The Chronicles of Shamballa

The Doomsday

The alarms in the offices went off loudly, the Elder Master, Farid and Johnathan rushed into the tech room. It was all over the news- Chemical Attack at the airport- at least 200 people are affected by an unknown aerosol released by someone causing the victims to suffer from delusional episodes, hysteria and paranoia. It's getting chaotic and dangerous, with the victims tackling and killing one of the guards. One of the victims plummeted to his death from the third floor saying some monster was after him. The National Guard, CDC and Homeland Security are all on the scene trying to get things under control...

"It's a madhouse in there- Who did this?" Johnathan remarked.

"Scan the airport CCTV footage- look for anything suspicious just before the attack-" said the Master to one of the computer guys.

"This is terrible but it looks more like a terrorist attack, I don't think we should interfere-" remarked Farid.

"You maybe right Brother but I don't think it's a coincidence that this has happened now- someone's playing a dirty game!" said Johnathan.

"He's right Farid, we cannot take this lightly, terrorists or not we will find the one responsible-"replied the Master.

"What if Billy's behind this?" said Johnathan.

"I know his hideout- I want to go check it , maybe I'll find something-"

"You can't get outside- you're a wanted man- remember?" said Farid.

"I'll have to- if Billy's behind this and he's in this city then I'm the only one who can stop him-he might be clever but he can't compete with me-" replied Johnathan.

The Elder Master suggested that he should go after dark and provided him with a fast car and gave him his old sword. He also gave him two sidearms for added security but Johnathan refused it, saying that he hated guns. He waited patiently until it was dark and got into his car and drove off. He knew he had to go to the old church and check it out for any clues. But the actual reason he went was to see Lisa, he wanted to tell her that he was innocent.

The night was lonely and dark. The city was in shock after the airport incident. According to the news reports, the victims were somehow stabilised and taken to the hospital but three of them already lost their lives. Johnathan couldn't believe that someone would target innocent individuals but maybe that's the nature of terrorists- they can't come forward to fight and that's why they hide like cowards abd hurt innocents. He kept wondering what was the endgame? Who was doing this and why? What does Billy or the Chief had to do with this? He drove through dark alleys and tried to avoid the main road because of the police. He had an earpiece on and his team was constantly guiding him through his journey. Any trouble and they would guide him out or extract him immediately- it felt good to him, to have support, to have someone watching his back.

"I've to get in touch with Lisa somehow- I must let her know-" he kept thinking.

"Guys? Can you tell me where Detective Lisa Munroe is?" he asked his support team through his comms.

"Sure! According to her GPS, she has just arrived at her home-" they replied.

Farid was monitoring this and he wasn't surprised when he mentioned Lisa's name-

"Johnny? Is this the right time to meet her?" he asked him.

"Yes, Brother, I have to see her- it won't take long-" he replied and drove towards her house.

Fifteen minutes later he stopped his car in front of her house and hesitated for a moment. He was sure that he wanted to see her a few minutes before but now he wasn't feeling too confident but he stepped out of his car anyway and as he was about to walk towards her door, a huge blast rocked the entire neighbourhood and he was almost knocked off of his feet. He looked up and a building at the end of the road was decimated. It was a shopping mall, about two stories high- he stood up on his feet and stared at the disaster for a few seconds- frozen in fear. Suddenly Lisa opened her door and came out and saw him standing outside.

“Johnathan?” she cried out.

He looked at her and then looked at the blast and got into his car and drove towards the blast site. He was worried about the people inside- there could be survivors and he could help. Lisa stood in front of her door and watched him drive out in full speed, she had no idea what had just happened but she was glad to know that he was safe and sound.

The flames were bursting out in all directions – it was a Sunday night, so there were relatively less people at the mall but those who were in the blast zone would have been vaporized. He knew from his experience in the army, that a blast of this magnitude would require a certain amount of skill and preparation- was this another attack following the airport incident?

He stopped his car and stepped out and looked at the destruction- there was no way that anyone could survive this- the police and the fire fighters were approaching fast and their sirens echoed everywhere, curious on lookers began to flood the scene and began to record the scene on their phones. Suddenly, everyone heard a cry from the top most floor, a woman was hanging on to the edge of a window, crying- calling out for help. Johnathan looked at her and stepped forward to rescue her but the police and the fire fighters were already on the scene and began to cordon off the area. He hesitated and stepped back- he could not risk showing off his skills to the public and the police might recognise him. But the woman on the edge of the window could lose her hold any second, the fire on that floor was growing and the winds were making it hard for her to hold on- the fire fighters could not reach to her on time and she would plummet 300 feet to her death. It was up to him now- he had to do something- his comms were ringing with orders from his team- they wanted him to get out of the place ASAP. But no! He was a soldier and he couldn’t leave the place, knowing that he could have helped. He took out the ear piece and placed it on the deck of his car...