‘Our first act of retaliation will be to assassinate your World President.’
Those words rang through Captain Scarlet’s head on repeat.
He’d woken up from a crash that would have killed a lesser driver. He and Captain Brown had barely escaped from the inferno. But they had somehow been thrown clear of the crash. Brown had not been as seriously injured as Scarlet had, an injury bad enough to prevent him from continuing this mission for a day or two, until Dr Fawn gave him clearance.
Paul relaxed in his quarters. The Colonel had been to see him and confirmed that Brown and the President had just arrived at the Spectrum Maximum Security Building.
Colonel White had barely left his room when the alarm sounded. Grabbing his cap and tunic, Paul rushed up to Command as the Colonel tried to get in contact with Destiny Angel. There were a couple of minutes of silence before the Angel got into contact – a relief to everyone present.
Destiny report the destruction of the safe house they had evacuated the president to. Colonel White thanked her and ordered her home, with the comment that they had feared she’d got caught up in the blast when she didn’t reply.
Stunned by the news, Paul stood there for several moments until the Colonel noticed him and ordered him to return to his quarters. Paul did so begrudgingly but with an eye out for the good Doctor. If Fawn saw him now not only would he get a lecture about what resting meant, Fawn may even prolong his medical leave. Paul sat on his couch, pondering what on earth could have gone wrong and mourning for Captain Brown.
Two days later, rested and cleared for duty, Captain Scarlet was standing next to a confused President Younger, who was seated beside Colonel White. They watched as the security video showed Captain Brown as being the source of the bomb. Then the Colonel gave him the mission – take the World President to London and guard him there.
The Spectrum Passenger Jet was quick and, as he piloted, Scarlet thought over what he knew of Captain Brown and just how he could have been ‘turned’. He’d worked with him multiple times, and he really couldn’t believe that the man could have defected just like that.
Unfortunately – or fortunately, depending on viewpoint – Scarlet was not privy to the conversation that was currently happening on Cloudbase between Colonel White and Lieutenant Green.
‘Spectrum Control.’
‘Spectrum New York reports body of Captain Brown found near scene of car crash.’
Lieutenant Green turned to Colonel White, confusion clear on his face.
‘What does this mean, Sir?’
‘The Captain Brown who escorted the President must have been an imposter! Something must have happened at that car crash that we don’t understand.’
‘But Captain Scarlet was there!’
‘Captain Scarlet! Whatever happened to Captain Brown may also have happened to Captain Scarlet! Lieutenant Green, contact Destiny Angel immediately and tell her to escort Captain Scarlet back to the carrier.’
‘Yes, Sir.’
Cloudbase clearly heard Destiny Angel calling Captain Scarlet over the comms.
‘You are to return to Cloudbase immediately. Captain Scarlet? Did you receive my message?’
There was no reply, and Destiny called Cloudbase back and the Colonel answered.
‘Cloudbase, Captain Scarlet does not answer.’
‘Something has happened to Captain Scarlet! Somehow the Mysterons have affected him. That means the President is in grave danger.’
The Colonel’s command centre swung around and he studied the map on the wall with Scarlet’s location flashing.
‘He’s just crossing the English coast. Lieutenant Green – put me in direct contact with Destiny Angel.’
‘Yes, Sir.’
‘Destiny Angel? Now listen carefully. I want you to make a dummy attack on Captain Scarlet’s aircraft. Open fire and make sure you miss.’
‘S.I.G.’
Meanwhile, the Spectrum passenger plane Scarlet was flying continued over England. The World President seemed fine, but that niggling feeling that Scarlet had had since the crash began to bother him.
He kept an eye on the three Interceptors following him, only to see Destiny Angel peel off and dive towards them. A missile fired and detonated in front of them and the shockwave buffeted them for a moment.
‘You need to return to base! Spectrum, this is your World President speaking…’
President Younger was beginning to panic, Scarlet could see it, but he was too busy controlling the plane over the turbulence to reply to the man. But when the President grabbed the mike he had no hesitation in hitting the instrument into the man’s face, stunning him into silence.
There were bigger things going on here than allowing the President to sound any form of alarm.
As Destiny lined up for another run Scarlet hit the eject buttons, releasing both his and Younger’s chairs. He knew – hoped – that Destiny wouldn’t shoot them down like this.
‘Cloudbase, Captain Scarlet has ejected. Repeat, ejected.’
‘S.I.G. Survey them on their descent. Report their landing position.’
‘S.I.G.’
‘Lieutenant Green – give me Spectrum Headquarters London.’
‘Yes, Sir.’
White watched as Green’s chair moved down the console until he reached and flipped the switch he wanted.
‘Ok, Sir.’
‘Colonel White, Cloudbase. Captain Scarlet and the World President have ejected approximately 60 miles southwest of London City centre. Have the nearest Spectrum Pursuit Vehicle on the road immediately.’
‘Yes, Sir.’
Destiny Angel flew over where the two men had landed, keeping a close eye on them and reporting in as requested to Cloudbase.
‘Captain Scarlet and the President have landed. I can see their parachutes near the road. Captain Scarlet has taken the President at gunpoint to a nearby car and they have now left in a northerly direction.’
‘S.I.G. Pass radio-fix on car and local map references. Spectrum Pursuit Vehicle will be operational in five minutes.’
‘S.I.G.’
As Destiny trailed the stolen car on the other side of London a red car pulled into a petrol station with a squeal of breaks. The man in the booth looked at the driver – dressed in the Spectrum Colour Captain uniform.
‘Captain Blue, of Spectrum. Pursuit Vehicle A69 please.’
‘Pass, please.’
Captain Blue presented his pass and the man looked at the information on it with interest.
‘I see you have expert rating on SPV’s. It must be tricky facing backwards and driving via TV monitor.’
‘Eh, you get used to it.’
He watched as the removal truck parked to the side suddenly, with the ‘bang’ of small explosions, collapsed down to expose the SPV. Captain Blue wasted no time switching to the armoured car and speeding off to intercept his targets.
‘Captain Blue. Captain Scarlet’s vehicle is a white saloon, registration CR2 X00, has just turned onto M21, in direction of London Car-Vu.’
‘Destiny Angel, I have joined the M21. I should make contact with Captain Scarlet’s car in a few minutes.’
‘Rhapsody Angel, there are only two roads Captain Scarlet’s car can now take. One of them terminates at London Car-Vu. Peel off and destroy viaduct on the London Road.’
‘S.I.G.’
Rhapsody Angel did exactly what she was asked, and with one shot the bridge was destroyed. It was an excellent ploy to get Captain Scarlet into a position that would be to his disadvantage while to Spectrum’s benefit. Destiny watched as the car turned onto the dead-end road.
‘Well done, Rhapsody Angel. Captain Blue – Captain Scarlet’s car has now turned off the M21 and is heading for the London Car-Vu.’
Colonel White now entered the discussion.
‘Spectrum Helicopter A42. Divert to London Car-Vu.’
‘S.I.G.’
‘Calling Spectrum Angels, Captain Blue and Helicopter A42. Captain Scarlet is now trapped. Soon he will be climbing the Car-Vu, and when he gets to the top that’s the end of the line.’
In the white saloon car Scarlet drove in silence, not unaware of the anxious glances President Younger was giving him. He didn’t regret hitting the man, if he’d said anything it could have stopped Scarlet from carrying out his plan. Scarlet was sure this plan would work…
They burst through the barriers to the Car-Vu. Goodness, was it only 9:30 am? It felt like this morning was going on forever! The giant platform, built to give drivers a birds-eye view out over London and the surrounding countryside as well as a picturesque place to park, towered above them.
He should have slowed down, but Scarlet was a trained Spectrum driver, and he kept the speed of the car to the maximum possible as they drove up the ramp that spiralled around the outside of the tower, ignoring the tires constantly squealing in protest.
‘You must be crazy! Your escape route is blocked! Give up now before it’s too late for both of us.’
Ah yes, for a moment Scarlet had forgotten that Younger could actually talk, he’d been so quiet up until now, and he was a typical politician – putting his own life before what needed to be done.
And Scarlet was damn sure he knew what needed to be done. He wished he didn’t need to be the one to do it, though. He ignored the man.
Less than a minute later the SPV Captain Blue was driving also burst through the remains of the barriers and hurtled after Scarlet. Keeping a careful eye on the monitor, Blue began to take charge as the Captain on the ground.
‘Spectrum Helicopter A42, what is your position?’
‘I’m already heading for London Car-Vu. Rendezvous in one minute.’
Blue nodded to himself. That helicopter was going to be a good asset to get this mission done.
The chase up the helix of the Car-Vu continued.
In an abandoned cottage with a clear view of the tower, Captain Black put down his field glasses. It was time for him to give the orders and finish the Mysterons’ mission.
‘Relaying instructions from the Mysterons. We have taken over Helicopter A42. It will pick you and the President up from the Skypark. I will again remind you – we must have the World President alive.’
‘The Mysterons instructions will be carried out.’
Satisfied, Black went back to watching the scene play out.
Destiny Angel flew as close to the Car-Vu as she dared, reporting back to both Cloudbase and to Captain Blue what she could see.
‘Captain Scarlet is leaving his car. He has the President at gunpoint and they are climbing out on the girder structure at the side of the Skypark.’
‘S.I.G.’
As Blue drove the SPV out onto the Skypark he could see Scarlet standing behind the President, using him as a shield. That could be a complication.
‘Spectrum Helicopter A42. You know the situation. As soon as you arrive your first target is Captain Scarlet. And make sure you shoot accurately – he’s right next to the President. Then winch the President to safety. This if I don’t get there before you myself.’
‘S.I.G.’
Captain Blue drove the SPV to the opposite end of the Skypark, parking the vehicle so he could use it to hide what he was doing. The Angels buzzing the tower caused Scarlet to look away, and Blue donned the jetpack and watched the helo coming into range.
‘Helicopter A42, I see you. I’ll stand by while you come into attack. You’ve got better cover than I have. You’ll find Captain Scarlet on the west corner of the Skypark.’
But rather than engage as instructed, the helo flew over the platform and headed straight for Captain Blue.
‘A42, did you receive my message? Please acknowledge.’
The line of bullets tearing up the platform towards him was all the acknowledgement Blue needed, and he quickly dodged to the side.
‘Destiny Angel! Helicopter A42 is firing at me. It must now be considered as hostile.’
‘S.I.G.’
Blue didn’t waste any time waiting for the Interceptor to engage the Helo, he needed to get to Scarlet and the President. Carefully he took aim and fired at his former Colour Captain, a bullet pinging off the girder Scarlet was hiding behind, but the return fire was as accurate, and not only did Blue have Scarlet to face but suddenly the A42 was back and shooting at him too.
There was no other choice, Blue gunned his jetpack and dived off the Skypark, using the structure to both protect and hide him from the pair trying to kill him. Of course, the Helo simply flew over and turned, getting ready for another attempt. Blue hovered near the support post from the centre and activated his comms.
‘Destiny Angel, come in for attack! Repeat – come in for attack’
‘S.I.G.’
Blue ducked behind the base of the Skypark as the Helicopter let rip again, just missing the sight of Destiny peeling off from the other Angels. He waited for the helo to reach its turning point before darting out again into the open, desperate to get to Scarlet and his hostage.
The sight of Destiny diving towards the Helo – and by extension the Car-Vu – had Blue’s heart beating faster. And then she opened fire.
Instead of shooting down A42, though, the Angel fired over the ‘copter at Blue, and with horror Blue realised that maybe the Mysterons had somehow infiltrated the Angels instead of the Colour Captains.
‘Cloudbase! Destiny Angel is shooting at me! Must consider Destiny Angel to be compromised.’
‘S.I.G. Captain Blue. Your priority is the safety of the World President. Harmony, Rhapsody, your task is both A42 and Destiny Angel.’
There were a chorus of S.I.G.’s and Blue found himself darting once more to the left as Harmony screamed by him, her sight set firmly on A42. She fired her gun in the hope that the shots would do less damage, but to everyone’s horror the helicopter crashed into the central support of the Car-Vu, plunging down the helix structure trailing thick black smoke until it blew up part-way down.
Several sections of the helix and the base of the Skypark fell to the ground and the whole structure swayed dramatically, and Captain Blue knew he couldn’t wait any longer. He flew up and confronted Captain Scarlet.
‘Ok, Captain, you don’t stand a chance. You throw your gun away and I’ll come and pick you both up.’
‘You heard him, Scarlet. Do what he says!’
But the only response was more gunshots.
Neither man was paying attention as Rhapsody Angel engaged Destiny, but as they faced off the hail of bullets cut between them, causing them both to pause.
Captain Black watched through the glasses as the two jets screamed overhead. The mission had failed, he knew it. He could feel that the Mysterons knew it too – their presence had vanished from his head. There was no saving Destiny now, and as he watched the plane was caught by the bullets and spun to the ground where it exploded. There was no sign of Destiny Angel ejecting, and Black knew it was time to leave.
The two Captains turned to each other. Blue was taken aback by the confusion on Scarlet’s face.
‘Captain Blue, how do I know you’re not a Mysteron Agent?’
‘What? You’re the Mysteron Agent, Scarlet!’
‘Don’t be ridiculous, man!’
‘But you kidnapped the World President!’
‘No – I knew there was someone else other than Brown. I just knew it. I – I thought it was you, that’s why I tried to get somewhere safer than the open streets.’
‘We thought you’d been got at at the same time Brown had. We thought you were the agent!’
The structure suddenly dropped to one side, and Scarlet almost fell out of the girder.
‘Well, for God’s sake man, get us out of here!’
‘S.I.G.’
The jetpack wasn’t really designed for carrying two, but the SPV would never make it down the damaged helix roadway now, so as carefully as possible Captain Scarlet and President Younger held on tightly to Captain Blue as he did a controlled plummet to the ground.
This was one debrief neither were looking forward to.
~
Scarlet and Blue stood sombrely before the gurney in Medical. On the table, under a white sheet, lay their friend and co-worker, Destiny Angel. Fawn gave them a moment to compose themselves before pulling the sheet back off her face. Blue remained quiet while Scarlet swallowed. As a close friend from even before Spectrum had been created it had fallen to him to confirm Destiny’s identity.
‘That is definitely Destiny Angel.’
The sheet was gently replaced.
~
The debrief was as bad as both Colour Captains thought it would be. Scarlet was – rightly – reamed for ‘kidnapping’ the World President, no matter how important he had felt it was at the time.
Scarlet had explained that he hadn’t heard Destiny calling him to return to Cloudbase. His physical injury of President Younger had been forgiven by the man, and Scarlet knew he’d been lucky to have been believed at all once he found out what they had known about Captain Brown. He also knew that he was due some ribbing for believing Blue was the Mysteron agent…
Blue was happy to give his report. As they had heard every word he’d said on Cloudbase there was very little he could add, and he’d been praised for his handling of the affair.
Colonel White looked at his Captains and his Angels. It was time to sum up events.
‘Members of Spectrum, our first operation against the Mysterons has been a success. The World President is safe. The man who hijacked him is here and fine and has been proven by a battery of tests to be 100% human. The woman who tried to kill them all has been positively identified as Destiny Angel.
‘What is even more amazing, Doctor Fawn reports that, despite her fatal injuries she is returning to life and she is no longer under the control of the Mysterons! It would seem that this Destiny Angel is now indestructible.
‘This presents us with the clear and exciting expectation that she can become one of our greatest assets in the fight against the Mysterons.’
The Captains and the Angels were stunned into silence at the news, and each one began to ponder the Colonel’s words.