Red to Fade (5 page)

The Clandar earpiece mic is very small; if somebody were to look at you while you were using one nobody would know that you were using it. In the time it takes for the elevator to go to the IT floor feds get on and off to go to their own floors. Connor doesn't know any of them and they don't know him either. The elevator finally reaches the IT floor.

Connor exits the elevator. To his right there is a door that leads to a stairwell. Agents can go to any floor by using this stairwell. There's nobody around as the IT guys don't start their shift until 9am. Connor is in the office section of the IT floor. There are lights on and loads of office cubicles everywhere filled with IT equipment and stationery. It's quite a big office. There are four elevators in the office section of the IT floor. There is another elevator beside the elevator that Connor got off, and two more on the other side of the room.

Connor speaks. “Hey Dylan, I'm on the IT floor now. I'm in the office section.”

Dylan says, “There are double doors that exit the office section and lead to a hallway where the main server room is.”

Dylan has been on the IT floor before and so he knows his way around. Connor sees the double doors. He walks over to them. Connor opens one of the doors and walks into the hallway. There are many doors on the left-hand side and on the right-hand side of the bright hallway.

Connor says, “I'm in the hallway now.”

Dylan says, “The main server room door is the last door on the left.”

Connor sees the main server room door. It's a huge steel door with a metal handle. Underneath the metal handle is a keypad, and underneath the keypad is a red light. The red light on the keypad means it is locked. Connor takes out his cell phone to get the access code for the main server room door. He finds the code on his phone and types it into the keypad. The door makes a buzzing sound and the light under the keypad is now green.

Connor pushes the door open and closes the door behind him. The door makes a clunking sound as it automatically locks. The main server room door has a magnetic lock. On the side of the main server room door that is facing into the room, there is another handle and keypad on the door. The light underneath the keypad that's facing the room is red. In the main server room there are servers and computers placed inside shelves that are built into the white walls on every wall of the room.

The main server room is very cold. It has to be kept cold at all times so that all of the servers and computers are kept at a cool temperature while running 24/7. The main server room is where all of the top-secret FBI information is kept. In front of Connor there is a chair and a large steel desk with a wireless keyboard and a wireless mouse.

Above and in front of the chair, steel desk, wireless keyboard and wireless mouse, there is a large 110-inch flat OLED screen that is built into the wall. On the left-hand side of the screen is a small camera monitor that shows footage of what's happening outside the main server room. Also to the left, right, top and bottom of the OLED screen are servers and computers that are placed inside shelves that are built into the wall.

From the image display of the flat screen, the operating system asks for a username and password.

Connor feels very cold and says, “OK, I'm inside. Jesus Christ, it's freezing in here.”

Connor walks over to the chair and desk. He sits down on the chair. He finds the reminder of the username and password for the main server room computer on his phone. He places his phone on the desk and types the username and password into the computer. After typing them in he sees a lot of servers displayed on the desktop of the operating system that's being displayed on the large OLED screen.

Connor is confused and a little pissed off. He says, “Man, there are so many servers I don't know which one to choose.”

Dylan says, “It's on server MSR-587.”

Dylan knows this because he hacked into the main server room and tried to download the R-1 file remotely from the Red 1 folder earlier. Even if Dylan hadn't known that, all you would have to do to find the R-1 file would be to type in
R-1
in the search option of the operating system. Connor finds server MSR-587 and clicks on it with the mouse. A window opens with a record of folders listed alphabetically.

Connor uses the mouse to scroll down the window to the folders starting with the letter R. Connor finds the Red 1 folder and clicks on it. The operating system is now asking for a cipher code. Connor picks up his phone from the desk to remind himself of the cipher code. Finding the code, he types it into the operating system. Connor can now see the R-1 file.

Connor puts his phone into his inside jacket pocket and pulls out the USB drive. He inserts the USB drive into the USB port on the computer. Connor now downloads the R-1 file onto his USB drive.

*

Joel is in his office using his computer. Joel's office is on a very high floor. Joel's computer and cell phone make an alert noise. A message box appears on Joel's computer saying,
R-1 file being downloaded.

Joel checks the main server room camera footage from his computer. He's looking at an empty room.

Joel picks up a walkie-talkie and says, “Everyone go to the main server room and shoot whoever is in that room.”

Joel has his corrupt crew wearing wireless Balaxian ear mics so that he can contact them in case of an emergency. Joel's crew are also able to communicate with each other using the mics as the inhabitants of Balaxia sell some of their technology to America and the rest of the world. Joel's crew hear his message. Some of them go to their division's weapons locker to get assault weapons and body armour.

All of Joel's crew are going to the main server room. There are four agents suited up in black body armour and armed with assault rifles and bombs who are close to the main server room. They get in the elevator on their floor. One of the agents presses the button for the IT floor, two floors above their own. The agents finally reach the IT floor. They exit the elevator and proceed to the main server room. They reach the door.

Dylan can also see the footage of what's happening outside the main server room from his computer. Dylan says, “Connor, you need to get the fuck out of there. You are about to have a very bad day.”

The R-l file is finally downloaded onto Connor's USB drive. Connor removes the USB drive from the computer and puts it into his inside jacket pocket. He looks at the camera monitor beside the OLED screen and sees four agents outside the main server room door armed with assault weapons. Connor thought that he would have enough time to download the R-1 file and get the hell out of there. He sees that one of the agents is typing in the access code to get into the main server room.

As Connor pushes the steel desk over to use it as a bulletproof shield, the wireless mouse and keyboard fall to the ground. Connor crouches down behind the desk. The agent has unlocked the server room door with his access code. As soon as the agent has unlocked the door he kicks it open and opens fire with an assault rifle into the main server room straight away, and walks into the room at a crawling speed.

The other three agents do the exact same thing as the agent who first opened fire. The four agents are now inside the main server room, covering the door. As the four agents fire shots from their XM8 assault rifles, they turn the OLED screen, servers and computers behind Connor into pieces of kindling. Small explosions of debris and sparks are created when their gun shells hit something. The agents are also firing at the steel desk that Connor is using for a bulletproof shield.

Connor's lucky that the steel of the desk is very strong; the ammunition fired by the agents create dents, but none of them manage to pierce through the desk. The agents finally run out of firearm projectiles and start to reload their guns. Connor hears that the agents are reloading and he knows that it's time to make his move. Connor pulls out his 15-shooter handgun, stands up and opens fire.

BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!
Connor shoots all four of the agents. The last agent Connor shot fired his gun in the air before he fell to the ground. The four agents are dead. Connor reloads his handgun with a loaded magazine clip.

Dylan says, “Are you okay?”

Connor answers, “Yeah, I'm fine.”

Connor walks over to the dead agents. He puts his gun back in his holster and picks up two of their XM8 assault rifles. By taking the assault rifle magazine clips away from the dead agents, he reloads both of the rifles. He carries one of the assault rifles with a strap around his back for extra protection in case the other rifle that he picked up runs out of ammo or gets damaged.

Connor is now going to use one of the assault rifles for self-defence.

Dylan says, “In your current situation I think that the only way of getting out of there alive is you're going to need to get to one of the elevators and go to the vehicle storage floor and exit the building in one of the RBMs.”

The vehicle storage floor is where all of the FBI cars and RBMs are kept. RBM stands for Road Battle Mobile; it's a Clandarian armoured vehicle. Dylan wants Connor to use an RBM so that he will have extra protection from getting killed. Connor exits the main server room, turns right, runs down the hallway and heads for the office section of the IT floor where the four elevators are. Connor opens one of the double doors and goes into the office.

To his left Connor hears a dinging sound coming from two of the elevators. Connor turns. Two groups of agents armed with assault weapons are in the two elevators. There is a group of six in each elevator. Both groups walk out of the elevators.

Connor says with adrenaline pumping in his body, “Oh fuck!”

Connor fires his assault rifle at the agents and at the same time he runs for cover in the office cubicles. Connor takes out two agents before he hides in the cubicles. Agents armed with XM8 assault rifles open fire on Connor, agents armed with Bushmaster ACR assault rifles open fire on Connor and agents armed with SIG Sauer P226 handguns open fire on Connor. The rounds fired by the agents' weapons tear into the office cubicles and desks, turn computer screens, computer cases and keyboards into shrapnel, smash the glass of cubicles and create sparks and little explosions, making paper from the desks fly in the air.

There is glass flying everywhere. Connor is crouched down and walking at the same time. The agents are still firing and glass is raining on Connor as he fast-crawls. Ammo fired by the agents is raking over his head and some is piercing the office cubicles, only just missing him. He's making his way to the other two elevators where there are no agents. Connor is now ducking behind office cubicles that are right beside the elevators. Agents are still firing and there is glass and debris raining on Connor. Connor is afraid to go to call for an elevator because he thinks that once he presses the elevator button he will have his head blown off. Connor sees the door beside the elevators that leads to a stairwell. Connor hears the agents reloading. The agents duck for cover behind the office cubicles while they reload.

Connor pulls out his handgun and fires warning shots in the air so that none of the agents will return fire and will remain ducking for cover. Connor fires his gun into the air and at the same time he runs to the door that leads to the stairwell. He opens the door and is now in the stairwell. Connor puts his handgun back in his gun holster and runs down the stairs. Near each stairway that leads to a floor there is a floor number written on the wall of the stairwell.

Agent Blake has seen and recognised Connor opening a door and going to the stairwell. Agent Blake says, “Suspect Connor Harper is in the stairwell!”

All of the agents now know who the suspect is. All of the agents on the IT floor go to the stairwell and run down the stairs. One of the agents spots Connor on a lower-level stairway and decides to open fire with a 15-shooter handgun. Then all the rest of the agents open fire on Connor, who is down below. Agents armed with assault rifles and agents armed with 15-shooter handguns are firing at Connor. The bullets fired from their weapons blow chunks of cement off the stairs and create little bursts of ruins and sparks when they hit the stairs and walls. Connor decides that it's not safe to run down the stairs.

Connor exits the stairwell, through a door, on the twelfth floor and decides he would like to get back into an elevator again. He sees two elevators that are opposite the twelfth floor entrance door of the stairwell. Connor runs across the hallway and presses the button to call for an elevator. He keeps an eye on the stairwell door, being prepared for agents who are going to kill him. He hears a dinging sound coming from the elevator. Connor thinks in his mind,
Thank God
. The elevator doors open and there is a group of agents armed with assault rifles.

Connor shouts in a panic, “Oh shit!”

Connor opens fire straight away with his assault rifle, riddles five agents with small metallic missiles and blows holes in the elevator. Connor gets inside the elevator with the five dead agents and presses the button for the vehicle storage floor. The vehicle storage floor is on the very last floor. Some agents come bursting out of the twelfth floor entrance door for the stairwell before the doors of the elevator that Connor is in have closed.

Connor opens fire and annihilates three more agents as well as blowing holes in the stairwell door and the wall nearby. Connor also kills another agent behind the stairwell door of the twelfth floor. The agents in the stairwell are staying away from that door until they hear pure silence and no more gunshots. The elevator doors have closed and Connor's assault rifle is out of ammo. He drops the rifle. Three agents hear silence and they burst out of the stairwell door and open fire with their assault rifles on the elevator doors.

Connor sees that some of the shots fired are piercing through the elevator doors.

He says in a panic, “Jesus!”

Very quickly he stands sideways away from the elevator doors and watches the gun shells pierce them. As the elevator goes down no more ammunition is able to pierce through the doors.