Vulnerable part 2

It was early-morning and Jill Frakes had just entered her office with a sense of urgency and found Pierce waiting for her. “I came as soon as I saw your message,” she told him, “What do we know about the hostage situation?”

“The pirates attacked a cruiser ship in the Arabian Sea between India and Yemen. They killed the security onboard and took the captain and crew hostage. The two men have suits of armor that might seem quite familiar and they’ve warned the Indian Navy they’re willing to go to war if they see any vessels approaching. They were last seen heading back to Somalia with the shipment and were roughly 10 hours out.”

“And we’re sure their suits match the terrorists in Dubai?”

“We have security footage. The suits are identical. Our friends in Dubai were not Somali, however, nor were they pirates, so it leads credence to the theory there’s an international arms dealer out there somewhere, selling advanced weapons to anyone who can afford them.”

“I suggest sending Bronson and Alam, sir. We’ll hit them fast, save the hostages, and hopefully take the pirates alive so we can ascertain where these suits are coming from.”

“Straight to the point, Frakes. I like it.”

The Cloudburst was in the air within an hour. The Indian Navy had delivered intel on the cruiser’s coordinates and the aircraft was fast enough to get to the ship from the UK in a short amount of time while also being undetectable to anything but the most sophisticated technology.

“What do you think about Frakes as the new field leader?,” Dave Bronson piloted the ship while speaking to Nadeem Alam.

“She’s a stickler for the rules, but then, she always has been,” Alam answered.

“Mansoor was the same way but at least she had a personality. She could even make a few jabs herself. Frakes is completely shut-off.”

“Yes, well,… she always has been.”

“Right,” Bronson dipped the aircraft toward the surface of the water, “Coming in on the ship. I’ll put the Cloudburst at the stern. Be ready to give us a lift.”

“Just be sure not to land on your ass,” Alam joked.

Bronson glided the Cloudburst silently onto the water behind the ship before turning off the engine. Alam aimed the harpoon launchers stationed on the wings and pulled a trigger; twin spears shot through the air with cables trailing behind them. They punctured the hull of the ship and the Cloudburst was pulled along. Soon, Alam and Bronson climbed out of the cockpit and stood on top of the craft to take in their surroundings. After eye-balling the distance, Alam summoned telekinetic energy and a crimson burst sent the two of them into the air. Once they cleared the safety railing, the energy dissipated and the two agents dropped neatly into crouching positions.

On the starboard side, an armored pirate held several sailors captive, after having forced them to kneel with their hands on their heads; he kept both gauntlets aimed at them with wrist-mounted guns ready to fire at the slightest provocation. For a brief moment, he noticed telekinetic energy swirling around his limbs, then the guns were crushed and he was soon pulled back hard enough to be sent through one of the shipping containers like a pin going through paper. Alam quickly dropped in front of the hostages and brought a finger to his lips to quiet them before signaling them to move below deck. They complied in a calm and orderly manner as the pirate remerged.

While the machine guns were damaged, there were other weapons that were still functional, such as the grenade launcher. The projectile flew toward Alam with a trail of smoke coming from it but Bronson leapt in its path and slapped it out of the air. His invulnerable body received no damage and the grenade was dumped over the side of the ship where it hit the water. The small but powerful explosion sent a geyser into the air but the sound was muffled by the crashing waves and the ship’s engines. Bronson continued to place himself between the pirate and Alam as he blocked an armored punch and delivered a left hook across the helmet. The pirate took another swing but, despite the strength of the armor, he was untrained. Bronson dipped under the punch, spun around his opponent and slammed his heel against the small of the pirate’s back which forced him onto his hands and knees. With the pirate on the ground and in position, Alam telekinetically drove the pirate through another shipping container and out the other side before embedding him face-first into the safety rail.

In the wheelhouse, the second pirate held the captain and crew prisoner. With the size of the ship and the general noise of a moving cruiser, they didn’t hear the battle outside. They also didn’t notice Alam sneaking through the door behind them. A telekinetic blast sent the pirate out the large window, leaving the crew shaken but unharmed.

The pirate landed several feet below, where his partner was being held. The pirate had been stripped of his armor and was tied up with rope and beside him, Bronson stood waiting with a gun trained on him for intimidation purposes. The pirate captain carefully rose to his feet as Bronson shouted, “Interpol Metahuman Division! Remove your helmet and get on your knees!”Somali was one of the languages Bronson couldn’t speak but he was confidant he was understood one way or another and as the pirate began removing his helmet, it seemed to be the case. But when the armored man raised one gauntlet toward his unconscious friend and another to his own temple, it seemed that he had other plans. “No, stop!,” Bronson shouted but before any further action could be taken, the pirate opened fire from both wrist-mounted weapons. Their heads disappeared in two bursts and the bodies dropped to the deck. Bronson holstered his gun and sighed to himself, “Buggar.”

Meanwhile, in a secluded mansion, Billy Bacchus threw open the double doors to his private casino where his friends and potential business partners were situated around blackjack and roulette tables. “Hello, beautiful people!,” he shouted above the music, gaining the attention of a few party-goers. He sauntered through the small gathering while clasping hands and giving hugs. As he strolled through, he stopped momentarily to look up at the large portrait of an old Greek man hanging on the wall. Bacchus pointed at it and gleefully yelled, “Shut up, Dad,” then went back to mingling. A middle aged Russian man approached with a young woman on his arm.

“I thought this island would be more… inconspicuous,” the Russian growled.

“We’re safe, Ivan,” Bacchus assured him, “Your friends trust me and so should you. In the meantime, have some fun, baby-cakes,” he turned to the young lady on his arm, “Speaking of cake.” Bacchus reached into his pocket and removed a €500 bill, “I’ll give you 500 euros if you bark like a dog.”

Ivan physically shoved him back, “I do business with you and that’s all!,” then he swiftly took the woman away, “My employees will come to your island for the auction and I expect them to be treated with respect. Good night!”

Bacchus clicked his tongue as he watched them exit the casino, “Typical Russians…Boring.”

Elsewhere, the cruiser was safely chaperoned to its destination by the Indian Navy while Bronson and Alam returned to Interpol HQ to report back to Jill Frakes. “I feel it would’ve been better to have Alam contain the enemy inside the wheelhouse of the ship,” Frakes told the pair.

“It was my idea,” Bronson informed her, “I was afraid Alam or the crew might be harmed if the pirate panicked so I opted to position myself in the path of any potential weapons.”

“Alam’s telekinesis could have been used to prevent the enemy’s suicide,” Frakes crossed her arms in frustration, “The terrorists in Dubai refuse to talk but these men could have given us information regarding their supplier.”

“I’m sure we’ll find our man.”

“I’d rather it be sooner than later,” she sat down behind the desk, “Dismissed.”

Bronson and Alam left the office and once they began waking down the corridor, Alam turned to his partner, “Throwing that guy out the window was my idea, not yours. You didn’t have to take the heat, brother.”

“Of course I did,” Bronson smiled and gave Alam a pat on the back.

****

IMD Session: Brick (Bronson)

As per Director Pierce’s request, Dr. Ansari began her evaluations with Agent Brick. While full names were classified, Dr. Ansari was given surnames along with codenames to create a sense of familiarity.

“So is this where I tell you about my father?,” Bronson asked jokingly as he sat down.

“We can talk about whatever you like.”

“Not sure what to say to be honest.”

“You could begin with your military background.”

“Okay, yeah. I was SAS for a number of years and almost all of that is classified. I was in the Royal Marines before that which is a bit less classified but probably not interesting to a civilian. I did some peacekeeping in the Balkans back then. Earned the Victoria Cross holding down suppressive fire while my mates got medical attention.”

“You put yourself in harm’s way.”

“Had to protect my mates even if most of them were dickheads,” he laughed.

“Do you do that often? Put yourself in harm’s way?”

“Why do you ask?”

Dr. Ansari looked at the file in her hands, “As I understand, you chose invulnerability as a power once you were recruited into the IMD.”

“Yeah. I guess I am good at that. I can take most of what the enemy has to offer while my team does their job.”

“You mentioned your father earlier, could you tell me a bit about him?”

“Shouldn’t have mentioned the wanker,” Bronson sighed, “My dad was alright as long as he wasn’t drinking. Bloody shame he was drunk all the time. My mom ran out on ‘im which I understood but didn’t quite understand why she didn’t take me and my brother and sister with her. Not sure I could forgive that.”

“Was he abusive?”

“Mostly just towards me.”

“How so?”

“My brother and sister were younger than me and when my dad got in one of his usual moods and was looking for a reason to give us the strap, I’d tell `im I was to blame somehow,” Bronson’s bravado began to fade a bit, “I could take it. Every punch, every word… I took every second of it so they never had to.”

“Protecting people is very important to you.”

“It seems that way…,” he looked out the window and remained silent for a few moments, “Maybe I’m just that thick headed.”

“Director Pierce specifically asked me to speak to you about your last mission. It seems that, with the nature of this particular mission, you weren’t able to provide protection in the way you had grown accustomed to.”

“Obviously.”

“It must’ve been frightening.”

“The only thing I was afraid of was being unable to protect my team. They’re still alive so I suppose I did my job.”

“You’re very brave.”

“Or just thick-headed like I said,” his bravado returned briefly, “That all you need to know?”

****

Athena Securities Ltd. was one of Austria’s foremost private gold vaults with thousands of clients across Europe. The vault storage center was located in Vienna and was a popular location due to its proximity to the airport and its value of privacy. The entrance was guarded by two men and behind them was an intricate system of locks and alarms leading into the rented closets containing gold.

The armored figure confronted the guards by dropping suddenly from the sky and with enough force to crack the pavement. The guards acted immediately but the initial volley of bullets harmlessly bounced off the suit. After they had emptied their mags, they waited nervously for the next move. Beneath the helmet, a woman’s voice told them, “There’s no shame in running, boys. What else can be done?” This sent the guards retreating and once they were out of sight, she used her armor’s strong limbs to punch through the locked doors, ignoring the alarm in the process. Once the building was compromised, a grenade from her wrist launcher took out the vault door, allowing access to several rooms. The locked boxes were ripped out of the walls despite being weighed down by gold bricks and other valuables; she also had no trouble carrying two arm loads and flying away. By the time the police arrived, she had left the country.

Frakes and Jones arrived on the scene five hours later as the sun began to rise. The building was swarming with police officers and the chief inspector at the scene gave the Badges all the information he knew.

“The guards said it was a woman, judging by her voice,” the inspector informed them, “She spoke German but with an accent, so it’s likely she wasn’t from Austria.”

“Any idea who it could be?” Frakes asked.

“Well, it’s only speculation but there was a thief from France who hit several places across Europe years ago, including these vaults. In fact, she was arrested when she tried to break in and was sentenced to 3 years. This place was somewhat known as her downfall.”

“It must’ve been very secure.”

“One of the best in Europe, so I imagine it would’ve been a point of pride if she cracked it.”

“And a blow to her ego if she failed?,” Jones added.

“If she ended up in prison because of it? I imagine so.”

“What’s her name?,” Frakes asked.

“Gwendolyn Besson. Interpol was after her for a while. International thief and all that. You might recognize the name even though I know the IMD doesn’t normally go after thieves.”

“At least not until they start wearing powersuits,” Jones added.

“And it’s possible she might’ve stolen gold from this place out of spite?,” Frakes asked.

“As your partner said… it was likely a blow to her ego.”

“And if she’s our culprit, I bet she’s in France at this point.”

“I doubt she’s made it out of the country so quickly,” the inspector told her, “I’ll put out a APB to all train stations and airports.”

“If she flew out of the country, it wasn’t by plane,” Jones gave him a pat on the shoulder, “We’ll take it from here. Thank you.”

Jones and Frakes made their way back to the Cloudburst. “It’s good that our next perp’s just a thief,” Frakes explained, “There’s no ideology or loyalty to a criminal organization. She’s much more likely to bargain and maybe we can find out who’s selling these weapons.”

“It’ll be quite nice being back in France,” Jones said happily, “I miss our old headquarters.”

“I’m fine with either one,” Frakes opened the hatch to the Cloudburst and climbed in.

“Absolutely, but I loved stopping by that cafe in Lyon on the way to work. You know, the one across the street?”

“I never went to the cafes near the base.”

“Suppose not,” Jones said quietly.

Continued…