SHADOWCORP Episode 2
written by kayemjay
THE LADY GOT OUT OF THE VAN and walked briskly towards the gate. She looked at her timer. In seven seconds the guard on patrol would be heading her way. She hid her medium frame by the west wall of the gate as she waited for the footsteps to get closer. She had memorized the guard’s strides and counted with the sound as his boots hit the gravel. The guard saw her and made to raise his gun. She had however anticipated his reaction and was too quick for him. She moved forward quickly taking two giant steps. Before the guard could raise his gun and finger the trigger, she sent a left hook to his throat and kicked his groin. The guard staggered back, dropping his gun and desperately trying to swallow saliva. He held his stomach as the air got knocked out of him. She went behind the guard, bent on one knee and twisted his neck. She retrieved the access card from the guard’s neck and inserted it in a dedicated slot beside the keyhole. The lock turned green and the latch was released. She pushed the gate inwards and let herself in.
“Alpha One, I am in. Proceeding to asset base.” The lady said.
“Copy that Omega. You have hostile incoming, two hundred yards to your one o’clock. You have to silence hostile.”
“But that is not in my direction. Is hostile a threat?”
“You never can tell, Omega. Move fast.”
The lady moved in between the shadows, avoiding the floodlights and sticking to the back of the containers lined up in stacks. Soon enough she was one container behind the guard. He was smoking a cigarette and had his gun lying idly beside him. She did not want to take him out but he may prove to be a threat later. She tip toed until she got behind him and tapped his shoulder from behind. He reached for his gun while turning simultaneously. She kicked the gun away from his grasp, and sent a jab to his face. He ducked and launched a punch to her lower abdomen. She hit his punch away and sent a flurry of blows to his face and chest. He staggered backwards, deflecting every punch that she sent and countering with his. She was surprised. She did not expect any guard to be this good. Unless he wasn’t a guard at all. She moved backwards a few steps creating space between both of them.
“Omega, look at his neck. He is ShadowCorp material. You have got to put him down.” Alpha one said into her ear.
She looked at his neck. There was an insignia on his neck close to his ear. It was like a tattoo but had a deeper mark. She knew she had to kill him or else she would jeopardize the mission. The guard was quite young. She guessed he would be in his late twenties.
“Come on lady. What are you waiting for?” He said waving a finger at her, taunting her.
She approached him, taking calculated steps. He stood his ground. She gave a right hook and then a left jab, both of which missed him. She tried to kick his groin but he read her intentions and blocked her leg with his palms. He grabbed her leg and pulled her towards him. He turned her round and held her neck, her back on his chest in a strangle hold.
“I would have loved this to go on for much longer. Pity you have to die. Good bye.” The guard said. He was squeezing her neck tight draining her life force.
She lifted her left leg and stomped on his foot with all the might she had. He yelped in pain, releasing his hold on her. Slipping out of the strangle hold, she punched his face and went behind him. Without giving it any thought, she twisted his neck. He fell on the floor, dead.
Moving quickly, she headed for the container that held Mr Raymond and knocked on it twice, the same way she had seen it done. As the door opened inwards she kicked the door fiercely, sending the man behind sprawling on the ground. He made to get up but she was already above him. Blood was trickling from a cut on his forehead. She ignored him and went to Raymond cutting him loose. As she was taking off the ropes that bound his legs, Raymond screamed suddenly.
“Behind you!”
She moved away just in time as the guard made to stab her with a small knife. He missed her by whiskers. She kicked his legs off the ground and got on top of him. With one hand on his neck, she strangled him while her other hand shook his flailing arm until he let go of the knife. She kept her hand on his neck, pressing with so much force. Seconds later he stopped struggling and was no longer breathing. She got up and straightened her cloth.
“Are you okay Raymond? Can you move?” She asked him.
Raymond was startled. Here was someone who almost lost her life trying to save him and yet, she was asking if he was ok. He could only manage a weak nod.
“Good. Let’s get out of here.” She said, helping him out of the chair.
They moved quickly and fast, going behind the containers and avoiding the flood lights. As they approached the gate, the lady put a finger in her ear.
“I am with the asset and we are on the move. Extraction needed immediately.” She said
“Copy that Omega, extraction prepared. Get out of the gate and follow your 9 o’clock. Hurry.”
She got out of the gate in tow with Raymond and turned left. She continued to walk down the road looking for the extraction that Alpha One had promised. She did not see any. As she placed her finger in her ear, there was a loud screech behind her. She moved away just in time as a Chevrolet Camaro came to a halt a few meters in front of her. A rough looking young boy, with worn out clothes got out of the car and approached the lady.
“For you madam.” The man said handing her the key with his outstretched hand.
She took the key without a word and got into the driver’s seat. Raymond followed suit, getting into the passenger side. The delivery man turned and walked the other way, not bothering to look back. Stepping on the accelerator, the lady sped off in the direction of the freeway.
“Buckle up Raymond. I drive rough.” The lady said, taking off her mask and shaking her hair to fall in place.
She looked beautiful. Pink lips, lovely eyes and a gap tooth. Her eyes were wide and her hail fell beautifully on her shoulders. He buckled in and relaxed in his seat. It had been a rough week. He had been thinking of how he would die and whether he would get to see his loved ones again. Now, miraculously he had been rescued from the very jaws of death. But who were these people who wanted him alive? What could he possibly do for them? He had to know so he turned his head towards the lady.
“Please permit me to ask. Who are you?”
The lady hit the brakes, turned into a major road and stepped on the accelerator. She ignored Raymond’s question, driving the car at 100km/hr. She took a quick glance at Raymond through the rear view mirror and he was still staring, expecting an answer. What harm could possibly come from telling him who she was? He had gone through a lot. Maybe telling him who she was would make him back off and at least take a nap.
“Mr Raymond, you have been caught in a complicated web of events. The things happening a way beyond your understanding. However, with time you will come to terms with events. For now, just don’t ask too many questions.” She said
Raymond nodded feebly. He dared not question her anymore.
Sensing his trepidation, the lady smiled at him, patting him playfully on the lap.
“You can call me Stella.”
Steven sat in a detached hut at a specially designed section of his beach house. He loved the beach and did not let the infiltration of his previous beach house stop him from getting another. He was tired of staying in his underground fortress and decided to get another beach house at a location known only to the two people he trusted with his life. He saw no point in hiding when he had gone under the radar. As far as he was concerned, Steven the Shadow Prime was dead. He flipped the screen of the Ipad X he held in his hand. He wore a look of agitation as he tried in vain to find loop holes in the device he was studying. Every device, structure, organization, setup, nomatter how well constructed and protected, always has a loop hole. That was the first lesson he learnt at ShadowCorp. However, the device he was currently studying was determined to rubbish this belief. He sighed, dropped the ipad on his lap and looked around. From where he sat, he could see people playing in the distance on the beach even though they could not see him. He was on the pent house of his beach house so it made it easy for him to view the surrounding area without being noticed. His beach house had high walls which prevented outside eyes from prying. He loved the solitude and the breeze that blew from the natural waves of the ocean. His eyes fell on the television. The news was on and coincidentally, a figure he had developed interest in recently was the main agenda. He picked the remote control and increased the volume of the television.
“We are proud to introduce the use of card readers for the forthcoming general elections. All stake holders were represented at the unveiling and presentation ceremony and the outcome was quite pleasing to all present. We can confidently say that the use of card readers will go a long way to eradicate rigging and ensure credible, free and fair elections. We call on all citizens to cooperate with us and help…”
Steven took his mind off the television and refocused on the device lying on his lap. He had heard enough from the president of the electoral commission. He was hoping there was going to be more information than what he had been hearing for the last week. He was present at the unveiling and had inspected the card readers up close. While operating one of the card readers with his Voter’s Card, he had sent the configuration and internal aesthetics of the card reader to a secure cloud drive. Now, he was perusing the possibilities of tampering with the configuration and database control of the card reader. So far he had met a brick wall. He knew he would need to dig deeper if he was going to find the loop hole he craved. His ipad beeped annoyingly with a red LED. Someone had entered through the front door of the beach house. He waited for a few seconds to see if the beeping sound would stop automatically. After six seconds, the beeping and LED display stopped. That only meant one thing; it was not an intruder. Instinctively, he knew who was in the house. He was too tired to take the trip downstairs so he activated the speakers in the house from the app on his smart phone.
“Hello sister. I am in the pent house.” Steven said to his phone, his voice echoing all over the ground floor.
Soon thereafter, there were footsteps on the staircase leading to the pent house. He turned to see his sister in the company of a man that he did not recognize. He got up to give his sister a tight hug, and a light peck on her left cheek. He had not seen her in a while and had missed her. He shook the hand of her friend and motioned for them to seat in the couch opposite him. The man sat on the couch, but Stella snuggled up beside her brother. Steven smiled.
“Why are you acting like such a 29 year old baby?” Steven asked
“I am not 29 yet. You want me to age fast so that you can be free from my wahala abi?”
“Yes na. Go and marry.” Steven teased.
“Find me husband na. Shebi I have been asking you for a husband all this while?”
“Well, thank God that problem is solved. You brought a man home. Even though he looks a bit dishevelled.” Steven said eyeing the man seated across him.
“Which man? No! That is not in any way someone I want to marry. That is Raymond.”
“Raymond? Am I supposed to know him?” Steven asked surprised.
“The Raymond! Raymond Onuoha! Geronimo!” Stella almost shouted.
“Oh, oh, oh! Forgive me. I seem to forget about work whenever I see you. I guess this means that extraction was successful?” Steven said.
Stella nodded.
Steven was quiet for a while. He stared at Raymond and held his gaze for a while. He seemed to peer into the very soul of the poor man. He looked like someone who had seen hell and was not sure if he was out of it yet or was in for more trouble. Steven sensed this and felt sorry for him.
“Mr. Raymond. I know you have a number of questions and you are probably wondering what is happening. Soon, you will get all the answers you seek. We are responsible for the position you find yourself and will compensate you heavily when you are done. Right now, just relax feel free and be assured that you have nothing to worry about. I promise.”
Raymond could only nod feebly.
Hmmmmm…
Good one ?