Devolution

In a brightly lit room filled with stainless steel furniture, Sid lay on a bed with his eyes closed and a wide smile on his face. The information he had sent to Jacobssen was detailed and would certainly lead them to Masterman. Whether they would find him there, or be able to capture him if they did, was no longer a matter of concern for him. If they did arrest him alive, would he talk? Again, not his problem.

Sid chuckled to himself. After this little operation he would be free. Free of the threat of Gareth Masterman and free from all his old problems; enemies and friends alike. Gone. He could start all over again.

On reflection he did not think it a drastic move at all to have his right arm removed. A custom made replacement limb would function every bit as well as the old one, maybe even better. Its advantage was that it did not contain a tracking device. Already fitted with a new set of contact lenses, which not only changed the color of his eyes from blue to brown, but also gave him a new retinal identity, he had then had the finger prints on his left hand removed and new ones grafted on, and now the final stage was here in this little laboratory.

A soft female voice said, ‘We are injecting the anesthetic now, and it will take effect immediately. Please lie still.’

Sid felt a small pin prick in the side of his neck, an insect bite, nothing at all and his last thought, before surrendering to the drug induced torpor, was goodbye Sid the assassin.

Underneath Gareth Masterman’s isolated Central Coast property was an identical dwelling, an underground twin. There were, however, two significant differences. Downstairs had only one access point, no other doors or windows and hence the second difference, no natural light.

Masterman was leaving, having finished the necessary preparations he now descended the stairs and entered the living room where an attractive young girl sat on the lounge watching the television. As he approached he admired her figure once more, deliciously accented as it was by the pure white bikini she wore. The contrast between it and her dark skin was breathtaking.

She spoke first. ‘When are you going to tell me why I am here?’

‘Your father was a great man, Veena.’

Her stomach tightened and she wished she hadn’t asked the question.

Masterman continued, ‘He and Senator 15 were in a position to do something great but they were cowards in the end.’

Veena felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

‘I had to be the Newtonian champion. I had to push the cause for the greater good.’

Temporarily confused by his claim to be Newtonian, Veena remained silent while he continued his monologue.

‘Destruction of the other tribes if they opposed us. Violent force not mealy mouthed diplomacy. Morphing into some sort of grotesque amphibians? What kind of solution is that? I wouldn’t take the damned drugs and I sure as hell wouldn’t stand around twiddling my thumbs while those with power made weak and terrible decisions.’

She studied him as he raved on, and she noted the slight tone of hysteria creeping into his voice. He was insane.

‘Veena,’ said Masterman, suddenly recovering himself, ‘It’s time to go.’

‘Am I going to be allowed any clothes for this journey or do you want to keep on getting your jollys by seeing me in this underwear?’

‘It’s a swimming costume.’

‘I can’t see any swimming pools around here.’

Masterman crouched down beside her and reached out to stroke her leg. She pulled away from him. ‘I told you I’m not interested. If you want me you can try and take me by force but I’ll bust your balls while you try.’

‘I don’t do that,’ said he as he withdrew his hand. He noted how her nipples had hardened and were poking through the bikini top. ‘But you’re excited, I can see that.’

‘You’re a disgusting pervert.’

‘What’s so perverted, so twisted about desiring to experience a beautiful woman like you?’

‘To experience?’ said Veena, as she sat up and crossed her arms. ‘Listen to yourself. You think women are objects who exist for the pleasuring and entertaining of men, especially you apparently, and that all it takes is a few sweet words to get what you want. You’re a sad, sad man.’

Ignoring the comment, continued to stare at her and although she was accustomed to it because he did it often, she still felt used. She stood up and walked away from him. He followed, his eyes focusing on her firm buttocks.

‘Peaches,’ he said as he grabbed her from behind and pulled her tight against his body. She could feel his erection in the small of her back.

Her reaction was swift and according precisely to her warning. Her elbow hit him in the stomach forcing him off her. He stumbled backwards unprepared for a side kick from Veena which did not miss its target. Masterman collapsed, his eyes watering.

Veena’s stance indicated to Masterman she was ready to strike again should he approach, and he took the hint, even smiling.

‘No more time for games, Veena. Sorry. We have to go. Follow me please.’

His voice was infuriatingly calm. Polite measured speech as though nothing had happened: ever the pretentious gentleman.

Masterman turned and walked to the steps but when he failed to detect the sound of Veena’s bare feet padding behind him, he turned to her and said, ‘I can force you. Why not be a good little girl and come along peacefully, eh?’

‘I want some clothes.’

‘I feel safer with you as you are,’ he said, still smiling. Then the smile disappeared from his face as though the good Gareth had left the room and the bad Gareth entered to take his place. ‘I’m getting bored and impatient. Let’s go!’

Fear of being hassled by the macho man Hatsis was all that prevented both Joshua and 3 from asking the driver to stop and let them out. It wasn’t just the dangerously extreme speed at which they were traveling and how frightening that was, which made them sick, but it was the constant up and down of what was laughingly called a road.

‘How much longer?’ asked Joshua.’

‘Are we there yet?’ mocked Hatsis. ‘This is a riot. Aren’t you boys having fun?’

‘Lay off them Hatsis,’ said Jacobssen, before answering the boys, ‘Five minutes or so. The chopper is already there keeping watch. No sign of anyone yet. They’re under orders to wait for us.’

‘That might be too late.’

Everyone knew what that meant.

The car burst into a clearing, and Joshua could see a house and a large ATV parked out front. As they skidded to a halt on the dirt , a cloud of fine dry dust blocked their view but when it cleared they were all looking at the house. They saw two very large men dressed in black, a third man, also tall and obviously well built though not a giant like the other two, followed. Behind him, one more man who held a tight grip on the arm of a woman who Joshua and 3 recognized immediately.

‘Don’t move!’ ordered Jacobssen. ‘Both of you stay exactly where you are.’

The command was unnecessary because they actually couldn’t move at first because they were so shocked by the sight of Veena. Under different circumstances they might have been impressed by her appearance in a tiny bikini, something she never wore normally, but the urgent desperation of the situation dictated concern, even fear for her rather than the double sided pleasure of seeing her.

Jacobssen left the driver’s seat and crouched down behind the open vehicle door. Hatsis followed immediately, taking up the same position behind the back door. The angle at which the car was parked, although due to good luck rather than good management, afforded them cover from the house.

On the balcony, Masterman and his crew stopped in their tracks. Looking from the vehicle to the steady thumping of the helicopter overhead and back to the vehicle again, he seemed to be deliberating.

‘Are they armed?’ asked Hatsis.

‘Not that I can see.’

‘Why are we hiding behind these doors as though they might shoot us?’

‘It’s called being cautious.’

‘Fuck that,’ replied Hatsis and before Jacobssen could say anything to stop him, he had taken off across the clearing straight towards the house.

Jacobssen called to him but he kept on running. 3 held his breath as the distance between Hatsis and the house decreased rapidly. Ten meters. Five meters. Three, two…one of the guards held out a silver colored baton and pointed it at Hatsis. Before he got any closer he was suddenly knocked to the ground as though crash tackled by an invisible front row forward.

‘Pulser!’ said Jacobssen. ‘Shit!’

‘What was that?’ asked Joshua. ‘I’ve never seen anything like it.’

Masterman, surrounded by his men and still gripping Veena’s arm tightly, moved across the verandah and down the steps.

‘I haven’t seen one used either. They’re new and not as yet legal.’

Jacobssen quickly scrambled back behind the wheel and ordered the ignition on.

‘Who makes them? Where do they come from?’

Jacobssen ignored him.

3 said, ‘Now’s not the time for curiosity Josh!’

‘Hold your position eagle one,’ said Jacobssen.

The vehicle slid around in the dirt grasping for traction. Although tossed around in the back seat like clothes in a tumble dryer, Joshua and 3 watched Masterman enter his ATV followed by Veena.

‘Did she see us?’

‘I doubt it,’ answered Joshua.

‘Hold on boys!’

A warning from Jacobssen but it took a few seconds for the boys to realize what he was doing and by then it was too late to protest.

They braced for the impact. Eyes closed, heart pounding. Jacobssen had built up enough speed to hurt them all. Maybe even kill them.

‘This is gonna hurt!’ said Joshua.

Two of the guards, who had not yet got on board saw Jacobssen hurtling towards them and, despite the fishtailing apparent lack of control, realized they would be hit, ran away from the car. Jacobssen had counted on that.

There was no impact. A.C.S. activated and operated perfectly. A shudder followed by a shake and they stopped. No harm to vehicles or people.

Hatsis collected himself from the ground just as the two runaways came towards him. He stuck out a foot to trip one and stiff armed the other before pressing home his advantage by jumping on the first guy as he hit the deck and disarming him. The second rose from the dirt and charged at Hatsis who now had an electrogun. Impressively it was all over in few minutes.

‘Two down three to go,’ said Jacobssen.

Masterman’s car came to life and again a whirlwind of dust blinded them all as its tires pawed frantically at the ground. Straightening after a three sixty, it swerved around Jacobssen and headed for the road.

‘Eagle one!’

The chopper slowly descended into the gap blocking the cars exit. A passenger window came down and a body leaned out: at first just a hand holding that silver baton, then half a body, aiming carelessly at the chopper.

Jacobssen, 3 and Joshua were all out of their car watching. Hatsis joined them with a triumphant look on his face which soon faded.

The question as to whether the pulser contained enough power remained unspoken as they watched in horrified expectation.

When it had almost reached the chopper, the car slowed.

‘How close are they going?’

The body slid right out of the car window, smoothly and effortlessly rolled and regained his footing then leapt against the helicopter so that the silver baton actually touched it and the pulser fired. Like a dry leaf blown by a gust of wind, the chopper was thrust away, and cartwheeled backwards crashing into a large gum tree. The impact broke it in half and caused it to explode.

The man scrambled back inside the car which was already on the move, slammed the door and off they went.

‘Come on,’ roared Jacobssen racing back to his vehicle. ‘Come on! Come on get in!’

By the time they were all in, Masterman had at least three or four hundred meters head start.

‘Hit it,’ ordered Hatsis. ’Hit it! Let’s get ‘em!’