Pastmaster: Spotlight

It was such a beautiful day. The sun was shining, the market was bustling and all seemed right with the world.

Un-noticed by almost everybody, a young man wandered through the market eating a burger. He was average in almost every way. Average height, weight, average walking pace. Completly unexceptional in every way. He had a small smile on his face and was nodding his head slightly with the beat that only he could hear.

A young couple brushed past him. They looked to be about the same age, the woman was preganant and just starting to show, the young man looking like he was about to burst with love and pride. They did a slight double take and grinned at each other. She opened her mouth.

"John? What are you doing here?"

The young man looked around for a second as if seeing who was yelling out his name and if it was him or someone else they were after. He saw the young couple and smiled at them. A friendly smile. Quickly he ate the rest of his burger and went over to say hi.

"Just came out for a burger. Can only get these one day a week. What are you two doing?"

"Just out stocking up on lovely fresh organic fruit and veg. That rubbish is gonig to kill you. You do know that right?"

John sighed. Ever since her bump had begun to show she ahd become very mothering of him. Her hatred of meat was nothing new though.

"Given what I do for a living? I'm pretty sure my cause of death wont be a burger."

They all smiled slightly.

Less than five hundred yards away, something was about to happen. Someething that would shatter this beautiful day forever.

The city had a long history of allowing punting on the river that ran through it. Every weekend guides would take people on tours, telling them the history of this beautiful city. Other people were renting punts to show off their skills. It was a colorful, peacefull and chaotic scene.

However, on this particular day there were other things in the river. Concealed beneath the peacfull waters of the river, small timers reached zero. Their packages were released and floated upwards. The packages took only a few seconds to float the seven feet to the surface. There they floated for a few seconds. Before their internal timer reached zero.

Microseconds after the timers ran out, chemicals reacted and created an explosion. A crude type of C-4, built in a basement somewhere did as it was desgined to do. The blast was not as effective as military grade would have been, but in a small space such as the river it hardly mattered. The explosive did what it was designed to do. Resting on top of the explosive was hundreds of ball bearings, nails and scrap metal. The explosion forced them out at speeds too fast for a human to react to.

Within fifteen seconds at least one hundred people died. Many others were scarred for life and a city was changed forever.

CHAPTER ONE

The sound of the explosions reached the market in less than a second. The sounds of screaming reached them two seonds after that. At his point, the three young people changed from being young people enjoying a sunny day, to being operatives of PASTMASTER.

Jonathon Peter Davies analysed the situation is less than a second. There were three groups of people who would cause explosions in his city, Islamic militants, who he discounted almost immediatley. There were better targets for them to hit.

That left him with fantaics obsessed with the rights of things that couldnt fight back. Normally animals and babies, but they wouldnt hit his city. No reason for it. This attack spoke of planning and a desire to hit people on the river. They wouldnt do that.

The third group was the group he was interested in. Sons of History. The people at the river had been 'pimping history' to quote SOH's manifesto. That made it his case and he and his team needed to get to work. Now.

"You two, office. Start the tree. our weekend just got canned."

Davies was running towards the explosions almost before he finished his sentance. On his way to the river he allowed himself a small shudder. He had been heading there after his burger. Five minutes later and he would have been caught in the blast, he shelved the thought. He had come closer to death than this. Right now, he had a job to do. Someone had done this. And that someone was going to spend a very long time at her majestys pleasure.

Someone else had been in the market at the same time as Davies. That someone else had also heard the explosions and come to the same conclusion. Then, that same person headed towards the river. Saw the young man head to the river. Was slightly confused by the way he moved. It wasnt urgent enough for a friend or family member to have been at risk, wasnt the pace of someone going to offer help. Something began to tick at the back of her head. This guy was something else.

By the time Davies made it to the river the police and ambulances were already starting to arrive and establish a perimeter. Two young police officers had clearly been told to ensure that nobody got close to the bombing. Tough.

Davies went up to one of them.

"Whats happening?"

The police officer looked at him as if he ahd just dropped in from the planet Zarg.

"A bomb has exploded. I need you to clear the area immediatley sir."

"Please let me speak to whoever is in charge. I have information that he may need."

The police officer looked at the young man who was adressing him.

"Please move along. If youa re concerned about frineds and family I can give you the name of the hospital that the wounded are being sent to."

This was gonig nowhere fast. The young policeman was never going to let Davies through. Which meant that Davies was now gonig to have to use the biggest gun that he had. Which meant a huge amount of paperwork for him back at the office.

"Pastmaster. 04027. Now let me through. And forget we ever met."

The youg police officer reacted the same way most people did when Davies used the magic words. Fear, followed by the knowledge that they were now in a place they didnt really want to be and a desire to get out of it. And he knew how to do that.

"Yes sir. Dectective Loughborough is the man you want. Blue shirt."

"Thanks."

Davies walked towards the scene of the crime. He didnt give a seconds thought to the notion that somebody had seen what had just happened.

Which they had. And they were trying to make sense of it. The young man in the ratty T-shirt and jeans had gone up to a police officer. The police officer had clearly had no intention of standing aside. The young man had said something and the police officer reacted as thoguh he had been electrocuted. Who was this guy? He was no older than 24, so he couldnt be MI5 or 6. Nor was he an undercover officer. There was a story in this somewhere. A starting point was all some people needed. And now, there was somewhere to start from. This young man was worthy of some attention.

Davies of course knew none of this. He was too focused on what he was seeing. Ball bearings, nails and blood everywhere. Some of the wounded were still here, crying in pain or just numb with shock. Hell had come to his town. He had failed it, failed these people and failed his country. He took the anger, focused it, turned it outward on the people who had done this.

A man in a blue shirt walked towards him. Saw the lack of blood and injury. Took on a slight look of anger.

"You shouldnt be here. I need you to leave. Now."

The tone was final. Daives gave the code again. Saw a complete lack of fear in the reaction.

"Heard of you people. Didnt think you actually existed. I thoguht you lot were supposed to stop things like this?"

Davies kept quiet. PASTMASTER did have unbelivable powers. With it he could demand anything he wanted and get it. Anything the British state had from a ballpoint pen to an Aircraft carrier was potentially under his control. But every now and then, no matter who you were or what your powers were, every now and then one got through.

"Just give me the facts."

"Seventeen charges laid up and down the river. Like some kind of mine. My gut says home made, loads of people dead or dying. Anything else I can help you with. Sir?"

"Just let us know everything you do as soon as you know it. I'll send someoen over from my office to assist you."

"Assist us? Just who do you think is in charge of this case?"

Davies shot the detective a withering stare.

"I'd like this to be friendly. But if push come to shove? We win. Thank you for the information."

Davies turned and walked away. He knew that the cop was a good one. He made a mental note to stay in the background. PASTMASTER hopefully wouldnt have to be overbearing. Loughborough would complain but he would do a good job. Eager to show that the police would do what PASTMASTER couldnt.

Davies headed past the young officer and headed back to his office. He was grateful now for the burger. He didnt know when he would be able to eat again.

Davies wasnt aware he was being followed.

CHAPTER TWO

All around the country people were becomming aware of the bombing in different ways.

Arthur Pendraggon was sitting ina nice resteraunt, with a nice bottle of wine, and a beautiful redhead sitting opposite him. They were going to a movie afterwards and then back to his. It loooked like being a nice day. Until his phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Arthur? Its the office. Sorry to bother you on a sunday but weve had something big suddenly appear in front of us. We need you here. Now."

"How big?"

"Now."

The phone clicked off. Pendraggon knew that something bad had happened in the world and that something bad was about to happen to him.

Fortunatley the rest of PASTMASTER was easier to activate. However none of them was exactly pleased to be called in on a sunday. But then again, they all knew that terrorists didnt exactly work monday to friday 9-5 either.

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The house was in a beautiful area of the city. Ancient leafy trees provided shade on the pavements and the most recent house appeared to be sixty years old. Just entering the street reminded Davies why he not only loved his city so much but confirmed his desire to defend it.

He was in a battered unmarked police car woth Loughborough and another seargent by the name of Witherspoon. Both had been thoroughly checked to ensue that they were in no way connected with S.O.H. both were clean, but Witherspoon was cheating on his wife with her sister. It had been the only light moment of the day.

They pulled to a stop next to a plain white van. Inside it, two of Davies technological staff were monitering the house. They had confirmed that there were three ehat signatures inside. Tow watching TV and the thrid in an upstairs room. The third signall was the target. No doubt about that. He had tried to erase his computer hard drive. Which was the dumbest move imaginable. The smart thing to do would be to through it in a river and buy a new one. Or burn it.

The erased files had been recovered. They included how to make bombs, links to SOH friendly sites (the sites had all been marked for destruction) and a list of targets on a recently deleted Word document. Davies and the two officers were going in to arrest him. Not ask a few friendly questions. Arrest him. The heat signature in an upstairs room had poked a very sharp stick into a very angry vipers nest. And he was about to discover how short a stick he had compared to the length of the vipers fangs.

Matters were complicated slightly by the fact that the heat signatures parents were lawyers.Very good, very expensive lawyers. But the police had warrents to enter, search and take evidence. Davies didnt have a warrent. He didnt need one.

Before they left the car Loughborough turned to look at Davies. On the drive over he had avoided conversation of any type and had seemed to be trying very hard to ignore the young man in the back seat. But now he turned and started to speak very slowly.

"Whats the plan. Sir?"

As it alwayshad been,the word sir was covered in cynicism, as if showing his distaste for PASTMASTER. Davies as always, ignored it. Loughborough had lived up to his expectations. He had as predicted let out the occasional grumble but he had worked hard. Davies looked him and Witherspoon in the eye and answered in a similar tone.

"We go in, arrest him, take him into custody and then let him stew for a day or two before asking him any questions. You two introduce yourself as police officers and i'll just follow along."

That seemed simple enough. The other two members of the cell were also going to be recieving knocks on the door at the exact same time. Seventeen minutes past three. No member was able to warn the others.

They got out of the car and rang the doorbell.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

It took about twenty seconds for the door to open. A man who looked exaclty like a lawyer on his day off opened it. He was even wearing gold rimmed spectacles and the type of jumper that only people who earn huge amounts of money seem to be able to locate. He looked at the two officers with the polite annoyance that people answering their door give to unexpected callers.

"Good afternoon sir, i'm Officer Loughborough and this is officer Witherspoon. May we come in?"

The guy didnt move but his expression went from polite annoyance to lawyer. He didnt move an inch.

"May I ask what this is about?"

"Its regarding the bombing sir. May we come in?"

The lawyer moved. He didnt ask which bombing. He closed the door firmly as if sending out a mesage 'you are not wanted here. Get what you want and go away."

The wife came out. She was a tall thin blonde who looked about 40 but clearly as the result of reaching 50 and paying a surgeon to help her back away again.

"Who are they hunny?"

"Police officers. They want to talk to us about the bombing."

She was stunned for a few seconds. As if confused how something so horrible could intrude on her little world. She blinked and said what was clearly the first thing that came into her head.

"Tea?"

All three accepted the offer. Milk, no sugar. Whilst the kettle was boiling, the tension in the room was rising as well.

"May I ask how we can help you? With your investigations I mean."

Loughborough answered. Politly but with an undercurrent to his voice.

" We are actually here to talk to your son Jason. Is he in the house?"

The couple looked at each other and then called out Jasons name. Like most parents they assumed that their sun was innocent and that the police suspected somone he knew. Davies was lurking near the front door. Whilst nobody had been looking he had locked the door. As soon as Jason knew there were police in the house he would try and run.

There was a thudding as a