Techno slowly opened the black door at the top of the staircase. He wasn’t too worried about
himself, both Biceps and MM usually slept until 8 am and he could make an excuse for being
on level one. However, Jack’s gang needed to make it down the lift unseen by the ninja
guards or the mission would fail.
Techno signalled the others to follow him out with a quick wave of the hand and tip toed
towards the lift in the dim light. After a few tense moments, they heaved a sigh of relief as
they all stood safely facing the lift door, its stainless steel polished to a mirror. Another ten
minutes and they would be back in their accommodation.
Grey shadows flashed across the mirrored surface and merged into the darkness of the
reflected rocks. They all saw them and hoped it was in their imagination, but when each child
turned, their stomachs lurched with fear as they faced the four ninjas who stood motionless
just 20 metres away. Techno and the gang fanned out in a small crescent shape, shoulder to
shoulder and then the lift door softly sighed open behind them, giving them a chance to
escape. They all flicked a quick glance over their shoulders and saw the ugly smiling faces of
Twip Twop and Biceps who stood with their arms crossed within the recess.
It was Twip Twop who spoke as he watched the group edge away from both the ninjas and
him to form a wider defensive formation. ‘Treachery teaches us many lessons doesn’t it
children? How loyalty is just a fleeting emotion. How colleagues can become adversaries.
How friends can become enemies.’
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‘You were never my friend Twip Twop.’ Techno’s voice was low and menacing. Biceps
grunted loudly, he was ready to tear them all apart if given the order by the albino. Kit Kat
grasped Jack’s hand, he could feel her shaking with fear.
He spoke to her as they all stepped further backwards. ‘Be yourself, was grandma’s advice.
Forget anything else Kate and remember your training.’ She gripped his hand more tightly
and then let it go as she raised her hands in a jiujutsu defence position. ‘Get behind us all
Roger, keep “it” safe and make a run for it if you think you can make a clean escape alone.’
‘Will do Jack.’
‘Ninjas first, I like to be polite.’ Twip Twop ordered the attack. The four ninjas advanced,
they stepped slowly and deliberately, always with their feet apart and their hands raised in a
classic karate attack style. They knew they wouldn’t need to use their weapons to beat this
rabble of kids.
Roger whispered from behind his friends. ‘Sergeant Sargent said attack was the best form of
defence. Remember they don’t know about our training nor the power suits.’
‘One each then but not until I shout scones.’ Jack was smiling at the enemy who spoke no
English.
‘What?’ Kate remonstrated, ‘scones? Why not cupcakes, they’re so much tastier.’
Roger added, ‘yes Jack, I like cupcakes better.’
‘Look you two, never mind arguing about cakes, so long as they’re Japanese, they won’t
understand and neither will Twip Twop and Biceps.’
‘I beg your pardon Jack, but if they understand “ninjas advance” maybe they do speak
English.’ Roger was always brighter than the others in the gang.
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The ninjas were now within a few metres and saw their quarry had dropped their arms by
their sides as a gesture of submission. The ninjas relaxed as they closed, it was to be a fatal
mistake.
‘Just grab them and stop messing.’ Biceps deep voice boomed out. The ninjas stepped
forward on his ill-judged command.
‘Cupcakes!’ Jack screamed loudly as his foot smashed into the leading ninja’s face,
immediately knocking him unconscious. He turned to his right to see that Techno was lying
on the floor face down with a ninja pinning him down. Jack attacked swiftly with a two-
handed chop to the ninja’s neck making him roll off his friend and giving Jack a second to
whirl around and look for the next opponent. Kate had thrown her attacker over her shoulder,
leaving Roger to finish him off with a deadly kick to the windpipe. She was now sparring
with the last ninja. He dropped and spun on one hand whilst stretching his right leg out to cut
her legs from beneath her. By the time she hit the floor he was crouched above her and ready
to deliver a killer chop to the windpipe.
‘Excuse me old chap!’ The ninja raised his eyes to see Jack’s foot slam into his nose. He fell
back and lay still. The friends regrouped as Biceps roared and ran at them from the lift.
‘Victoria sponge!’ Jack and Roger understood Kit Kat immediately. Sponges are made of two
parts with a filling. The brute had grabbed Jack by the neck and started to choke him with his
massive bare hands. As Jack’s eyes bulged, Kate rolled forward and grabbed Biceps left leg
and Roger did the same and grabbed the right, and then they twisted so their legs were
parallel to the floor but with their feet pushed firmly together. They had made a human brace
between Biceps legs, a human ram without any strain as their knees were bent.
‘The splits!’ Roger shouted as he anticipated the next move and started to straighten his
knees. The power suits had never been used like this before but Kate and Roger knew the
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strength of their leg muscles was ginormous. Add on the basic mechanics of distance
multiplying the force and the result was excruciating for their enemy and perfect mechanics
judged by Roger. Biceps screamed with his mouth wide open as the pain seared through his
groin. He instantly dropped Jack who was suspended a metre off the floor and now blue in
the face through lack of oxygen. Bicep’s legs split wider apart as the children applied more
pressure and his screams echoed off the roof of the cave as they became even louder as the
pain increased. Suddenly his groin and hips separated into two unequal parts with a squelchy
tearing noise coming from beneath his trousers. His screaming stopped as he lost
consciousness but Kit Kat and Roger kept pressing until the giant had collapsed on his face
with a thud and splat as his nose broke. Biceps, the terror of the volcano, overpowered by
mere kids who had split his difference.
‘Doughnuts,’ choked Jack as he tried to make a dubious joke, ‘how appropriate, but now’s the
time to run for it.’ Jack stood and rubbed his neck as he watched Twip Twop disappearing
towards MM’s bedroom. ‘The lift, quick.’ They all raced to the lift and jammed at the button
to close the door. As it sped downwards, the children and Techno collapsed against the walls,
dragging deep breaths into their bodies and trying to steady their nerves.
* * *
J sat in the PM’s private office in Downing Street. It was a pleasant office, with a tall windowthat faced onto the garden and the second flush of roses. Many of the perennial plants like
poppies already sported dried seed heads as autumn was fast approaching. The PM stood
looking out, he had his back to J and Wolf who were sat in the worn leather chairs by his
desk.
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The PM spoke tersely. ‘We’re going in with conventional forces first.’
It was Wolf who was the first to object. ‘What about the children? There must a hundred or
more lives at risk.’
The PM turned to face him. ‘The analysts believe that overwhelming force is the only way to
guarantee entry into the volcano. A low key, quiet SAS attack in the middle of the night is
doomed to failure. The volcano is too well protected, the reconnaissance teams have seen that
over the last two weeks.’
Wolf continued to argue. ‘And what about what they can’t see? This woman is completely
insane and has had ten long years to perfect her defences.’ J let the young whipper-snapper do
the talking. He agreed with Wolf, but couldn’t speak to the Prime Minister in that challenging
way. J’s long experience with the bad decisions of elected politicians always rankled with
him but he had to toe the diplomatic line or lose his job.
‘It’s a risk we have to take. The President and I have sanctioned the attack for today at 10.30
am. The memory stick gave us the day and time for the terrorist attack and therefore that is
the latest we can leave it. Overwhelming force is our only answer, just like in Iraq. We have
two aircraft carriers, six cruisers and two subs in position close to the Kenyan coast at
Mombasa. The subs will launch cruise missiles and their autopilots will guide them down the
main passageways and into the heart of the volcano within five minutes. The auxiliary ships
landed 10000 troops and their vehicles and tanks at first light and the men are now
surrounding the volcano. There will be fifty harrier jump jets above them for simultaneous air
attacks using sidewinder missiles or cannon. Therefore, it will be impossible for Madame
Musseine to resist.’
‘But that’s madness!’ Wolf slammed his hands on the desk in front of him.
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‘Quiet Wolf and that is an order.’ J turned to the PM. ‘Nick, please reconsider. Or at least wait
a few hours longer in case Jack and his gang are successful.’
The PM turned a bleary eye towards J. He hadn’t slept the night before as the decision
weighed heavily on his conscience. He felt defensive as he replied. ‘Johnson, I have always
trusted you since we were at prep school together but your blind faith in five children is quite
frankly astonishing.’
‘It’s not faith. It’s trust.’ J was too sharp with the reprimand to his old friend Nick Clegg.
‘There is no choice. There is no turning back. The attack is imminent.’ The PM turned away
from the MI6 men and stared at the garden again. His mind was made up and they could
change nothing in his and The President’s plan. ‘You did your best, now let it go.’
‘But that’s madness sir.’ Wolf stuck to his guns. ‘We all know the chances of success must be
50/50, like spinning a coin for heads or tails. Heads we save the world and tails...’
J completed his sentence. ‘And tails, a hundred children and a few thousand soldiers die.’
The PM couldn’t face them but he stood his ground. ‘Forget the betting game. The decision is
made. Now go home and sleep, your jobs are complete. I want you bright and alert in the
office tomorrow and working on another task. Forget project conman and that is an order.’
Wolf and J were heavy hearted as they went out of the door. Both were looking sullen and
shaking their heads in rebellious silence, but a decision had been made by the Commanders
in Chief of The Free World.
However, J and Wolf were special individuals; that’s why they had risen so high within the
ranks of MI6. There was no way they would leave the children in the lurch and so they
headed straight back to Somerset House to contemplate the problem and decide on a course
of action. But Wolf was way ahead of J on this one. He didn’t have the constraints of loyalty
and deference to the politicians. He immediately went to the rooftop for some privacy and
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animatedly talked to Brett using his satellite phone. Wolf had decided they needed Brett as
close to the action as possible and after listening to the MI6 agent’s update, Brett jumped in
his Hummer and headed south from the hotel. After crossing the Kenyan border he turned
eastwards and accelerated into the wilds of Tanzania.
* * *
The mountain of Kibo, one of three volcanoes that made up Kilimanjaro, was riddled withancient passageways. Many had been explored by the Maasai who were now in Madame
Musseine’s debt and therefore they had given her information that had been handed down
through generations of Maasai chiefs. Extinct fumaroles provided a perfect and secret
passageway to those in the know and Twip Twop was one of those in the know.
Techno, Kit Kat, Roger and Jack were physically and emotionally exhausted as they exited
the lift onto level three. Jack encouraged them all to “look normal” and they split into two
groups to walk “normally” back to the accommodation sector where Timmo and Marshall
were waiting for them. But they were anything but “normal” now as they were the arch
enemies of Madame Musseine who would have been informed of their treachery by Twip
Twop. As they passed other children on their way to breakfast or technicians on their way to
the AICs, they glanced nervously at every individual. On two occasions the technicians were
Japanese which made them pause and turn away until the technician’s had safely passed, as a
ninja could easily borrow a white technician’s coat. Therefore, by the time Kate and Jack
walked into their bedroom they were glad to have returned to a dubious safety. Jack pushed
open the door and stepped inside. He was closely followed by Kate.
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Twip Twop was stood at the far end of the room with his back towards the rear door that had
always been locked. Now they realised why. It enabled MM’s henchmen access at all times
and by sprinting through the secret passage ways leading from level one it had helped Twip
Twop to surprise Timmo and Marshall before the others had returned. He held two boxes in
his hands. They didn’t contain bullets but were just as lethal. The ominous black box chargers
of the XREP’s were close to Timmo and Marshall’s heads as they sat on a bed facing the
main door.
Roger and Techno bundled in behind Jack and Kit Kat. Immediately Techno fanned to the left
of Jack and Kit Kat followed his example but fanned to the right.
Roger stood close to Jack and whispered encouragement.
‘It’s okay, there are four of us. If Twip Twop managed to get here so quickly, then he won’t
have had time to inform MM about our treachery.’
‘What are those black boxes Roger?’ Jack needed to know what they were up against as they
circled around Twip Twop.
‘They look like sources for eXtended Range Electro-Muscular Projectiles. Range – well
unfortuantely we are too close to avoid them. Kill rating is 100 per cent on a head shot at zero
range. Evasive action…unknown.’ Roger was too precise for Jack. The information hurt him
badly. This was his brother.
Techno shouted at Twip Twop. ‘If you harm my brother I promise I will kill you.’
Twip Twop’s head jerked to the left a few times. A nervous twitch from the deranged brain.
‘So what. Your time is up anyway. MM has no need of you anymore.’
‘So everything you little albino idiot. We have the SD card and therefore she can’t upload her
virus without it.’ Techno played his negotiating card. He was prepared to give the SD card to
Twip Twop to save his brother.
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The white hair flailed left then right as Twip Twop twitched. He was thinking hard. He could
buy his freedom from MM if he had the card and start his own business, his dream,
Assasination Limited.
He gurgled at Techno, ‘give it here then.’
‘I haven’t got it. Roger do you have it?’
‘No sorry Techno.’
‘Jack?’
‘No mate.’
Techno turned to Kit Kat. ‘So you kept it Kate?’
‘Sorry Techno, it seems that none of us have the SD card.’ She moved another metre to her
left, encouraging Roger to leave Jack’s side and further surround the albino.
Timmo spoke. ‘Don’t give this monstosity anything. I’d rather die than betray our cause.’
Marshall took his cue. ‘Yeah, don’t mind us. Just get him and put him down a steam filled
fumarole. That would give him his first ever suntan.’ The gang laughed making Twip Twop
unsure about his tactical advantage, these kids were acting too cool for his liking.
He spoke. ‘Just throw the SD card to me and I’ll leave you in peace with this lot whilst
they’re alive.’ He pushed Timmo and Marshall’s heads onto the bed with the XREP’s pressed
hard against them.
Jack’s heart lurched but his reply was ice cold. ‘No mate, if we gave you the card then we
have no bargaining position with MM ourselves. It’s a tough choice for you. Fail with us or
fail with MM. A lose, lose situation but fail with us and you will live. That’s your choice
mate.’ Twip Twop was licking his lips. He stood more upright with the XREP’s hanging
loosely in his hands. Jack watched him carefully. Sergeant Sargent had talked about
distraction and surprise. Twip Twop was watching the others edge closer and thinking about
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MM killing him for failing. Jack thought quickly, he had heard of the prototype weapons in
the police case in Northumbria a few years before. He remembered they were powered by
high voltage electricity. He suddenly had an idea. To his left was a fire hose. The red tap was
a simple 90 degree turn from off to full on. He sidled next to it. It was Kit Kat who cottoned
on to his next move. She moved a metre closer to Twip Twop. It was a sudden step to distract
him thus giving Jack a moment to pull out a metre of hose and flip the tap to on. A powerful
stream of water flew across the room and knocked Twip Twop backwards and against the rear
door. There was a bright blue flash that sparked outwards from both of his hands towards the
floor as the XREP’s short-circuited. Two surges of electricity jumped up his arms and the
high voltage started to burn the palms of his lily-white hands. Twip Twop’s hair stood on end
and a faint blue aura surrounded his head as he threw his arms in the air and immediately
dropped the XREP’s. Jack stepped closer pulling the hose off the reel as he moved. The water
was powerful enough to knock Twip Twop out of the door. They watched him crawl away
from the stream and lurch uncertainly to his feet. He was quick to run away but was lurching
from side to side, drunk on electricity and defeated for the second time.
Jack’s gang gathered by the bed and hugged each other hard.
Techno grabbed Marshall from the ruckus and pulled him close. ‘Thank god Marshall. I
thought you were a goner that time!’
‘Not yet Robert, I’ve only just found my brother and I am in no hurry to leave him.’
‘In that case let’s go and find our mum hey?’ Techno turned to the others. ‘Are you helping or
not?’ It was an easy decision as they bundled Timmo into his wheel chair and headed for the
door.
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* * *
MM’ voice came over the tannoy as they walked toward the lift to take them to level two, the
security zone. Jack glanced at his Rolex watch, it was nearly 10.30 am. He liked the design
and decided he needed to one but then he remembered Roger’s dad had forked out £3500 for
it. He realised it was a strange thought in the circumstances. ‘Ah well, maybe a new Swatch
watch would do, after all it just tells the time.’
She was speaking again, this time with more urgency. ‘Come my little players. Come and
play the extraordinary extravaganza against me. A personal fight to the death on “world
domination”. The very latest in 3D computer graphics and always and only me as your main
opponent for today only.’ It was enough to send the children scampering to the AICs. They
bumped and ran past the gang, eager to play a game against someone they still trusted.
Someone who was the ultimate opponent.
Marshall commented as he walked past the AICs and glanced into the flashing interiors.
‘Look at the innocence of it all.’
Techno clasped a hand on his brother’s shoulder. ‘If only they realised what a few key strokes
on a computer keyboard could achieve. That was my mistake originally.’
As they walked, they were all wondering where MM was at the moment; they didn’t want to
bump into her on their way to Mrs Hines’s cell. However, it had become clear during their
short stay inside the terrorist’s den that Madame Musseine kept herself to herself. Wherever
she was broadcasting from, she would be playing the game and would be surrounded by her
bodyguards.
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Roger interrupted the brothers. ‘It’s not about playing computer games is it? Surely the chaos
theory takes precedence. You know, one tiny event like a butterfly crossing the Atlantic
Ocean can have a massive impact on god knows what and where.’
Timmo shook his head negatively. ‘No way splodger. Everything is planned, technical and
scientific in our world now.’
However, Roger had read copious amounts about the chaos theory. ‘Really, there are whole
universities devoting time to study it. It’s a mixture of mathematics, with applications in other
disciplines like physics, economics, and even philosophy. It would probably explain “The
Reason” according to Sergeant Sargent. The deterministic nature of these systems doesn’t
make them predictable e.g. we have weather forecasts and they can be wrong.’ For the first
time ever, the friends stared at Roger and wondered what planet he came from. They were
gob-smacked by his speech.
Techno was leading the group and urged them to hurry. ‘We can’t stop the children playing
but we can save our mum.’
Kit Kat was feeling incredibly tense. ‘It’s okay taking on the ninja army and Madame
Musseine but then what’s the plan? Like, how do we get out of here?’ Before anyone could
reply the mountain rumbled, a cacophony of blasts reverberated around the cavern and
temporarily deafened the group who flung themselves instinctively to the hard rock floor.
Their training had instantly taken over and made them lie still and wait.
Timmo shouted at the top of his voice from his wheelchair above them. ‘It must be an
eruption! Kibo is set to blow again.’
Jack shouted back over the noise of further explosions as they edged nearer to the lift to gain
access to level two. ‘You dimmo, Timmo. It can’t be an eruption, the volcano is extinct not
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dormant.’ The earth shook again and a blast door 100 metres away was thrown across the
floor.
It was Roger who had the right answer. ‘They have lost confidence in us, it must be the Yanks
and Brits attacking MM with everything they’ve got.’
‘That’s madness’ said Jack, ‘there’s no way they can penetrate inside this place. He stood up
slowly from his crouch and looked at screaming children leaving the AICs and starting to run
amok. ‘Look we have to help the other kids. If they go outside they’ll get killed for sure.’
‘What about our mum?’ Marshall asked.
Jack pointed to Roger and Kate. ‘Go with Marshall and Techno and see what you can do but
be careful yeah?’
‘What about you and Timmo, Jack?’ Kate didn’t want to leave him.
‘We are going to get this lot into a safe area. Go! Go now and remember to squeeze your ear
lobes to turn on your minrads and stay in touch.’ They had all forgotten the minrads, the
tiniest radios available in the world. Whilst at the SAS camp they were surgically implanted
under the skin below the right ear. This gave a direct link to the ear drum and their vocal
chords allowing communication without interference but without carrying a large radio. The
5 kilometre range would be shortened because they were inside the mountain but with no
battery worries, the equipment could be a life saver. The energy cell inside each minrad used
the body’s heat to generate electricity and as they were all sweating on their fast walk, so
power was at the maximum. Smoke started to billow across the cavern, low clouds that stank
of cordite from the explosives in the cruise missiles. Jack turned away from the others and
started to push Timmo towards the stage where MM had greeted them a few days before.
Timmo observed one advantage. ‘At least the attack has stopped the children working!’ A
piece of rock crashed from the ceiling above them and hit a small Chinese girl who was
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passing. She didn’t stand a chance and must have been killed instantly. Gritting his teeth, Jack
pushed Timmo faster and headed towards the audio visual equipment on the gallery above
level three. Innocent children weren’t supposed to be seeing such adult realities; it was
inst