIA?'

'Now Carl, we live our lives and try to forget about the whole affair. It is all we can do and it is all I have the strength for. Come on let's go' Janner said defeated. He turned around and looked back to where he had been stood thoughtfully.

'Take it easy Daryl wherever you are now and all of you my friends, I will miss you greatly' A tear formed in Janner's eye as he left the sight were his most treasured agents lay in unmarked graves.

Thousands of miles away on a tropical island drenched in searing sunshine, a young couple stroll along an empty beach hand in hand. He lifts his head to the deep blue sky and a look of sadness covers his face like a shroud. He touches two large scars on his upper chest and then looks back down at the beautiful young lady at his side, his sadness turned to happiness instantly and they walked into the deep red and orange sunset.

# End
