WWIII3 Cyber Nuclear Holocaust is an original John Storm political espionage thriller. This plot offers a thrilling adventure for John Storm, with high stakes, international intrigue, and a race against time.

  CHAPTER 20: CRIME OF PASSION - JOHN STORM, HAL AND CYBERCORE GENETICA DECODE TABLET AND OTHER MESSAGES IDENTIFYING OPERATION GRAND SLAM - WITH HELP FROM NADIA PETROVA (KGB) AND KATYA VOLKOV

<< CHAPTER 19

With John distracted Katya confronted General Reza Shah.

"Remember me Reza?"

"A bit older. Curvier perhaps."

The General looked her up and down, wondering as to the possibilities. He remembered being shot. She was shot, he thought her a gonna.

"Curvier. Is that all you can muster?"

"You stupid bitch. Yes it was fun, but you didn't think it was serious back then. And I thought you were done for."

"I was kind of stupid. Young and foolish. Who was next."

"Someone a bit smarter. More useful as I climbed the ladder. But what about it now? How did you pull through?"

"No thanks to you, you left me for dead."

The General genuinely felt guilty. He had thought her wound was fatal. But, he should have tried to save her.

"Who? Was it Nadia?"

"How do you know about her? You know I'm rich. We could share the loot and a life together, carry on where we left off. Help me escape."

"Was it. Was Nadia more useful?"

"More helpful, and not bad in bed. But look at you. I should have tried to save you, but I was wounded too. No chance for either of us if I'd tried. More chances of survival if I didn't."

Though that logic was uncontestable, the admission he should have tried to save her, but did not, was just too much. And then to pretend they might continue as if nothing had happened. Begging for help. The bastard. He just might get away with it with someone else.

A shot rang out.

John rushed into the room to find Katya with a smoking Ruger LCP .38 pistol. Tears streamed down her face. She was in shock.

"Katya, what the. Steady girl. It's John. Please lower the gun. Please."

The Russian beauty was frozen. Five more rounds in the magazine. Years of emotional build up bubbled to the surface, overflowing as a single involuntary pull of a trigger.

"Katya.  ..... Katya. It's all over. May I have your gun."

John inched forward. Graceful as a leopard. Katya remained motionless.

"Okay Katya, I've got you."

He finally reached her. Gently taking the lightweight pistol from her hand, and pocketing it. Safety on. John noted the small size of the handgun. Not a fan of firearms.

"There, there. I've got you."

He held her in a tight embrace, as she heaved sobs of pent up frustration and relief. A cacophony of confused emotions.

John was also in a state of disbelief. He'd not seen this coming.

Was it murder. Or what. The General had no gun. He knew in France this would be classed as a crime of passion. But still!

It would be a matter for the authorities to decide. There was also the matter of stability. Was the beautiful Russian agent psychotic. John had not heard the heated exchange leading to the shooting.

"Hal, you must have caught that?"

"Yes, and I did hear the exchange. I would say, that judging by the goading, and with being betrayed - and left for dead by her lover. Then the stupid b...... admitting there was another female in his sights, and angling for help with bribes. Well. He more or less pulled the trigger himself."

"Unfortunately we are not in France."

"No skip, but we are on a military mission, and the General is the enemy. I'd imagine military law is mixed with civil law."

"Tricky!"

Katya was none the wiser as to the telepathic exchange. All she noticed was John relaxing his comforting grip. Indicative of indecision. She did not like that.

An anonymous message appeared on the main instrument computer: "Job done. From: RWL" (Russia With Love)

..

CHAPTER 21 >>

PROPOSED STORY MAP BY CHAPTER (90-110 pages) - ORDER MAY BE VARIED

PART 1.

CHAPTER 1.    - ISTANBUL, TURKEY, THE BOSPHORUS STRAIT, BYZANTIUM TABLETS, SUNKEN REMAINS NEAR CONSTANTINOPLE, TURKISH MUSEUM: John Storm, on a routine artifact dive in the Bosphorus, Istanbul, stumbles upon a coded message hidden within a smuggled Sumerian tablet captured by Blue Shield. The message reveals a chilling covert alliance (Triad) - Russia, Iran, and North Korea - codenamed "Red Dragon" - are planning a coordinated attack. Their goal: global domination.

CHAPTER 2.    - KIDNAP CHAOS - 'RED DRAGON' - THE CONTROLLING CELL FOR 'OPERATION GRAND SLAM,' WITH 'GOLDEN CAGE,' & 'MIDNIGHT SUN': Phase One: The Kidnapping Chaos. 'Red Dragon,' using advanced sleeper cells and cyberwarfare, orchestrates the abduction of key political figures from the West - the US President, the British Prime Minister - Keir Starmer, the French President - Emmanuel Macron, and the German Chancellor - Olaf Scholz. Cutting off the heads of the corrupt capitalist Dragon.

CHAPTER 3.    - JILL BIRD, BBC ANCHOR - NEWS REPORT, KIDNAP CHAOS - DEMANDS - MARKETS IN TURMOIL: World military are thrown into disarray, communication channels are jammed, and financial markets plummet - It's a Fire Sale. 'Red Dragon' broadcasts a chilling message, threatening to kill the kidnap victims, if their demands are not met. The demands (vast resource concessions) being a feint.

CHAPTER 4.    - THE MASTERMIND - The plan is orchestrated by a shadowy figure deep within the Iranian government, General Reza Shah. Shah believes the West is on the verge of collapse and seeks to exploit their weakness for global domination. He's been secretly stockpiling gold and weapons for years, along with building a network of fallout shelters for the Triad underground elite, about which the West appear oblivious.

CHAPTER 5.   -  OPERATION GRAND SLAM - Intrigued, Storm deciphers the message with the help of a former Russian intelligence agent turned informant, Katya Volkov. With international order on the brink, Hal, recognizing the coded language from the tablet, deciphers the Triad's plan. John inadvertently teams up with a brilliant but jaded ex-KGB agent, Nadia Petrova, who knows the inner workings of the Triad from eavesdropping years before. Nadia sends anonymous regular messages to John. John and Katya discover they reference a sinister plot: "Operation Grand Slam" - The Motive to create global chaos as a prelude to an all out nuclear attack.

"Red Dragon" - North Korea, coordinating joint operations, targeting Iran and North Korea leaders in Operation Grand Slam. "Midnight Sun" - A cell to abduct key USA and European leaders, western politicians for kidnapping - and - Golden Cage: Refers to a joint operation by Russia (Red Dragon) and North Korea (Midnight Sun) targeting key Western politicians for coordinated kidnappings and transits.

CHAPTER 6.    - JOHN RACES TO NAPLES, JUST TOO LATE TO STOP KIDNAPPINGS -  John and Katya race against time to prevent a series of high-profile kidnappings, seemingly chasing tails as though Red Dragon has intel - the US President on route to G7 summit Naples - Joe Biden was already missing, so too the British Prime Minister. The French President, and the German Chancellor were thought to be next. Red Dragon triggers kidnap commands timed to opportunistic venues. Of which G7 is ideal for remaining Europeans. Leaving Xi Jinping, Kim Jong Un and Ali Khamenei.

CHAPTER 7.    - OUT OF TIME: They travel to Tripoli, ending in Bierut, where the trail leading to Ali Khamenei, Jinping and Jong Un, deciphering clues inadvertently left behind by the kidnappers. Each location tests John's deciphering skills and Katya's knowledge of international espionage. But even with Hal they are too late - the trail disappears. The Cells capture their hostages just minutes before John gets to the sites.

PART 2.

CHAPTER 8.    - A MOLE: One of the kidnapped leaders is suspected as being a double agent working for Shah. This throws John and Katya off track, forcing them to question the allegiances of the hostages. Hal fails to identify any incriminating communications. The Triads are very clever.

CHAPTER 9.    - PRISONERS: The chase leads to a secret underground facility in Iran, where the politicians are being held captive. It is seemingly impregnable reinforced concrete, much like a super bank vault, near Char Bahar, Gulf of Oman, Arabian Sea. It is impregnable, without harming the hostages. This is the Golden Cage, the European cell was named after.

CHAPTER 10.  - CHAR BAHAR: John and Katya must infiltrate the heavily guarded complex and free the hostages before a nuclear strike is launched on major Western cities. It is imperative to restore order from chaos. Hal calculates that a nuclear launch is imminent, where brute force hacking at NORAD and other military bases is detected. The clock is ticking, and John now realizes that the kidnappings are diversionary tactics. But still he pushes on.

CHAPTER 11.  - MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: Having taken out the perimeter guards, John and Katya finally succeed in gaining access to the prisoners the old fashioned way - a seemingly impossible mission - freeing the hostages - and transferring the bewildered heads of state to the Swann by RIB. Then the Swann vanishes into the Arabian Sea for a rendezvous with an ageing USS Vermont, Virginia class nuclear submarine. During transit, the freed captives talk through John freely, Hal interpreting telepathically. The freed prisoners cannot believe he understands so many languages. And his grasp on politics.

CHAPTER 12.  - BBC WORLD NEWS: Jill Bird item exposes Shah's plan to the world, discovering and revealing his identity as leader of Red Dragon, a Cell operating somewhere in the Middle East, and turning the tide against him. Revealed by Katya Volkov to John as she admits to having had an affair with the handsome Iranian General many years previously and was cast aside, left for dead. Adding pressure to an already knife edge plan for the Triads.

CHAPTER 13.  - CYBER CHESS GRAND MASTER: A high-stakes battle ensues involving advanced weaponry and cunning strategy. With launch and abort codes changing by the minute as US, Chinese, and Russian military are running at full pelt to stand still - helpless against cyber attacks. It's Military main frames from three locations versus Hal and John Storm, as the fastest computer CyberCore Genetica™ fends off brute force worms and viruses. It's a standoff without a final solution. Hal and CyberCore Genetica effectively block and counter, but need to locate the Cells that are hosting to prevent further attacks.

CHAPTER 14.  - BASE 37 NUCLEAR STRIKE: In cyber defeat and frustrated, Red Dragon attempts to strike fear into their targets with three small devices in Beijing, Moscow and Washington. Two devices are detected and defused. The third detonates at Base 37. This is a last-ditch effort by Shah's loyalists, saying to the world they are not safe, thumbing their noses at the CIA, FSB, MI6, Interpol and other agencies. Meantime, stockpiles of missiles by the superpowers remain a tempting target for other extremists that must be eliminated, with the assistance of John's new 'world-leader' friends.

PART 3.

CHAPTER 15.  - PLAYING WITH FIRE: Hal, John and Katya, disable the launch sequence for the Russian missiles. But cannot trace the source code, meaning transmissions could all begin again. Iranian and Chinese missiles are still a danger. The situation could rebound against Red Dragon; if only communist missiles are deactivated. While US and European missiles could still destroy the antagonists countries. Their plan could backfire. All hard lines are cut to Russian, Chinese and Iranian missiles, then manually shut down. Submarine missiles are systematically deactivated. Finally, US hard lines are cut, and submarine missile systems manually turned off. The world breathes a sigh of relief, Jill Bird reporting.

CHAPTER 16.  - TREBLE AGENT: One of the kidnapped leaders is identified as secretly sympathetic to Shah's cause. His identity becomes known during debriefing, when John (with Hal present telepathically) connects the dots, and he is turned around as a treble agent, used to penetrate further into the Red Dragon Cell, and close that and hunt down, then arrest of General Reza Shah.

CHAPTER 17.  - BLOODHOUNDS: John and Katya work together to track down Shah's remaining Cells, devout followers who fight to the death. John prevails to prevent further chaos. Within and from these Cells, they obtain valuable intelligence, much needed passwords and the like, to disable Golden Cage and Midnight Sun's Chinese and Iranian nukes.

CHAPTER 18.  - ATOMIC GOOD SAMARITAN: Using their new information, they take back control of the launch codes for the Iranian and Chinese missiles. The temporary administrations in China, Iran and North Korea plead with John Storm for his help. Not that he wasn't working double time to save them, but with Hal's help and using the CyberCore Genetica, they finally defuse the situation. Control of their missiles is restored. Then neutralized. All hail to John Storm.

CHAPTER 19.  - KNIGHTS OF THE GARTER: The root cause of Red Dragon is revealed as discontent brewing from 2014, when Tony Blair deceived Parliament with false intelligence, so initiating the invasion of Iraq by way of a coalition with US President George Walker Bush, to avenge 9-11 and capture Saddam Hussein. The Brits knighting their own for such corruption, and intelligence abuses was the last straw. As the seeds of hate were revealed, another Petition succeeds in Blair's KG honour being reviewed with Keir Starmer making sincere public apology to Iraq. With a promise that the British honours system will be examined, such as not to ignite future Red Dragons.

CHAPTER 20.  - CRIME OF PASSION: Katya Volkov has a hidden agenda of her own - revenge over a jilted romance, being used and left for dead. She takes out Reza Shah, a a personal and simmering crime of passion - after he goads her, saying how she was used to obtain information taunting her about Nadia Petrova - before John can stop her the General is dead. Honour satisfied, she collapses from shock, the experience strengthens their partnership, hinting at future adventures; maybe. John making a mental note not to dally with her emotions thus. A final message is delivered anonymously: Job done!

CHAPTER 21.  - NATIONS REUNITED: The world grapples with the fallout of the attack, both literal and geopolitical. A broadcast transmitted all across the globe, from all the kidnap victims speaking as one voice, assures the world that they will now multiply their efforts to work together to resolve their differences. The first step being to dismantle their nuclear stockpiles, and agree never to replenish such weapons of mass destruction. One warning like this being seen as enough. John receives several honours. Including the 'Hero of the Russian Federation' (replacing the Order of Lenin), People's Republic of China Friendship Medal, Purple Heart (for being injured while a temporary US Navy SEAL) and after some debate, the Victoria Cross, in place of the at first suggested George Cross. And finally, the Nobel Peace Prize awarded in Oslo, to a standing ovation at a UN General assembly later that year. Making John the winner of a Guinness Book of Records entry and certificate, for the person with most multi-national decorations from a single mission.

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