2019-01-08 - spike - The New Shop 94

Author: spike
Title: The New Shop 94
Date: 08 January 2019

Chapter 94
Oh god did mine struggle as I restrained it for the insertion of its plug. Once Ten had sealed it and shoved the filter up its nose, I had to keep it in a head lock just to prevent it from lashing out at us but when the glue had set, Ten pressed the panel, I threw it into the next room and before it could retaliate, the door slid shut and the gloop began to fill the chamber.

I watched through the window as it realised its predicament. It bashed on the door I looked through, it turned and bashed on the one to the next chamber as, far too quickly, the chamber filled and it began to struggle.

Then a whoosh, the purple goo was gone and it stood there, staring at the next chamber along as that door opened.

It looked back at the window, at me. I nodded and pointed.

It braced itself and stepped through, again, the door slid shut behind it. Our door opened and I stepped inside.

I was getting used to it by now and as I knew what to expect, it wasn’t nearly as bad as the first time.

I stepped out to find the ex-soldiers waiting for me. All three had filters.

Six stood nearby. “They refused to move until you joined us, Eleven. No idea why.”

I chuckled. “Probably want to beat the shit out of me.” I walked up to them and tapped. “Another translation for blank. Do you understand now? And before you object to the plugs up your asses, those are necessary too. They allow us to completely flush out your insides. You’ve been contaminated inside and out.”

All three sagged a little and nodded as the translation came through.

I turned and pointed at mine. “I have one too y’know. Every man in such a suit does. It’s part of the equipment. Now quickly. Follow me. Medical centre. Six, if they start to fail, help them.”

We walked back towards the compound and before we got half way there, one of them, no idea which now, collapsed to its knees. I helped it up and increased my pace.

The doctor stood outside waiting for us and beckoned us inside. “We’ve got to get them decontaminated. Quickly. Top level, we’ve had to improvise. We have a wet room up there but some of the chemicals we’ll be pumping into the suit this time…” He shook his head. “We moved the scanners in there too, the moment their guts have been flushed, we’ll start on the nanites.”

“Shit, already? They’ve”

Into the elevator...

The doctor didn’t let me continue the sentence. “Needed in this case just as much as we needed them for you, Eleven. The toxins they’ve inhaled, ingested, the toxins attacking their skin… Everything we can do for them, we will. Some of our medicines can be harmful but with the nanites to deliver them to where they’re needed… Well, you get the idea.”

“How’s the first one?”

“Out cold and just as well. We’ll sedate these three too. It’s going to be agony for a few days. Even more than a normal deep clean.”

The doors opened and we helped them out, into one of the scanners each. I mimed. I stood in the pose it currently held and straightened. Stood upright and proud.

It nodded and with a huge effort, managed to stand straight. The moment it was, I closed the door and turned it on. It froze in place.

The third couldn’t manage on its own. The doctor held it by its armpits until it was in as upright a position as possible. “Turn it on, it’s the best we can hope for with this one.”

Six nodded and flicked the switch.

I stood back and looked at them. “What about the hoses?”

“I can do that, it’ll save you the effort of going down to cover up. No need to unfreeze them now. They’re like that for at least three days.”

“Thanks, sir. Dunno what we’d do without you. I’d better get back out there and collect the rest of their gear. Especially the radio. We might be able to eavesdrop, find out why they are here. Bet they won’t be willing to talk for a while.”

“Or able.” The doctor nodded. “Go on then. I’ll be down in the throne room once their cycles have started.”
* * *
“Thank you, blank. You saved us a lot of trouble.”

“My pleasure, sir. God, I’d been told the island was a paradise!”

“Our part of it, the part that’s been restored is. That’s just a small corner, there’s a lot of work to be done. A hell of a lot of work. We’ll need to call on your services again, blank. A lot over the next few months, I imagine. They need to be taught English. Can you do that at a distance?”

“I can translate. I’m not sure how to go about teaching, though.”

“Once Q’s out of the dog, I’ll ask him. He might be able to get some teaching English as a foreign language books into the library. I somehow doubt it’ll have anything like that right now. There certainly wasn’t anything on how to deal with dyslexia before Rocky arrived. I suggest you check though, see if there is anything and if there is, start your research. All duties apart from figuring out lesson plans for the next few weeks… Cancelled.”

“Thank you, sir. God, I never expected this. What the hell were they thinking?”

“We don’t know, blank. We won’t be able to talk to them until they’ve been treated. Might be a week or more before they’re fit to speak… Well, I say speak… Type… Your services are still required today though. We need help. We have their radio. You can translate.”

“Yes, sir. Glad to help. Anything.”

The radio had been through decon and left out in the open air for an hour to dry. Hopefully, that would be enough.

I turned it on and put a headset on to allow blank to hear what was said.

Immediately a voice in Russian crackled into life.

The translation came through from blank soon after.

“I… couldn’t pick up the first part, sir, but he’s repeating. Here goes… Corporal, I order you to report. You’re three hours late for your check call. Report now! Corporal Petrov! Report!”

“Blank, I think we need to talk to this idiot. Are you ready?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Send when I nod. First. This. We have your radio. Your men are dead. We’re sorry but their corpses were too contaminated and we had no choice but to incinerate them.”

Just then, Four’s voice sprang into my ears. “We’re on the boat now. One man’s dead, riddled with bullets. The other’s in a bad way, spasms, he’s having a fit on the deck. Have someone ready with a suit by the beach entrance, we’ll come by boat. Beach it.”

I selected Four. “Thanks Four. That gives us more information, so there were six in total?”

“If you’ve got four, then yes.”

“Right then. Addendum, blank. We have your radio. I’m sorry, but your men are dead. The four who made landfall, we found three hours ago. We tried to get them back to our compound in time but they died on the way. This island is toxic. There are quarantine buoys at regular intervals around the place so they should’ve known not to come here. We sent men to the boat, one man was dead, obviously attacked by the other. The other was in a seriously deranged state and again, died before we could get him to the compound. Who are you? Why did you order your men to their deaths?”

Blank’s fingers rattled away on the keyboard. “I’ll hit enter the moment you nod, sir.”

I tapped onto my armband and picked up the handset. “Hello? Does anyone there speak English?”

Another stream of Russian. Blank translated.

“Who is this! Get off this frequency. This is a restricted military frequency.”

I held the handset on send and nodded. My armband spoke.

It wasn’t long before there was a reply.

“He said… Quarantine? You don’t seriously expect us to believe that!? Where are my men?”

“I told you, they’re all dead.”

“Then I demand the return of their bodies.”

“Impossible. They were so badly contaminated the only safe thing we could do was incinerate them. Nothing is safe on this island without protection. Why did you send your men to their deaths?”

“Our satellite indicates life on that island!”

“Yes. The owner purchased this island some time ago. Why it’s toxic is not something you need to know but rest assured, the vast majority of it is and that includes out to sea. It’s not even safe to approach it. We have restored one small area on the south coast. That’s why we’re here. To bring the island back to life but that is one huge job and isn’t likely to see completion for decades.”

“And yet you’re alive?”

“We’re wearing protective clothing. Every single one of us. You sent your men without even the most basic NBC protections. The idiots weren’t even wearing gas masks not that it would’ve helped if they were. The toxins here can enter the body by any point of ingress, even through the skin. Why did you send them, I repeat one last time, why did you kill your men?”

“That information is classified. I demand the return of their remains.”

“There’ll be nothing left to return!”

“Their ashes?”

“Even after incineration, it wouldn’t be safe to allow them to leave this island. Trust me when I tell you this, the processes we’re required to go through when re-entering our compound would strip the flesh from the bones of anyone unprotected. By the time their ashes are decontaminated completely, there’ll be nothing left of them. Dissolved, processed and made safe.”

“Good god!”

“God has nothing to do with it, believe me. You still haven’t answered my question.”

“That’s because the answer is classified.”

“To what level? Considering your men were trespassing on a private island, an island encircled by warning buoys, it’s only right we have some explanation why an armed force of the Russian army made landfall here. To what purpose? Why were they armed and in desert camouflage as if it was some kind of covert operation. Outside our safe zone there’s nothing on the island!”

“Standby.”

I deselected blank and glanced down at Caesar. “Are these the idiots you bought the island off, boy?”

Caesar shook his head.

I shrugged and reselected blank just as another transmission came through.

“It was an expeditionary force.”

“Expedition? For what? It’s a barren island!”

“With a corner in recovery and a large facility on the opposite end. I’m not authorised to say more.”

“You were sending your men to the factory?”

“I said I’m not authorised to say!”

“That’s the most heavily contaminated part of the island. That facility as you call it is the reason for the island’s death and toxicity! Even if they had been wearing protective clothing, they would’ve died there. Even we need extra protection to go near that place.”

“What is that… place?”

I looked down at Caesar. He nodded.

“It was a factory built for the production of chemical weapons. I’m sure your satellite photos show it’s got a large area along one edge that appears to have suffered from fire and explosions? That’s what killed the island. I warn you now. Stay away. We have a hard enough job as it is, decontaminating this place and extending our green zone. We do not want to waste any more of it tidying up the bodies of dead soldiers.”

“Chemical weapons? Who? Who built it? That’s one of the most sacred tenets of international law! The ban on production of such things.”

“I’m just a worker. I don’t know. The owner, our boss has never told us who it used to belong to. Doesn’t make any difference to me. We’ve been given a job to do and when we’ve done it we’ll have built a paradise for ourselves to live in. And don’t come over all holier than thou with me… I’m sorry, I don’t think I got your name.”

“Major Vasiliev! What did you mean holier than thou?”

“Your nation’s just as guilty. What about that nerve gas used to attack an ex-spy in Britain a few years ago? They didn’t kill him with it that time but an innocent bystander died. That was of your manufacture, if you are indeed in the Russian military. What about the polonium you used to murder another spy a few years before, again in Britain. I’m not justifying the existence of that factory but don’t be a hypocrite, Major.”

The radio gave an audible sigh. “Very well. Maybe we can help.”

“Help how?”

“A well targetted air strike could wipe that facility off the face of the planet.”

“And release a plume of gas high into the atmosphere that could sweep half the globe! You’d not only undo all we’ve accomplished here, you’d be responsible for the deaths of billions! Such a cloud might even reach Russia. Slow and steady wins this race, Major. We’re neutralising the chemicals within that facility a litre at a time. It’s the only safe way to do it.”

“It’s really that bad?”

“Probably worse. Even we don’t know how the chemicals in that facility reacted with each other after the accident. Each batch removed needs a thorough analysis. Even from the same vat, the cocktail of chemicals differs from week to week.”

“I’m sorry, sir. I don’t…” clearly this time it was blank. “I seem to lack a little education in some of the stronger Russian expletives, sir. I didn’t get much of that but none of it was suitable for family viewing. He calmed down a little and said he’d speak to his superiors. Try to convince them not to send another expedition. They may demand an inspection, however.”

“Then I suggest you do it though official channels, we have the means to offer people protection. I’ll speak to my employer. He may contact you. If he does, he may extend such an invitation but that’s the only way he will be contactable now. We don’t like uninvited guests. Now you know why. In other words… Don’t call us, we’ll call you.”

“Where is this… employer?”

“He has been informed of the incident but he’s currently unavailable. He’s a multi-billionaire. Naturally, he spends quite a lot of his time dealing with business abroad. He’s due back in a few days though. If he decides to contact you, that’s when he’ll call, on this radio.”

“Thank you. This was a more productive conversation than the one I would’ve expected from Petrov at this stage. We’ll await further communication. Vasiliev out.”

The doctor stared at me. “God, where did that come from?”

“What, sir?”

“The way you talked to him.”

I shrugged. “I was a businessman too, sir. Not a billionaire like Q, but I was a millionaire. I’ve handled a few negotiations in my time.”

“And you gave it all up?”

“No, I had it taken from me months ago. Quite frankly, I’m glad I lost it all now. I gained something better.”

“But some of the lies, they were masterful. I would’ve never come up with even half of them.”

“It’s obvious some of the chemicals even after incineration would require further decontamination. I couldn’t very well say his men were still alive but slaves now, could I? I just ran with it, sir. Besides, everything I’ve been told about that place, I bet an airstrike would’ve sent up a cloud that’d kill billions. Didn’t really say anything that was a lie apart from their deaths.”

“I can see why he elevated you to gold, I’ll tell you that! I’d better get back, one more to take care of.” The doctor rushed out of the throne room.