He appeared in the Laboratory very early the next morning with a bounce very evident in his step and a smug smile on his face. Drunk he could get, but the after affects of drink, such as the hangover did not touch him.
    When Tzavros saw him he gave a deep sigh. This was not just because of the unfairness of being able to drink alcohol without the usual early morning aspirin overdose. It was the knowledge that even with the super flyer back they still must find a cure for the wasp stings, if the world as they knew it, was to survive. Every university, every scientist was working on the same problem, but all with the same results, within seconds of adding the artificial sting, the blood blackened and tissue died.
    "Vacily? Has you added something to samples?"
    "No why, have you got something?"
    "I don�t know? It last batch I did. One sample took longer before destruction started. Was much longer and two look normal."
    "Not my blood is it?" Sukoloff said as he looked through the microscope at the blood cells. "No, you said mine reacts the same as a living person, OK, give me the list."
    "Vacily! It like this, well you see ..." said Tzavros shuffling his feet.
    "You didn�t keep records did you?" Sukoloff shouted thumping the wall in frustration. "How many times have I to tell you that accurate records must always be taken and this is reason why. How stupid can you get?"
    "I know, I know, but we had hundred�s blood samples through here lately. I got fed up labelling every slide just to watch it turn black and then have to re-label thing. OK, I know I an incompetent idiot."
    "You said it, Zav, "said Sukoloff nodding in agreement. "Now you have made yourself even more work. I hope you kept a list of that batch, because I want them redone. Find me those three again and give me their names."
    "What we are looking for?"
    " They must be taking something, cannabis perhaps. Something in their blood is different. God, it could be something as simple as a cold. Anything could effect those slides. I�ll get Taylor and Gross down here to help you. How many in the last batch?"
    "Over hundred, well over hundred. Sorry."

"I�ve got it!" said Dwire laughing. "I�ve been trying to think of something to do for Halloween. You know, scare the big boys out of their pants? Well, how about this for size, lasers?"
    "What you on about? You gonna cook all the top agents?"
    "Nah, you know? Holograms? Let�s conjure up a monster and show it in the office. I bet Steele will piss himself. I guess."
    "Love it," sniggered Galloway. "And we�ve got plenty of time to prepare it. But I wish we could conjure up a real monster. Imagine the reaction if we could?"
    "It�s ages before Halloween and lasers are kid�s stuff. If you want something real, let�s get something, how about a seance?" whispered Jade Bird.
    "No don�t!" shouted Klyne the colour draining from his face. "Don�t muck about with things you don�t understand. Anyway, if Sukoloff finds out you�ll be for it."
    This remark only succeeded in setting Galloway off. "That old wino?" he said bitterly. "What�s he going to do about it? Henn only keeps him around as a kind of mascot, he couldn�t thump his way out of a paper bag. Anyway, Klyne, what�s up, you not scared are you? Little Kwine scared of ghostees?"
    "Oh, you�re not?" said Dwire laughing. "They�re not real you know? You�re not really scared are you?"
    Klyne clenched his fists trying to block out his vivid memories as he stuttered. "Y... Yes, I am scared. Just don�t muck with them and don�t underestimate Sukoloff. He�s... He�s... I don�t know, he�s something?"
    "Oh, come on, man, what is he?" said Galloway still sniggering. "Like Bayfield says? Brillee-ant? Or a dead beat drunk who goes out with little girls."
    This outburst caused Dwire to scowl, even though he liked Galloway, he did not like his bitter attitude towards the top men, then smiling he said. "OK, seance it is... As well as the lasers. I guess."

"One of our operators has come across what could be the wasp base," Henn began his daily talk by not only issuing new orders, but with the odd reprimand. "His long distance sensors have picked up buzzing... Pardon?... No, Mr Tzavros, he hasn�t got wax in his ears, it�s very probably one of the holding areas for those infernal Guardians and that is no joking matter. Also as we haven�t got a anti-wasp drug yet... We haven�t have we, Mr Tzavros?"
    "No, Sir."
    "Your report in a minute I think. As I was saying, there is no drug, so therefore... The Special invasion force will go in tonight. Talking of that particular person, if one more time you use D Mode to place silly postcards over the close circuit cameras you�ll be back in training school. A spot of gun cleaning should keep you happy for a while." Henn glanced across to Sukoloff who was blankly looking out of the window. "Are you listening to me?"
    He turned and without blinking nor changing the faraway look said, "Don�t I always, Alex?... Sir... My lord and master. Might not have been me have you thought of that?"
    Henn held his gaze. "I did think and it was you and you know it, as was the new dent in my car. Look before you leap and start walking instead of using experimental equipment that you know you are a total amateur at."
    Still their eyes did not leave the others. "Alex! If you ever get to use it you�ll take off in New York and land in London when you�re meant to be going to Fifth Avenue."
    Proctor managed to butt in. "Talking of London, when are you going?"
    Henn finally took his eyes from the Russian. "Tomorrow, so you lot, I�m leaving Mr Proctor in charge until I return. He knows all your tricks so don�t bother playing them. Now, Mr Tzavros, your report."
    "I mislaid original list of donors..." He looked to the ceiling for a little help, but on not receiving any continued. "So I calling everybody back who gave blood. That way we find hundred that I mislaid and then find three that we need. I hope... Sir."
    Trixie looked up from the communications console and smiled as she spoke. "Zav? I know those lists, don�t you remember? You asked me to log every one that gave blood so that you didn�t ask the same group twice."
    "Did I? I don�t remember."
    "No? Well, I remember and it�s a good job I did. Men, what would you do without us?" she said reaching into her handbag for her notebook. "Yes, here it is, the first group were male field operatives. These you redid again. But you had a few complaints, mainly about the way you harpooned your victims so, that�s when you moved onto the electricians, then mechanics. By this time you�d got a bit of a reputation so volunteers were a bit hard to find. The last list was mostly technicians and new, may I say, unsuspecting members, plus the top twenty again and the computer pool and me."
    "I thought I said no ladies for these experiments, harpoon is right, I�ve still got a bruise," Henn said wincing.
    Sukoloff joined in the conversation with a knowing grin creeping across his face. "How many ladies did you use, Zav?"
    "I can�t remember, how many, Trixie?"
    She looked down on her list and counted. "Twenty... No, twenty-two if you count the two cleaners that you highjacked, no... Twenty-three, Steele�s girlfriend as well."
    Sukoloff smiled at Trixie then turned to Tzavros. "Test all the ladies again, maybe our wasps don�t like female blood, or maybe it is drugs. Ask all on that list if they take anything and get Taylor to test for oestrogen or similar."
    "What we looking for?"
    "He want�s to know how many women in Pia are on the pill," laughed Trixie. "Don�t you, Vacily?"
    He nodded and started to speak but Henn was in first. "Only a very quick test on each lady, I don�t want their privacy invaded by you two conniving Russians. No questionnaires, do you hear?"
    This gave Sukoloff the ammunition he needed. "Why? Oh, we haven�t got something we don�t want others to know about have we? A nice little secret or something? No? Steele, what about you?... To the lab, Zav, and quickly, I think Russia has uncovered something very important."
    Henn tried to speak but this time even Proctor was laughing, so, very red faced, he left well alone.

Sukoloff stood alone outside the isolated building, Henn had ordered all operators back, just in-case the swarm was loosed on the world. Now it was up to Sukoloff to find and destroy.
    He walked silently through the building, searching as he did and resisting the fearsome temptation to use his ghostly powers on the dozing guards. As he entered a large laboratory his heart began to race with joy, against one wall, taking up a large area of the lab were the Guardians.
    They were enclosed in glass and clearly visible without having to go into their crystal domain. Two guards sat outside the cage chatting and laughing. Seeing them made the temptation to move objects or blow into their faces to become almost unbearable, but the order was, "No terrorising," so that was that.
    Grinning, he walked through the glass and instantly the swarm went wild as they sensed the unearthly presence. Sukoloff looked at them carefully and discovered most appeared normal small black and yellow wasps, but twenty per cent were four times the size of their cell mates. As well as the two usual colours, a hairy green strip ran from head to tail and the stinger was hooked more like a scorpions than a wasp.
    The guards, by now had noticed the behaviour of their deadly charges and stood close to the glass frowning. Sukoloff giggled and concealing a small can of insect killer in his hand, began to spray.
    He danced about, reliving the adventures of Errol Flinn sword-fighter extraordinare as he zapped the frenzied wasps left right and centre. The next can brought out the John Wayne in him and his six shooter dropped many a wasp. Another can and the spitfire pilot was airborne, complete with dives and loop the loops, firing the insect spray as he did. "Yeee ooooow, rat tat tat."
    The guards watched in horror as the wasps fell dying for no apparent reason. The ones that really puzzled them were those which fell to the floor still struggling to retain flight, while in their final death throws they suddenly went flat and stuck to the floor by their yellow green insides.
    Another can and Sukoloff was a Spanish dancer, complete with the odd "OLE" his feet finished off the dying wasps. Then after one final spray and a careful examination of his person for hiding wasps he left, as two furious guards opened the door to wonder why it smelt so strongly of insect spray.
    Once outside he called in the back-up teams, ordering the destruction of the base and capture of any KIJAC agents.

"Professor Bajak, I ask again! When will my Sasam be complete? I want it ready for Halloween and you know it."
    Bajak looked carefully into the face of Chad King, at his black pit like eyes and yellow cadaver skin. "It will be ready. She did work. The Spirit Cat is already in Pia. Those captured at the massacre are working so perfectly that nobody knows of their existence. If you hadn�t been so impatient by bringing Scarab back before I said, then it would still be working."
    Tzavros was muttering as Sukoloff came out of the darkroom. "I don�t believe it."
    "That�s because I�m brilliant, all wasps are ex-stinged, so to speak. Well, that batch anyway."
    Tzavros looked up briefly as he spoke. "Oh, well done, but wasn�t talking to you. I did it again, somehow muddled all labels up. Twenty two I tested and this time one is clear. Taylor�s looking through records at moment because girls won�t tell me anything, I haven�t clue why, they keep saying I too nosy."
    "How did you muddle the labels up?"
    Tzavros explained that he had the label ready on the test tubes but put the wrong blood in each one.
    "OK, Zav, twenty-two ladies, ages ranging from sixty to twenty, has Taylor tested to see if they�re on the pill?"
    "Yes, but makes no difference," sighed Tzavros.
    "That�s it! I bet it is, test for levels of Progesterone in all samples, and... Zav... Label carefully."
    From the laboratory Sukoloff went to the office to report to Proctor that his mission to remove the wasps had been a success, then stopped and scowled. "Someone�s calling... Oh, the idiots, the stupid idiots."
    "What is wrong? Who is an idiot?" asked a puzzled Proctor.
    Sukoloff began looking upwards and turned like a radar dish as he tried to find the direction. "That way, definitely that way. Someone in this building is doing a seance, you know?"
    "What, calling on the dead?"
    "Luckily I�m the closest dead being, so they�re getting me."
    "I keep forgetting that you are not alive," said Proctor giving a slight shudder. "Can�t you ignore it?"
    "Well I can and I can�t. But the thing is I�m worried what they might bring through because they have no idea how to do that. Anything might appear. I suppose I�d better go and stop it."
    "If you feel you must, but do not frighten them too much." Even though Proctor could no longer see him, he distinctly heard the giggle.

The room was darkened, apart from small flickering candles and it was the sight of these which made Klyne began to shake. "Don�t do it," he pleaded. "Please, you just don�t understand about these things, it�s dangerous." This only caused the others to laugh and Bird, in between inhaling deeply on her decongestant stick, sorted out letters into a circle on the table.
    "Right, everyone put on finger on the glass, that includes you, Klyne, my pretty boy," sniffed Bird as she placed the glass in the centre of the letters.
    "You don�t know what you might get, leave it."
    "Shut up and stop being a baby," moaned Bird and she began to call. "Is there anyone there? I call on the spirit world, if there is anybody there show yourself."

Sukoloff stood watching the four young people, but his eyes stayed mostly on Klyne who began to look desperately ill. He would have to go easy on him if he was not to cause the young man to have a complete breakdown. As he had already made a quick stop to his laboratory for necessities, he began, as Bird again called on any presence to show itself.
    Standing behind Dwire, he emptied a small box over his head, then he did the same with Galloway. Bird had something poured onto her nose that made her gasp. "Blimey! What was that?"
    "Nothing why?" said a puzzled Dwire, then he leapt up squealing, "What the deuce? Ants! I�m covered in ants." At the same time Philip Galloway started jumping up and down scratching and yelling, "There not blasted ants they�re fleas, I�m covered in fleas."
    Bird yelled loudly and removed two angry little mice from the front of her dress and Klyne began to laugh. "Geez! Some supernatural beings you conjured up, I told you not to muck with it." Then he turned slightly as he heard, sniggering just behind him, very faint sniggering.
    Everyone was leaping up and down in the vain effort to rid themselves of the six legged invaders and Klyne was suddenly very thoughtful, it all added up, but it was impossible. Obviously he was still affected by the Horsemen and maybe he was mad, but whom could he tell? Who would believe him? Nobody, but he had to find out the truth for his sanity. Not that he cared, it did not worry him, but he had to know.

Henn returned the next afternoon and gave a deep sigh, "I hear your mission was a success, Vacily. Your back-up team removed the base and took several captives, unfortunately they were all minor operatives and therefore have no knowledge of their headquarters. So we must continue to search and, Vacily!... Fleas?"
    There came that look of total innocence.
    "Vacily? I repeat, fleas? That whole floor had to be fumigated, couldn�t you have used something else?"
    "I did."
    "Yes, Vacily, ants, that�s nearly as bad."
    "And other things," said Sukoloff with a shrug.
    "Other things? Oh, the mice... Not the mice? What other things?" He did not have to wait long, those in the office erupted in laughter as the four agents arrived, instead of its usual bright red, Bird�s freckled nose was black.
    "Oh, Vacily no! Not silver nitrate?" A very smug grin flicked across the Russian�s face.
    Henn studied the young agents and the red blotches still evident on their faces, souvenirs of many bites. He spoke to them sternly, "Sit down... I have been informed that you have been playing with things that you have no knowledge of. I don�t ever want to hear of this again, is that understood?" Very subdued they all nodded and glanced angrily at Klyne, it could only have been him who had given the game away. Then Henn continued, "And you Mr Klyne, I�m shocked, very shocked. I would have thought with your experience you would have left immediately and told a superior. You of all people know the dangers of what you were about to do. If any of you fiddle with these things again, I will be forced to ask you to hand in your credentials." They all looked down, that they could not risk, it would have to be the lasers.

A forgotten memory of the previous night resurfaced and Sukoloff began to scowl. Last night! Fleas, ants and mice! From the laboratory to the apartment block in seconds�through countless walls? How did the mice go through the walls and yet be still alive? He quickly ran from the office to the laboratory ignoring Tzavros as he did, then he grabbed a mouse and ran back.
    For a while he examined it, there was not one bruise, not a hair out of place, but how? He stood and walked to the wall and with his back to those in the office held out his hand. With the mouse still in his palm he passed his hand through the wall and the mouse fell to the floor. It lay there a full second then set off at full mouse acceleration across the floor followed by a diving Russian. After first knocking Proctor flying, he regained possession of the unfortunate mouse and moved close to the wall. Again his arm disappeared leaving the mouse behind to fall to potential freedom. Sukoloff was ready this time and pounced before the tiny creature had time to run. He studied it carefully, then slowly clenched his fist over the mouse, then again he passed his hand through the wall and yelled loudly.
    "I did it, I pushed mouse through the wall and it came out in one piece, not minced."
    Henn�s mouthful of coffee sprayed the table, Proctor groaned and the young agents sniggered.
    "I just don�t believe this guy. He totally bombed again," Galloway muttered.
    Sukoloff turned and looked around the office, gave an embarrassed laugh and walked into the washroom. Klyne watched carefully, then sat and waited as one by one the agents left until just Henn remained. As expected, Henn walked over to Trixie and Klyne ran quickly across the room and into the washroom.

Everything looked as it should. This was a normal executive washroom. A small table and a chair were in one corner; a vase of flowers; ashtray, this was Henn�s cigar room. Sink, normal mirror and another door that led to the toilet. He very carefully tapped all the walls; the floor; the ceiling; everything was solid. So where was the damned elevator? He quickly left and sat down facing the door, sure enough Sukoloff walked out, went over to Henn then went back in again. Klyne began to think, nobody else used the elevators, only Sukoloff. Washroom to darkroom; darkroom to reception washroom, they went everywhere. He had often heard Henn complaining about him using the elevator to the apartments, but that would have to be a horizontal lift, not the usual vertical. This would have to go straight through the main computer room and the large lecture hall. It could not be possible.
    His mind began to race�the plane, I saw him on that wing�he held me as I fell. No! I must ask Henn if I can see a shrink. But if I�m pronounced mad that would mean debriefing and no longer working for Pia. But I have to get help.

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