Resurrection

Mikey nodded and tried to remember the girl’s name as she talked to him.
They were in a small bistro in the high quarter of the city, as a minor celebrity he was expected to mingle and had been asked on many dates, this blonde was high up in the scarecrow unit and he had to admit that her curves were enticing under the grey suit.
He had been careful to follow every instruction and command to the letter since he had returned, Korse had people watching night and day so Mikey had to be incredibly careful how he had sent out his messages to his brother.
In fact, actual messages had been impossible, he had found that the only way was via coded and encrypted files that he could send out at work. They had found him a better job, better apartment and clearly better women but it had meant several weeks of interrogation and now Mikey was tired. The trust had started to grow, he had noticed a slight drop in the security and now hoped to be able to find something that would really help his friends.
“You were so brave out there, all that danger.”
“I knew I had to come back.”
Mikey smiled thinly and Barbara (thank fuck, that’s her name) beamed at him.
She was heavily drugged, he could see it in her eyes and a moment of pity passed over him. Jet had made a tiny testing device that slid into the arm of his glasses and Mikey was careful to test all his food and drink to make sure the only drugs they were trying to feed him were in pill form. Those he could dispose of.
“I hope your brother comes back too.”
Mikey winced, the smile faltering a little as he changed the subject and poured a little more wine. The clock read half past nine and they were nearly on dessert. Barbara had been heavily hinting about coming back to the apartment with him and Mikey wondered if that was Korse too. Seduce the boy and keep him quiet. There was some irony in that, he doubted that anyone in the city would share the kinks that got him off. He had played the innocent, carefully keeping a poker face against her flirting.
The next hour passed torturously slowly and Mikey was relieved to finally drop the girl back at her apartment and head for home. He was being followed, the professional part of him coldly critical of the operative’s performance. It had been easy to see that they were tailing him and Mikey had been forced to take preventative measures to stop them realising that he had clocked them. Embarrassing…..
“Good evening Michael.”
“Good evening Sir, how are you?”
Korse smiled blandly, his dracs circling the front door of Mikey’s apartment. His masters were impressed that the boy had found his way back and clearly the programming could work on the right mind. They wanted the others wiped out and it was fortunate that the one that had come home was the youngest Way. If the elder had a weak spot it was the sibling and now he could be a useful tool. They had watched him of course, the consideration that the boy could simply be a plant was obvious but there had been little to cause suspicion and Korse had been told Barbara was the final test.
“Very well. Did you have a pleasant evening?”
Mikey dropped his head with a sigh.
“She is a wonderful lady.”
“Yes….she is. Good night Michael.”
“Good night Sir.”
Mikey locked the door behind him and checked the scrambler was still shielding him from the hidden cameras in the apartment. Party and Jet had been careful to drill it into him that he needed to reset them every twelve hours. He also checked around to see if there had been a search and came up clear. Finally satisfied that he was clear, Mikey found the whiskey that Crim had given him and lit up the joint that Rainbow had put in his pocket. With a toast to the girls he retrieved some more stolen papers from under his shirt and went to get the laser scanner pen that would allow him to upload the file.
This was the first significant piece of intel that he had come across, a detailed plan of the air filtration system of the city and a digital map of the connections to the other BLI outposts across what remained of the country. Mikey was sure that it was the latter that would prove most useful in taking down BLI once and for all. He quickly scanned all the pages and went over to the terminal to send it down to the dark web. He knew that Party would be waiting for it.
All that was left after that was to burn the originals and rest. He laid on the bed, fully clothed and deep in thought. There were certain parts of the city he still needed to get to and that was proving difficult if he was being followed. Dumping the tail would show that he had clocked it and that shouldn’t happen if the conditioning was holding. Therefore he had to take a more dangerous route, a smirk crossing his face as he imagined Party cringing and throwing his hands in the air. It was risky, dangerous and stupid actually but Kobra loved the thrill.
Slowly the clock ticked around to three a.m and he got up, changing into dark jeans and tee before easing open the window and clambering on the ledge. He was seven stories up and thankful that there was no wind under the great dome as he inched his way out and along. All the hours of working out were paying off, Mikey’s muscles straining as he pilled himself up and quickly climbed to the top of the block. It was a panoramic view, somehow beautiful as he quietly made his way across the top of the next three apartment buildings and then down into the bowels of the admin district.
The air filtration had provided Mikey with a plan. He could take advantage of the maintenance conduits and get into the mainframe. If he could do that and plant a recording device then everything would open up to them. With the secrets of the mainframe Jet would be able to take control of the city and maybe more. It was an intoxicating thought and one that he was determined to see through despite the obvious risks.
Wire cutters made short work of the duct cover and he crawled inside, a small torchlight from his pen the only source of light as he shuffled along. It was hot and claustrophobic, Mikey could feel the sweat running down his back and twice he was forced to stop to wipe his face and push back his hair. It seemed to take an eternity of back aching to make it to the junction where he consulted the map again and pressed on.
To take his mind off it he thought of the diner and the old days. He missed Missile running around excitedly at his feet but was glad she was safe. He missed lying on the roof with Crim and Party, trying to remember the names of the constellations. He missed driving with Ghoul and Jet, Rainbow in his lap more often than not when they all squeezed in together. The tainted air of the city made him long for home and he was glad when he could remove the last grate and climb through into the corridor. It was silent apart from the hum of generators and Mikey was forced to check his compass and map to make sure he was in the right place. From here it was a sprint down to the basement and only the problem of the security door would remain.
That was the tricky and risky part. To gain entrance you needed to be scanned via facial recognition and checked by the security system in the Scarecrow building. His own face would not be on the list of course so he needed one of the people in the building to bypass it for him. A hostage or a sacrifice depending how the adventure turned out and it would have to be from this floor. The people here would not recognise the man in front of them, nothing of their Mikey remained. Only Kobra Kid.
The technician didn’t even see him and had been having a bad night anyway. His wife was leaving him for his supervisor and nobody seemed to give a shit. Not even him and certainly not their kids. Now this middle aged man by the name of Keith found himself propelled face first into the wall by a man he couldn’t see. Something sharp nicked at his throat as a soft voice spoke in his ear.
“Mainframe. Can you get in?”
There was a squeak of fear and no much else so Kobra inched the blade deeper into the skin, a tiny drop of blood on the metal illuminated by the over head lights. Keith fought back the urge to scream and nodded as much as he could.
“Y-yes.”
“Good, maybe you get to live if you get me in there.”
They walked down the last flight of stairs and came to the vast metal doors that guarded the innermost workings of the city. There were no guards, nothing but a camera pad which linked to a terminal. Kobra had studied the schematics and knew there could be more of a fight beyond but he had the element of surprise. Keith stuck his face on the pad and the metal door creaked open. Kobra slammed his head into the pad and leant down.
“You going to tell about this?”
“NO, jesus, no!”
“Good, now fuck off.”
The man fled and Kobra grinned, the corridor further on led to another door that was locked but could be bypassed. He set the door to close behind him and walked steadily forward to the other end before twisting the end of the torch to reveal a decryption device that Jet had stolen from the city. He plugged it in and let it whir.
“Michael…..”
Kobra froze, glancing around him for the hidden voice and already his hand was going to the torch.
“You are predictable but oh so clever. Not clever enough but close. We set you all free for a reason and now you will play your part by bringing your family to my door.”
Kobra sprinted for the door he had come through, his heart pounding as it closed in his face and Korse’s voice echoed in the now enclosed tube. He could see gas seeping in and his mind was racing. The horrible realisation that they had all walked into a trap came over him as he tried not to breath in.
“Relax my boy, you have served us well….”
Kobra could feel his breathing getting tight and his eyes started to water and close. One face crossed his mind and it was his last thought before passing out.
“Gerard, run.”

Notes