41 - Space Invaders
Sydney - 3:30 am Saturday AEDT
Welcome to my online cyber thriller, The Phisherman. To learn more about the story and meet the three main characters, click HERE. If you'd prefer to start at Chapter 1, click HERE. To select another chapter, click HERE.
Ducking into a narrow alley, Nick was sure he’d escaped to fight another day. The only nearby sounds were several dogs barking at the eerie glow of the half-moon – there were no signs of pursuit.
He hid in the shadows of a tall tree to swiftly check the cuts on his arms.
Grateful the blood had stopped flowing, he pulled out his phone and messaged Vengador.
Somethings wrong. The cops are after me. I think its your black hat friend. Let me know where we can meet asap.Next, he sent a brief message to Alison.
Ali, I need to catch my hacker asap. Send me anything you can.After tucking his phone back inside his pants, Nick noticed a faint light glowing halfway down the lane. It took him several seconds to realize it was a coin-operated drinks dispenser on someone’s front lawn.
Incredulously, he scootered to the Space Invaders vending machine1 and was delighted to find it stocked with various drinks and snacks. He reminisced at the electronic sound of the machine’s Super Mario Brothers theme song as he surveyed the beverages available for his drinking pleasure at three thirty in the morning on an unknown Sydney side street.
Remembering an old university trick that enabled him to get free drinks from a similar machine, he was just about to refresh himself with an ice-cold cola when an unmarked car with sirens blaring sped past the lane’s entry.
Nick paused as the sound of squealing tires echoed down the narrow street, followed by a noisy supercharged engine hurtling closer.
I guess a super-fit tall guy wearing underwear and boots on a scooter at three a.m. is a bit of a giveaway.
Before the cop and his vehicle could enter the laneway, Nick spied a public park to his right and sped into the cover of darkness.
He was surprised by how rapidly the police officer found him as powerful headlights illuminated Nick and the park around him like daytime.
The sound of the screaming engine intensified as the iron beast threatened to trample the puny prey in its path.
Leaving his move until the last moment, Nick veered behind the closest tree and spun around, skidding to a halt in the lightly-grassed dirt.
He watched the car race past as it barreled through a nearby metal rubbish bin and wooden bench. It was apparent that the young male driver intended to use his wheeled weapon to cause Nick some serious damage.
What the hell do they think I’ve done?
Nick raced toward a small group of trees with car-resistant trunks as the cop swung his car around and resumed the chase.
Nick timed his next swerve so the vehicle followed him into the trees far enough to make it difficult for speedy navigation.
Well, it was problematic for steering a cumbersome car.
For a highly trained killer on an e-scooter, it was perfect.
As the policeman slowed to direct his vehicle between the trees, Nick accelerated the stolen scooter through a narrow gap and straight at the turning car. He reached the driver’s door just as the officer sensed Nick’s presence.
The slightly built copper only had time to open his mouth with surprise as Nick jumped off the scooter, grabbed his ride-transformed-into-weapon, and swung it through the air to smash through the car’s side window in one fluid movement.
The thickened glass never stood a chance.
Nor did the driver.
Emotionlessly, Nick reached through the gaping window and forcefully pushed the stunned driver to the side so his foot came off the accelerator.
The car rapidly slowed.
By the time the vehicle ended its journey against one of the nearby trees, Nick knew that the only damage would be a small dent in the front bumper and a significant splattering of blood throughout the cabin.
Within seconds, he’d opened the door, dragged the injured policeman out and propped him against a nearby tree.
Watching the blood stream from multiple places on the young man’s head, Nick knew the dazed copper would survive.
‘You’ll live, pal. And let the scars you’ll always bear from this remind you to know your enemy before you pick a fight with him.’
Nick tapped the young man on the side of his sticky face, wiped the blood on the policeman’s shirt, then climbed into the idling beast.
After ensuring the starter fob was in the console, he revved the powerful motor, laughing with delight as the pistons raged.
He shivered slightly as a cool breeze blew through the shattered window and over his naked chest. Despite his elevated heart rate and the unexpected early morning workout, he felt the drop in temperature.
Thankfully, the thoughtful officer left his jacket on the back seat for me.
After covering his torso, Nick checked his phone. Neither Vengador nor Alison had replied.
He dropped the phone onto the passenger seat, then swiftly reversed the car away from the tree and accelerated into the lane.
Within thirty seconds, he was on a main road.
Five minutes later, he was hurtling down a highway that would take him far away from the search zone.
Putting his phone into speaker mode, he dialed Vengador’s number.
It only rang twice before his friend’s sleepy voice said, ‘What’s up, Nick?’
‘Buddy, I need your help, and I need it now. I suspect your black hat frenemy set me up for something – I don’t know what, but I’m guessing it’s serious as the feds busted my door down and then shot at me as I escaped on a scooter.’
‘What?’
Nick ignored Vengador’s groggy question.
‘And I just had a scrap with one of your coppers and took his car. He’s okay, but I need to meet you asap so you get me out of this hell hole. Sms me an address as soon as so I can load it into my maps app and meet you there within the hour.’
Vengador’s voice was alert as he responded, ‘Got it, Nick. I’m sending coordinates through … now.’
Nick’s phone chirped as Vengador’s message arrived.
Nick pulled the car over to the side of the road as he replied, ‘Thanks, buddy. How far away is it from the hotel you put me in?’
‘Mate, I’ll see you there in fifteen.’
Opening the message, Nick clicked the link and allowed it to open his maps app.
Vengador was spot on – the rendezvous’s twenty minutes away. And I intend to halve that.
‘Thanks, buddy. I’ll see you there in ten. And then, we’re going to catch a black hat or two and teach them some life lessons they’ll never forget.’
London – 5:30 pm Friday
Alison jumped when her phone audibly vibrated on the wooden desk.
She had a message.
Having just heard of Nick’s daring escape from the Australians, she knew it was from the pigheaded American agent who’d stolen her heart while he betrayed everything she stood for.
“Is that him?”
Her heart sank when she read Nick’s short, desperate message.
“Yes,” she replied without enthusiasm.
“Well, what does it say? What does he want?”
“He thinks I may know where Alan Watson is hiding. He’s hoping I can direct him to the hacker’s location so he can make an arrest, get the cyber project documents back, and save the day as Nick Davies does.”
“And do you know where this phisherman is?”
“I have a location in the western suburbs of Sydney where one of Mr Watson’s computers has been for the last twenty-four hours, though I suspect it’s a trap.”
There was a pause before Alison was told what to do.
“I’ll get you to direct Mr Davies to a location where the Australians can pick him up once I’ve organised it. Then, after our American spy is out of the picture, we can determine the best way to catch the phisherman and get our hands on that American cyber weapon. And remember, not a word to the NSA until I say so.”
Alison watched her boss Phil walk away, his fleshy fingers already dialling GCHQ’s Director General to update him on the latest events.
Sydney - 3:45 am Saturday AEDT
Nick forced himself to ignore the driving beat of the booming sound system and slowed down. The best thing to do with a stolen car was blend into the scenery.
Hopefully, the coppers would be thrown off his scent when they discovered where he’d discarded their car. That was why he went looking for a new getaway vehicle as soon as he realized he was heading away from Vengador’s rendezvous point.
Hearing the loud dance beat from a nearby house party, Nick had slowed down to peruse the street’s offerings. The young revelers provided him with a great range of suitable vehicles.
He parked the cop car in a narrow side street two blocks away, then ran back to the start of the long line of vehicles. He glanced inside each darkened cabin he passed until he saw what he wanted – a manual gearshift.
And what a beast!
Within seconds, the sleek lime green sedan with a silver HSV on the side was silently rolling down the street until it was a block from the party that sounded like it would rage until the sun came up.
As the machine’s momentum gathered speed, Nick squeezed into the driver’s seat, pushed the gearstick into second, and released the clutch. The engine spluttered and coughed. Nick pumped the accelerator twice and was rewarded with a deep, throaty rumble as eight powerful cylinders roared to life.
Following the directions on his maps app, Nick made his way to the arranged pickup point, driving in a way that would not attract unwanted attention.
Fifteen minutes later, he entered the vacant parking lot of an abandoned industrial complex. Unsurprisingly, Vengador and his Maloo awaited, the ute’s powerful engine idling in anticipation.
Nick’s phone sounded an alert as the Maloo stormed off toward a nearby shed. The notification revealed a simple message.
follow meTwo minutes later, the stolen HSV was hidden under a worn, stained tarpaulin in the shed’s darkest corner. After tossing some dirt, it looked like it had been there for weeks.
As Nick climbed into the Maloo’s passenger seat, his phone sounded with another message. He swiftly greeted Vengador with an awkward front-seat hug and a hearty, ‘Thanks, buddy. I really owe you for this,’ then checked his phone.
‘Sorry, bud, but I need to check this message. It’s from Alison. I’m hoping she has news about our target’s location.’
Nick read the message, then clicked the embedded link. It directed him to a town at the top of the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney.
‘What do you know about Katoomba?’
‘I know it’s at least an hour’s drive away for most people. Luckily for you, Vengador and his Maloo are nothing like most people.’
With a squeal of tires, Venga’s machine roared to life, delighting in being unleashed.
Seeing the cloud of dust and pebbles in the side mirror, Nick laughed.
Alan Watson, you’re about to learn what happens when you mess with Nick Davies. And it will be something you wish you could forget.
But I’ll make sure you never can.
London – 6 pm Friday
“He just clicked the link.”
“That’s wonderful news, Alison. And you’re feeding that live update to your Australian counterpart so they can track Davies to that mountain village?”
“Yes, Phil. What’s on my screen is what they’re seeing.”
Alison winced inwardly as a green dot appeared, racing along a major Sydney arterial road to a destiny Nick wouldn’t see coming until it was too late.
Suddenly, four blue dots appeared on the map. The Australians had streamed their feed to her.
It was impossible to look away from the blue dots that surrounded Nick, two behind and two ahead.
She knew the two cars ahead were flying up the Blue Mountains range to be in position before Nick arrived in the closed pocket at the back of Katoomba. Judging from the rapid pace of the green dot, Alison suspected they would only beat Nick by a matter of minutes, even though they’d had a significant head start and knew where they were going.
Once the rear troops joined in and the trap was sprung, Nick would know she’d led him to the slaughter. There was no undoing that – working together in the future would no longer be possible, regardless of the outcome for Nick.
Of course, that wasn’t Alison’s biggest concern.
Dark suspicions nagged her. Despite what the evidence said, she couldn’t believe Nick was behind the atrocities on that hidden server on his home computer in DC. It was too convenient. It stank of a setup, especially considering an unknown cyber weapon was at stake.
There was a long pause before Phil asked about something that was disturbing Alison.
“And you’re sure the Americans aren’t assisting Davies in any way?”
“I don’t think so. However, I’m following your orders and not telling Estévez anything, so I have no idea. Hopefully, we’ll know more about Nick’s local resources when the Australians identify the man who met him at Sydney Airport. However, they haven’t had any success yet. It might help if we had an image to scan, though you’ll need to lean on them for that. Every time I ask, they want to know why we’re interested in an American paedophile on the run in Australia. I think they know there’s more to the case than we’re letting on.”
“You just keep feeding them that line about you being an undercover operative in one of his online groups and that you’ve hacked his phone. It doesn’t matter what they think, as long as they know nothing about that hacker and the project he stole from the Yanks.”
Phil stared at her as he asked, “You still haven’t told me why Davies revealed the truth about the cyber weapon to you. I would’ve thought he’d lie to you like Estévez.”
Alison stared at her boss as she stated, “He thought I was helping him, Phil. That’s why.”
Phil stared at her with a hint of suspicion for several seconds before abruptly turning and walking away.
“Call me when the trap’s about to close.”
Thanks for reading my online serial. I hope you enjoyed this chapter enough to click the heart-shaped LIKE button below. If you have any suggestions to help make it better or you simply want to encourage me as a storyteller (either would be appreciated), please leave a comment.Space Invaders vending machines don’t exist, though I think ‘Space Invaders’ is a good name for a vending machine company. Fyi, I based this side story upon seeing a vending machine lit up and operational on some random’s front lawn in Australia one night in 2021.