"Kuryakin!" growled Jackson
thumping the monitor. "Waverly, order him to stop or I’ll kill you!"
"That man
could never follow an order. Dear me, Mr Solo, remind me to deduct that damaged
paintwork from his…"
"Mega, get
the barrier down!" Jackson shouted as he once again jabbed Waverly in the
ribs.
First excitement
filled Solo’s heart then a deep feeling of fear as he craned his neck to watch
the monitor. The blue light from the Blinker Stopper cast an insipid glow about
the corridor and one small Russian pinned down in a corner. A gun in one hand
and a rocket launch resting against his shoulder he looked far too weak to be
able to lift it into a firing position. The steady on-off flash of blue cast a
death like shadow over his pale skin. Solo gritted his teeth and glanced
nervously at Waverly who shook his head sadly. Kuryakin was obviously waiting
for a prearranged time before firing the rockets but THRUSH were closing in
around him and inside the office safety precautions had already swung into
action. Lead shutters closed over the door and men were called to guard the
corridor from the outside, more men than Kuryakin would be able to handle.
"Kill him!
Kill him!" screamed Jackson and the THRUSH army moved ever closer.
In the blink of
an eye Solo saw Kuryakin leap from the doubtful security of his corner and
facing the full onslaught of THRUSH fire shouldered the weapon and fired. The
chaos that followed was inevitable, one large rocket in a small corridor
scattered the THRUSH agents in a frenzy of panic and Solo lost sight of his
partner. A small red blip told Waverly exactly where he was and a thin smile
lifted the corners of his mouth as all the computers flickered back to life.
Monitor after monitor showed doors opening as Landa’s team began to move
forward, their travel would be slow, far too slow to reach the office before the
advancing Jackson and Mega permanently removed the Head of U.N.C.L.E. and his
top agent.
All the THRUSH
agents in the office were shouting frantic, garbled messages. Landa’s group
was growing as each corridor and room within U.N.C.L.E. was reclaimed.
Realisation that a trap had been set Jackson and Mega began to lose their cool
and orders were given one minute and rescinded the next. Finally Jackson knew
that U.N.C.L.E. were fast regaining control and he signalled Mega to advance on
the two prisoners.
"So,
Waverly, you think you have won?" again the cane jabbed as he removed a
small black box and set it down in the centre of the table. "Once that is
set, this office, you, Solo and half this building will be no more."
There was only a
faint crack, the distinctive phut of an U.N.C.L.E. gun then a crash as Kuryakin
fell from the ceiling and landed heavily on the table, crushing Jackson’s
bomb. Even as he fell a flash of metal betrayed the knife in his hand a fraction
of a second before the blade sliced through the ropes binding Solo.
Jumping up and
catching the gun thrown at him Solo briefly held up the frayed rope to his
partner, "How do you do that?"
"With total
composure and a lot of talent."
A curled lip
answered the Russian as Solo freed Waverly and began to fight for his life.
Jackson had raised the lead shield and the THRUSH army posted in the corridor
ran in screaming for blood. Landa and his team were still to far off to assist
even though the young man had the fortitude to split the team and send one unit
forward.
"No! No not
again!" shouted a voice that Solo knew so well and he turned towards the
Russian.
"He did it
again!"
Solo winced as
he saw Kuryakin buckle and hit the floor one hand over an oozing wound in his
leg. Then he was up and running, colour flooding his cheeks, his gun thrown the
length of the office as he lunged at the laughing Jackson. Punch after punch
landed on Jackson never giving him time to reciprocate and Solo managed a small
laugh as he managed to throw in the inevitable retort to his partner.
"With total
composure, Illya?" The look that was returned caused Solo to shudder as he
saw the blaze of light within Kuryakin’s blue eyes.
"Well at
least he has a bit of colour in his face, Sir." The words went unheard and
Solo could only gasp as he turned to watch his superior. Red faced, cane jabbing
mercilessly at Mega who had backed into a corner whimpering like a schoolboy.
Landa unwittingly saved the composure of U.N.C.L.E. by charging straight into
the middle of the office slamming one of the high ranking THRUSH officers
against the wall just as Kuryakin finally collapsed on top of a gasping, bloody
Jackson.
Solo was quick to seize the
opportunity and quickly took charge of landa’s team ordering the roundup of
all straggling THRUSH agents. Once their leaders had been disarmed the rest of
the THRUSH army gave up the fight.
Waverly’s
colour quickly returned to normal as he ordered the captives taken to be
interviewed, but Solo couldn’t help but notice that each THRUSH agent flinched
and ducked as they passed Waverly and his swinging cane. The old man was far too
busy to strike out again, the old composure was back. He merely nodded to young
Landa acknowledging his victory and said sadly, "Jackson was a good man, it
is so depressing when they go bad."
"You
have a better man down over there," shouted Landa pointing to Kuryakin who
was being helped to his feet by Solo.
"Yes, yes
um Mr Landa, I would have to agree. Now go and help with the cleanup and be back
here tomorrow for your next mission briefing."
The widest of
grins spread across the new Section Two agent’s face. "Yes, Sir."
"Well, Mr
Kuryakin, you seem to have had quite a day," Waverly said signalling the
medical unit to come forward. They instantly backed up again as the Russian
raised a hand and glowered as he produce a bottle
from a small cabinet and poured a class of clear liquid.
"Napoleon,
next time we’re on a mission would you not spend the whole time sitting
down?"
"Da,
whatever you say, I would hate to miss another outburst of composure…"
Waverly caught
the glass and Solo ducked then expertly sat the Russian in a chair holding him
there. The medical team met no resistance as they cautiously approached.
If you would like to comment about the Blinker Stopper, submit your own or just talk to the team then contact the following:-
Author:- Marie Appleton.
Photographer and technical adviser:- Kurt Tzavros.
Illustrator and editor:- Sepia.
For more U.N.C.L.E. stories visit
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