There were lots of gasps as Larna walked into the room. Not just because of who was walking in with their Commanding Officer, but what she looked like. With the look of a young Hudson Leick, Larna could captivate any audience with her stunning features. All the men and women in the room quickly jumped to their feet and gave a salute when they saw Commander Tom Aspel walking in the room after her. Larna shook her head and gave a wry smile to herself. Tom moved passed Larna and came to stand on the platform in front of the gathering. He lifted his arms into the arm and the crowd fell silent.
“Trainees, we are very honoured today to have a guest speaker. Let me introduce you to Larna Fox.”
Larna looked at Tom and sighed. She stepped forward and the gathering, especially the men, stared wide-eyed and bewildered. They looked like they were about to fall at her feet and kiss them. Larna started to feel a little like throwing up. Those men were looking at her like she was some sort of goddess. Tom stepped back and started towards the door. Larna stopped him and asked.
“Where do you think you’re going? You’re not leaving me with this group of trainees are you?”
Tom nodded and said.
“You’ll be fine, they’re a good bunch.”
Larna turned and looked at the gang of trainee police officers. She noticed one of the men staring at her intently. She suddenly had a funny feeling. It was like someone had walked over her grave. The man continued to look at her. Larna turned and watched Tom walking out of the room. It was not so much as to ask him to come back, but to avert her eyes from the man at the back of the group. When Tom had gone the trainees all sat down and watched Larna, interested in what she was going to do next. Larna turned slowly and looked at all the expectant faces watching her. She sighed and thought to herself.
‘Oh brother.’
Larna coughed and smiled.
“Hi, er, as you can probably guess I’m not very good at this sort of thing. I, er, have never talked before a large audience before.”
The guy that had been looking at her strangely before spoke out.
“You’re the one who travels through time, making sure that the past is not changed, aren’t you?”
Larna stared at him.
“How do you know that, only people with PC1 ratings know that information?”
The man smiled. Larna shook her head and continued to speak, ignoring the wicked smile.
“I doubt that a police trainee would have a PC1 rating.”
The man shook his head.
“What’s your name trainee?” Larna asked curious.
“It’s Craig ‘Hunter’ Jordan.”
Larna gulped when she heard the name Jordan. Her old assassination partners’ surname was Jordan. Larna tried to cover the fact that she was a little worried, by asking.
“How much do you know about me then Hunter?”
Hunter got to his feet and walked around the crowd. He came to stand right next to her. Larna looked up and was amazed by his build and size. He was around six feet seven inches tall, with the build of a bodybuilder. Larna wondered how they had managed to get a uniform big enough to fit him. Hunter towered over Larna like a skyscraper over a corner shop. Larna, who was only five feet eleven, backed away, trying to give herself room to think. The black haired Hunter turned to the others in front of him and started to go into a long speech.
“The woman before us, Larna Fox, was also known as The Fox, in earlier times.” he paused as he turned to stare at Larna. “Aged twenty one Erayears, she stands around five feet eleven inches tall and weighs approximately nine stone. She has hazel coloured eyes with long auburn hair. She’s got vital stats. of 36B-24-35. Quite impressive stats. The tattoo on the right side of her neck is the Chinese for Eternal Devotion. She did that herself in honour of her dead husband. She is trained in six forms of martial arts and can use most weapons efficiently. At present she is single, but has been married. A street gang killed her husband. Around twenty confirmed kills, the first one was when she was aged fourteen. She killed her foster father by smacking him over the head with a chair. Identifying marks are a tattoo of a rose and dagger on her left buttock and one of a Fox on her right bicep. Before becoming an undercover police agent she had several outstanding warrants for robbery, arson, GBH, murder, attempted murder, ABH and kidnapping. She has embarked on several missions in time so far and is under contract to go back in time when someone is trying to change the past. Her first mission was to stop a psychotic Zarr called Rogue. As you may know Rogue was the first Zarr to escape Bostary High Security Prison. She was enlisted to go back through time and stop him from killing the parents of the leaders of New Arizona. Her next mission was against a dimension travelling rapist. Lillith, or Jade as she was calling herself, had kidnapped ten women from the past and brought them to the future. She’d designed a collar, which brought the women under her control. They had no control over what they did or said.” he paused again as he turned to look at Larna, “Do you want me to continue?”
Larna shrugged her shoulders.
“Hell, you’re doing a better job than I would do.”
Hunter smiled.
“The next problem was with a bitch from the future. She was called Shadow. She was into black magic, wasn’t she Larna.”
Larna nodded her head.
“Next was the Lethally Instant Assassination Mandroid. Liam went back in time to kill the person who had financed his project. He did not succeed. Next Larna went into the future to deal with Shadow again. She had kidnapped the president and Commander of Police. Next was Colin Thompson. The story behind that one is still being processed. The report has only just been completed. Isn’t that right Larna?”
Larna, who had nearly fallen asleep in her seat, jumped up and walked across to Hunter. She looked up into his eyes and said.
“Now that you’ve told everyone about me, perhaps we can get down to some details.”
Hunter was returning to his seat when he paused.
“People say that you’re the best shot in the world.”
Larna looked at the guys back and shook her head.
“If that’s what they say, then that’s the truth.”
“I challenge you to a shooting contest then.”
Larna was taken aback. Hunter turned and stared right at her.
“You know what my sister was capable of. Well, I’m twice the shot she was.”
“I take it your sister was Alaska Jordan. My ex-partner.”
“You take it right, Fox. I’ve waited a long time to get the revenge for my sisters death.”
“That was not my fault. I wasn’t to blame when Shadow took over Alaska’s body. What could I do?”
“You put her in Bostary. I know what it’s like in Bostary. She had already been attacked by three gangs in there from what I heard.”
“Okay then, you’ve got yourself a contest.”
“Great. Now for the odds.”
“Odds?” Larna looked a little surprised.
“There has got to be something to get out of the contest. When I win I want you as my prize.”
Larna smiled and started to laugh.
“IF you win you want, ME?”
“Yeah, I want your ass Fox. Nothing else will do. When I win, you die.”
“Fine.”
Hunter looked a little surprised that Larna would agree to something like that. The others were all watching the conversation with both interest and surprise. Larna stepped closer to Hunter and said.
“If I win, then I want you to quit the police force and disappear. I never want to hear from you again. Do we have a deal?”
Hunter turned right around and held out his hand in offer of handshake.
“You’ve got a deal.”
The two contestants walked to the firing range. The firing range looked out into space. The target was sent out into space a certain distance. Hunter walked across to the control panel and flipped up the switch to turn the target lights on. He turned to Larna and said.
“I suggest that we start at a distance of around half a mile.”
Larna pushed him aside and said.
“You may want to start at that distance, but I’m going to start at two miles.”
Hunter watched as the target disappeared into the distance. He gulped when it finally went out of his vision. The lights were only a blur in the distance. Larna walked away from the control panel and went to the weapons rack. She pulled down a handgun and returned to the shooting line. Hunter watched as Larna started to lie down. He smiled and started to laugh.
“What ARE you doing?”
Larna glanced over her left shoulder, but did not say a word. She lay down on her stomach and held the gun out so that her eye looked down the gun sight. One of the other trainees walked to the control panel and flipped on the scoring chart. Larna winked at the scorer and fired five shots in quick succession. The score rattled up. Larna jumped to her feet and looked as the score continued to rise. The trainee on the scoring computer stared in amazement. She turned to look at Hunter and said.
“Larna has scored four hundred and sixty points out of a possible five hundred.”
Larna pretended to blow the smoke away from the end of the gun and handed it across to Hunter. Hunter snatched the gun from her grip and stood at the line. Larna smiled as five shots were fired. Hunter turned to the woman on the scoring computer and waited for her to add the scores up. Larna walked across to the door and lent against the frame. The woman on the scoring computer sighed and said.
“Craig Jordan scored only one hundred and ninety points.”
Larna smiled and glared at Hunter.
“I’ll take both your badge and registration document. The computer will never know that a Craig Jordan applied to be a police officer.”
Hunter lowered his head. Larna smiled.
Hunter slowly looked up and asked.
“What am I supposed to do for a career now?”
“I don’t care. Tell me what did you get in the GEC?”
“I rated a two one.”
“I didn’t even get a rating. With a two one you can go anywhere and do anything you want to. I’ve got no choice as to what I do.”
“No, that’s right, you’re trapped.”
“Yeah. I’m a slave to Tom Aspel. More than he realises I think.”
Hunter smiled as he walked passed her and out of the door.
“I’m glad that you’re life is so messed up. Thank you for doing the same to mine.”
Hunter pushed passed her and disappeared down the corridor. The woman that had been reading the scoring computer came to stand next to Larna.
“There was something strange about that guy. I never liked him.”
Larna turned and looked at the brown haired woman standing at about the same height as her.
“Come on, now that’s he’s gone, let’s go back and have a proper discussion.”
The woman smiled and walked away. Larna stared down the corridor for a brief moment, before following the trainee officer.
Hunter paused as he got to the transportation platform. He turned to look at the operator who smiled at him with sympathy. Hunter did not want sympathy. He wanted revenge. Hunter stepped up on to the platform without another pause. The operator started to flip buttons on the control panel in front of him. Hunter knew that if he left this space station he would never get his chance. He would never be able to get this close to Larna Fox again. The operator looked up from the panel and said.
“Get ready.”
Hunter stepped forward. The operator looked up and was surprised to see Hunter walking towards him. He coughed and said.
“Please return to the platform sir.”
Hunter kept walking forward like he was in a trance. The operator backed away from the panel. Hunter leapt over the panel and came to stand right in front of the operator. The operator shrunk as Hunter towered over him. Hunter placed his hands around the operator’s neck and started to squeeze. The operator’s feet left the floor. He kicked wildly, but did not get anywhere. A few seconds later his body was hanging limply from Hunter’s arms. Hunter dropped the operator to the floor and bent down. He took out the operator’s gun and started back towards the corridor.
Larna stood in front of the trainees and started to speak.
“Now that that little problem has been eliminated, perhaps we can get back to discussing some important things. Now, what topic would you all like to discuss.”
The trainees looked at each other, trying to figure out what topic of conversation they would like to undertake. Larna sighed and saw that they were having problems.
“Well, would you like to discuss guns? Combat tactics? Or just some more about my adventures.”
The door crashed open and Hunter came striding into the room.
“I’d like to discuss your time travelling adventures a little more.”
Larna looked towards the door when she recognised the voice. Larna gulped as she saw the look in Hunter’s eyes. She had seen that look a number of times before. It was a look of hatred. Of revenge. Larna jumped off the platform and came to stand in the middle of the walkway down the middle of the trainees. One trainee jumped to his feet, trying to stop Hunter from making his way down the walkway. Hunter smacked the trainee in the face before throwing him across the aisle and on top of a number of the other trainees. Like lightning Hunter zipped down the aisle and placed his large arm around Larna’s neck. Larna went to throw him over her shoulder. Quickly Hunter pushed the end of the gun into Larna’s forehead and said.
“Don’t even think about it. You make one false move and I swear I’ll blast your brains out.”
Hunter pushed Larna down the aisle towards the door. Larna let herself be taken, wherever she was going to be taken.
They got to the door to find the corridor full of officers all pointing their guns at Hunter. Hunter shielded himself by putting Larna right in front of him. The guard would have had a good shot at his head, but they knew that Larna was too close. Tom was standing at the far end of the corridor.
“What the hell has got into you trainee?”
Hunter pushed the gun into Larna’s forehead and said.
“I’ve come for my revenge.”
“Tom, this guy is Alaska’s brother. He wants me. Don’t try and do anything. One move and he’ll kill me for sure. Perhaps you may want me dead, I don’t know, if you do, make a move.”
Tom looked at the other officers and gave them an order.
“Lower your guns. Let them go.”
“I want a C.O.C.” Hunter shouted.
A C.O.C. was a Collar Of Control, which was used to control prisoners, by making them prisoners inside their own bodies. Larna looked up at him. She had a bad feeling about this. Hunter pushed the gun against her.
“I want one NOW.”
Tom turned and gave a signal to someone behind him. While the C.O.C. was being fetched the police and Hunter were at a stand off. Larna did not feel like making a move. She did not like the idea of having her brains splattered all over the walls.
Within a couple of minutes a C.O.C. was handed over into Tom’s hands. He threw it down the corridor and shouted.
“Here’s your blasted collar. I’m sorry Larna.”
“Touching.” Hunter said as he reached down and picked the collar up off the floor.
The collar was the same design as before. On the inside of the metal collar were spikes which entered the neck all the way round. They sent little impulses to block the brain’s signal. The wearer of the collar would be under the total control of the owner on the collar. It was a form of controlling device used on prisoners. Hunter, without another word, snapped the collar around Larna’s neck. Larna tried to struggle to get away, but it was no good. The collar snapped shut around her neck and she was under Hunter’s control. Hunter knew that. He moved down level with Larna’s ear and whispered.
“Start walking down the corridor towards the transportation platform.”
Larna immediately started walking. The officers all backed away as she came towards them. Hunter smiling as he followed closely behind them. Hunter paused when he got to Tom Aspel.
“She’s my slave now Aspel. We’re going to take a little trip down to the SAT Laboratory. Tell them we’re coming.”
“What are you planning to do?”
“That’s my little secret. Do as I say, or this collar will snap her neck in two. I think that you will not want to risk wasting Larna’s life.”
Tom stared into Hunter’s eyes before nodding and walking down the corridor towards the inter-space communicator. Hunter laughed heartily as he continued on his way down the corridor towards the transportation platform.
Larna walked through the door and went to stand on the platform just like Hunter had told her to do. Hunter quickly ran to the control panel and tapped in the SC number for the SAT Laboratory. He ran to the transportation platform and came to stand right next to Larna. He looked down at her and said.
“We’re going to take a little trip. You’re going to enjoy this.”
He had just finished when they disappeared from the platform.
In another room Tom flipped up the lid of the inter-space communicator and entered the number for the laboratory. Professor Steinbeck’s face came up on to the screen. Tom looked at the Professor and said.
“I’ve got no time to explain, just listen to me carefully. A man is transporting himself down to your laboratory. He’s taken Larna as his hostage. I want you to do everything he says. Under no circumstances, I repeat, no circumstances do you try to free Larna. Is that understood?”
Steinbeck nodded, then turned away. In the background Tom could just see Hunter walking into the room behind Larna.
Hunter smiled at the gathering crowd of scientific experts in front of him and looked at Larna.
“Ms Fox and I would like to take a little trip back in time. Only, I want someway of controlling where she goes and when she goes.”
“What do you suggest?”
“You’ve made a new discovery haven’t you. It’s a Time Portal. If I send Larna through the portal she will be unable to use her own device. I can take a little watch device, which will tell the portal to transport us to a different time. Isn’t that right?”
Steinbeck looked at the table and especially at the watch like device in the middle. The watch had a clear plastic covering which covered the keypad and made sure that the buttons could not be pushed by accident. Hunter saw him looking at the device and smiled. He ran across and lifted the watch up. He attached it to his wrist and smiled with pleasure.
“Is it right about what I said. She will not be able to use the time travelling function on her own device?”
“No. Once you’ve transported her through time by sending her through the portal, they only way she will be able to travel through time herself is if you send her, of if you die. You’ll have complete control of where and when she goes.”
Hunter smiled as he walked to Larna and pushed a button on the side of the C.O.C.. This button sent an electric current through her body, stunning her for a brief moment. Hunter caught her as she slumped to the ground. Quickly Hunter removed the C.O.C. and carried Larna across to the dull grey platform in front of a grey framework. He turned to Steinbeck and said.
“I want you to send her back in time. Send her to—”
Her ex-assassination partner’s brother chases Larna through time. She is forced to revisit previous places that she has been to on her travels, with Hunter breathing down her neck with every step that she takes.