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Hell Hath No Fury Part 29 of 37
================================

(c) Darkside@nym.alias.net


If you are'nt legally entitled to read this. Don't
------------------------------------------------------------------



34. Sisters In Arms - The Female War.
=====================================
 
"  Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable;
   when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we
   are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away;
   when far away, we must make him believe we are near."
 
  The Art Of War - Sun Tzu Sec 1.19
 
 
"Hi you must be Jane Stephens" Vickie said.
 
"The one and only. Please call me Kat"  Kat replied.
 
"Kat, this is Vickie Turner and Jane" Cathline said.
 
"Who else is here? " Kat asked.
 
"Just us four at the moment. Stephanie Lane is going to be late. 
Stephanie's told me to expect Robert and Monica Abbey as well"
 
"Is HE coming?" Kat said, excitedly.
 
"As far as we know he is, If by HE you mean your husband" Jane Said.
 
Kat Punched the air "YES!" 
 
"Shall we exchange passcodes?" Cathline asked.
 
"Not yet, we'd better wait for the others" Kat said. "Safety in numbers 
and all that"
 
"Fine, I've head some of your story from Stephanie but I would really 
like to hear all of it" Jane said.
 
Before Kat could start, a small blonde haired woman and an older, well 
dressed woman walked into the room.
 
"Hi, My names Robert Abbey and this is my wife Monica. Am I in the 
right place?" The young blonde haired woman said.
 
"Jennifer?" Vickie and Cathline said almost in unison.
 
"Who?" Said the blonde.
 
"Never mind. Since you claim to be Robert Abbey and you're a woman,I 
assume you're looking for us" Kat said.
 
"Can someone please tell me what's going on and how do I become a 
man again?" Robert pleaded.
 
"Ok we've got another two people to come, but I think Stephanie's going 
to be late so we may as well start" Cathline stated.
 
Kat let out a shriek of joy and ran across the room to embrace a tall 
woman, with blonde hair and blue gray eyes, walking into the room.
 
"I thought I'd never see you again" She sobbed.
 
"Me too" was the tearful reply.
 
"Oh Matthew I thought I'd lost you. But now you're here, with me" Kat 
was crying with joy. Six months of doubt and worry came flooding out in 
that moment. Kat's tears of joy flowed like a mountain stream in flood. 
 
"Kat, I love you, I love you" was the tearful reply.
 
The rest of the group looked on as 'husband' and wife were reunited once 
more.
 
Kat and Matthew Stephens held each other close, neither wanting the 
moment to end. He could feel her tears on creating wet patches on his 
shoulder. He pulls her away "Let me look at you" he says. Kat's only 
reply was to reach up and kiss him on the lips.
 
"Wow, Where'd you learn kiss like that?" Matthew exclaimed.
 
Kat turned around to face the group
"Ladies, allow me to present my husband, Matthew Stephens"
 
"But she's Dr Bexley?" Monica said.
 
"Mon, you can really be thick sometimes. The real Dr Bexley turned HIM 
into a copy of her" Robert said.
 
"Cathline, what's up?" Kat asked.
 
"I'm sorry. Here I am face to face with John's killer and I don't know 
what to feel. I feel anger,hatred at what he did. I want someone to smite 
him down but then again we need him to defeat Liz." Cathline said.
 
Matthew sat down on an empty chair and Kat sat on his lap. His arms 
around her slim waist, her hands gently stroking his smooth legs..
 
"I've dreaded meeting you, Cathline, because of what I did. I took the 
only chance I had to get Liz and I blew it. Because of my selfish choice 
there are sixteen people dead who would now be alive.I hope you can 
eventually find it in your heart to forgive me."
 
"I understand your mistake, that is why I am here and not turning you 
in.Maybe I can forgive you But not today" Cathline said, sadly.
 
"What do you mean selfish choice?" Kat asked.
 
"I'd just become a proper woman and Elizabeth(as Kat) had gone out to 
get something. I deduced that Elizabeth had switched places with you. 
She had imprinted some subconscious passphrases in me and used them 
against me. After telling me she had thrown you into a Harem ,She then 
gave me a choice. Either stay as I am or get turned back and be with her. 
If I went with her I would have to take a drug, daily that would stop me 
turning back into her. Elizabeth would of course be the only one able to 
manufacture such a drug." Matthew said.
 
"That's horrible" Kat Said.
 
"I know. I tried to deceive her and I agreed to go along with it, with the 
intention of getting another lab to look at curing me. She saw right thru 
it and thus I'm now female for good. I call it selfish, as if I had really 
agreed then John would not be dead, those cop's families would not have 
lost a parent and Elizabeth's mom and dad would still be alive. This is 
the price of my freedom."
 
"Listen, you had no choice at all. I'm sorry but sometimes the price of 
one person's freedom is ten,twenty a thousand lives. Those people who 
have willingly fought and died down the ages for the rights of the 
individual would do so again. It's up to us to make sure that their 
sacrifice is not a vain and empty one" Kat preached.
 
"Right on" Vickie said.
 
"Too right" Robert agreed.
 
"Kat, you're right, I'm sorry" Cathline added.
 
"Sorry to spoil the reunion but What the hell is going on?. I feel as 
though I've jumped in half way thru the film " Robert added.
 
"Since, none of you have heard my story right the way thru I'll start at 
the beginning.
 
	1. Prelude
        ===========
 
	The day was perfect, the sun shone in a brilliance that had 
	seldom been seen in that part of the country. But then again it 
	was the day I was supposed to get married. I say supposed 
	because I wasn't really in love with Elizabeth. It's a shame I only 
	really realised that fact as I got out of the wedding limousine. 
	How would her family react, what about my family even, could I 
	ever live down the shame of jilting her?
 
 	I am getting too far ahead of myself though so let's begin at the
        beginning. Once upon a time.." Matthew started to tell his tale 
of a woman scorned.
 
In turn each of the members of the group told the gaps that others had 
not heard. 
 
"Hassan, In charge of the Guild!" Kat exclaimed in surprise.
 
"He looked exactly how you described him. I guess his friendly, 
stereotype Arab thing was just an act" Matthew said.
 
"But he let me go, He said he loved me" Kat exclaimed.
 
"That bit I think is true. Maybe he is really like he seemed, but I saw him 
slit four guys throats as though it was just another day at the office. " 
Matthew said grimly.
 
There was a silence as the group imagined the terror of the ambush and 
the seemingly kind and gentle Hassan killing in cold blood.
 
"Now what do we do? Stephanie has all the info we need to start " Jane 
asked.
 
"Wait I guess" Cathline said.
 
"Hey, you guys want a tour?" Vickie Said.
 
"Sure" was the general reply, only Monica was a little hesitant.
 
35. Only a Pawn In The Game
===========================
 
"When a general, unable to estimate the enemy's
  strength, allows an inferior force to engage a larger one,
  or hurls a weak detachment against a powerful one,
  and neglects to place picked soldiers in the front rank,
  the result must be rout."
 
 The Art Of War - Sun Tzu Chap 10.19
 
"And this is the prototype DNA System" Vickie said, pointing to an 
elaborate looking machine.
 
"Can you turn me back please?" Robert asked.
 
"I'm not sure. It would depend on if Liz has 'fixed' you or not. This 
machine's drug has not been tested on a human and I suspect Liz's 
version is far more refined. But Given a week or so we could try" Vickie 
explained.
 
"We can test for the presence of fixer fairly easily" Cathline stated.
 
"Would you please. I hate being like this and besides it's shot my sex life 
to hell" Robert said.
 
"It'll take some preparation but we should be able to test tomorrow" 
Vickie said.
 
"Thanks"
 
"Where's the control room?" Matthew asked.
 
"OK that's next on my list, Follow me" and Vickie left the room.
 
"Amazing technology" Kat exclaimed, looking at the control room. A 
large screen covered the far wall, giving information on the state of every 
system in the lab.
 
"Yes, but in the wrong hands, lethal" Jane said, seriously.
 
"This is the main control room. It control's all our robotics drug 
manufacturing facilities,power regulation, security, the lot." Cathline 
said.
 
"Oh Shit" Kat said.
 
"What?" Robert said.
 
"Passcodes, we've forgotten all about them" Kat said, in a worried tone.
 
"You're right. Listen I say we do it now, whilst we are all still in the 
room" Cathline said.
 
"Why don't we just get on with the tour, I'm tired and we can play spies 
later on" Monica said.
 
"No, I think we should do it now. Here we are, in one of the 'hell bitches 
lairs' and she could be right here with us. " Kat said, forcefully
 
"Fine I'll go first " Cathline said and she whispered her passphrase to all 
the others and they shared theirs. However when she came to Monica. 
Monica refused."I told you I'm fed up of this spy stuff. I'm tired, need a 
shower and have no intention of giving any stupid password. Come on 
hunny let's go back to our hotel" Monica Said stubbornly .
 
"Mon, please give the code" Robert said.
 
"No. This'll all end in tears if you ask me"
 
"It's the 'hell bitch'. Get her " Kat shrieked.
 
Cathline and Matthew leapt at the now panicked Monica, but they were 
too slow. They flew down the stairs after the fleeing Monica but 
somehow she gave them the slip. They went back to the control room to 
tell the others.
 
"I'm telling you, she was with me the whole time "Robert was saying.
 
"Then why did she refuse to give the passcodes and run away like that?" 
Kat demanded.
 
"She can get stubborn sometimes. That's no reason to accuse her like 
that" Robert said.
 
Before the discussion could continue Jane asked "Vickie, what do you 
make of this" and she pointed out a screen, to her right.
 
"Looks like the security system has been activated" Vickie said.
 
A noise like thunder made the room shake, the titanium alloy shutters 
rolled down the each of the windows. The barrier was meant to keep 
people out, this time it kept people in . A clank followed by a boom 
followed as each shutter was locked into place.
 
"Fuck get the hell out of here, it's a trap" Kat shouted.
 
"I can't get the security system back under control, we're locked out. " 
Vickie said and banged the console in frustration.
 
"What about the doors?" Matthew asked.
 
"No Chance we're locked in. Those shutters are an inch thick, the ones 
around the exits are at least four times thicker" Vickie said, pointing to 
the now armor plated windows.
 
"I've got more bad news. The power systems are fluctuating almost to 
overload. Our compensation systems are failing." Jane said
 
"Is that bad?" Robert asked.
 
"Very, if they go it could take most of the building with it" Cathline said, 
in a worried tone.
 
"We must be able to do something?" Kat said.
 
"Liz has locked down the controls here, she may have left the 
ECC(emergency control centre) controls alone. It's on a separate system" 
Vickie said.
 
"How long before the power blows?" Matthew asked.
 
"God knows, eight maybe nine minutes. Listen I'm going down to the 
ECC. You wait by the main exit until I can get the doors open " Jane 
said.
 
"You can't do it alone, I'll go" Cathline said.
 
"Cathline, You've missed out on a hell of a lot of upgrades. No I'll go" 
Vickie said.
 
"Later" Vickie said as she sprinted towards the stairs with Jane in hot 
pursuit.
 
Placed above hermetically sealed lab 4, massive tanks marked 'Halon 
1301' began to release propane gas. A complex system of air ducts slowly 
filled each air-tight lab with a highly pressurised, highly explosive air-
gas mixture. Within a few seconds the atmospheric pressure inside each 
lab had tripled. The efficiency of this fuel-air mixture was such that it 
would need five times the amount of traditional chemical explosive to do 
the same job. The bomb was ready, all that was needed was the detonator.
 
Robert, Kat,Cathline and Matthew ran to the now impenetrable main 
entrance and waited, hoping that they could escape. Fear was in their 
eyes and death stared them in the face. By now Vickie and Jane had 
reached the ECC.
 
"She's locked this out as well" Vickie said, frantically trying the controls.
 
"Yep power systems are locked down too" Jane said.
 
"How Long?"
 
"About Seven minutes. What about the emergency lockout passwords?"
 
"Tried them. Whatever she's done we're locked out and dead" Vickie 
said.
 
"What about deverting the power from the security system to the power 
grid? That would cause the shutters to go up." Jane said.
 
"No. That would overload the power systems right away. How about 
resetting the system? Y'know doing a cold restart." Vickie said.
 
"I can't even get in to shut the thing down. In anycase even shutting the 
power off here wouldn't work. All the systems are quadrupled up for 
fault tolerance. We take one out another just falls right back in"
 
"Got it! About six weeks ago we simulated the lab being taken by 
terrorists who were after the DNA system. This involved dropping the 
shutters on the ECC and raising the main ones to let in the security 
services. If we operate that program, then I'll bet we can release the 
shutters and allow the others to escape" Vickie said, sadly.
 
"But we would be trapped in here, by the time we've done this, we could 
not escape" Jane said.
 
"Yeah " Vickie nodded sadly, She had just signed her death warrant.
 
"Let's do it" Jane said.
 
A minute later and program 'stronghold' was activated.
 
"Done it" Vickie exclaimed in triumph and punched the air. As the 
shutters around the ECC sealed themselves in and the outer ones lifted 
sealing Vickie and Jane inside.
 
"Now let's get these doors open" Jane exclaimed.
 
A Minute later the shutters on the main entrance rolled back and the 
doors opened. With a whoop of joy the remnants of the 'gathering' 
rushed outside.
 
"Quick get in the cars" Kat shouted.
 
"No Use, look" Cathline shouted.
 
All the cars they had brought along were slowly burning away, Only 
Robert's car was missing.
 
"Shit, Run" Matthew called and flung off his heels.
 
The group ran away, down the hill as fast as they could.
 
Power compensator three was the first to go. Turbine three, that produced 
the power required to run the labs above, shot above it's rated safety 
margin. The pressure inside began to rise. In the roof above the power 
generation room another tank of propane gas began to release it's deadly 
load.  The fake Halon tank above Lab 4 sat empty, it's work done as the 
gas had all been released.
 
"It's no good. Nothing works" Jane said grimly.
 
"Bye Jane" Vickie said and hugged her close.
 
"Bye Vickie" was the reply.
 
The two sisters in arms held each other in silence and waited.
 
By now the generator room was saturated with highly pressurised fuel-air 
mixture. When turbine three eventually exploded some two minutes later 
the result was catastrophic. The walls suddenly unable to cope with the 
expanding explosive force blew outwards. Above the room the gas in the 
sealed labs caught light and exploded with greater force. Millions of 
dollars worth of equipment was incinerated in a fraction of a second. 
That which had taken man months to build, simple physics destroyed 
within moments.
 
A blast of flame and remains of the internal structure of the lab swept 
down towards the ECC. Some of the heat was reflected away by the 
shutters but the force of the explosion ripped into the room, turning 
Vickie and Jane instantly to vapor. 
 
The thickened walls of the lab, now unable to cope with the forces 
contained within blew apart, sending smoke and debris two hundred feet 
into the air. A pall of black, acrid smoke rose several hundred feet and 
could be seen from several miles away.
 
By now the 'remnant' was about a mile away, after having the run of 
their lives. They lay down, crouched behind a low bank. The heat of the 
blast swept over them  and the noise deafened them. The night sky had 
been turned into day by the heat and fire of the lab.
 
By now secondary explosions and fires had started as gas pipes burst and 
whatever remained of the lab caught fire.
 
A eerie silence hung over the entire area and the remnant waited too 
shocked to move. Cathline was the first to get up.
 
"Vickie, Jane" She called in desperation and shock, and she started to 
run towards the smoking ruins.
 
"Leave it, Cath they're gone" Kat said and she had to restrain Cathline 
from running towards the lab.
 
"Noo" 
 
"Listen We've got to get out of here. The cops will be here soon" 
Matthew said.
 
"She's right, we can mourn later. We must go" Robert said.
 
"Quick Get down. I see lights" Kat shouted and shoved the still shell 
shocked Cathline to the ground.
 
They watched as a car pulled up as close to the lab as it could. A lone 
figure got out and looked around. The figure was about to get back into 
the car when Cathline called
 
"Stephanie, Over here"
 
Stephanie looked surprised and called back
"I thought, thought you were in there" pointing to the still burning 
building.
 
Stephanie then ran over to the bank.
 
"We were, Vickie and Jane saved us" Kat said.
 
"Where are they?" Stephanie said,looking around.
 
"Gone" Cathline said tearfully.
 
"What the hell has happened here?" Stephanie asked.
 
A distant wail of a siren told the remnant they should leave this place.
 
 
36. Retreat
===========
 
"When you have the enemy's strongholds on your rear,
and narrow passes in front, it is hemmed-in ground. 
When there is no place of refuge at all, it is desperate ground."
 
The Art Of War - Sun Tzu Chap 11,45
 
The remnant sat in Cathline's house,  still in shock.
 
"I can't believe they're gone" Cathline sobbed.
 
"Every single time, we get somewhere the 'Hell Bitch' gets us" Kat said, 
sadly.
 
"I don't think so" Stephanie said.
 
"What do you mean?" Matthew asked.
 
"I mean I've struck gold. I've found out who the guild really are, how we 
can stop them and where Dr Bexley's bolt hole is"
 
"You mean"
 
"Yep. If we can separate Dr Bexley from the guild we deprive her of her 
'muscle'. If we can separate her from her DNA machine we lock her into 
whatever body she has now"
 
"Monica Abbey" Kat Said.
 
"Hey, we didn't prove that!" Robert Said.
 
"OK, pop quiz, she flees when it comes to passcodes and then two 
minutes later the building goes boom, taking two very good friends of 
mine with it" Cathline said her voice tainted with anger and bitterness.
 
"She ran because those two over here leapt at her like a pair of panthers" 
Robert Said.
 
"If you want to fight between yourselves I'll come back. If you want to 
hear what I have to say then shut up" Stephanie said in an annoyed tone.
 
"Sorry" Cathline said.
 
"OK Here's what I've found out about the guild. My first clues were to be 
found In John's diary. The cop, Salah made reference to 'avenging the 
works of the Mamluk Sultan'. Next our Dr Bexley lookalike here talked 
about the terrorist smoking foul smelling cigarettes and John also talks 
about Salah smoking Hashish after killing those robbers in the street. 
Now I've done some digging around and  It's my belief that the guild are 
the infamous 'Assassins' that terrorised Persia and Syria for nearly 200 
years.
The Assasins were founded circa 1090 by Hasan Sabbah, who brought 
terror to the region from his captured stronghold at Almut. From this 
base Hasan commanded a network of strongholds all over Persia and 
Mesopotamia. He was known as 'the old man of the mountain' and 
encouraged his warriors to study from the great library he had built there. 
This Mamluk Sultan, John mentions kicked the assassins out of Syria 
around 1270AD, whilst the Mongols did the same to them in Persia 
around 1256AD.
 
I believe that the surviving Assassins went to ground and reformed as the 
Assassins guild. They've been elite mercenaries for hire ever since." 
Stephanie explained.
 
"So how does all this help us?. We've all seen what they're capable of. 
We stand no chance" Kat said.
 
"I agree. Listen I've had first hand experience of them. They still give me 
nightmares" Cathline said.
 
"Steady on, I didn't say we can destroy them. I said we can stop them or 
separate Dr Bexley from them." Stephanie said.
 
"How?" Matthew demanded.
 
"Simple, Money. My sources tell me that the guild are EXTREMELY 
expensive. They reckon that, that ambush they pulled to get Matthew out 
would cost a couple of million"
 
"But Liz's loaded" Cathline said.
 
"Yes, but she's been using the guild quite a lot recently. Ever ask yourself 
why she decided to do things herself when she could have just sat back 
and let the guild do it all?" Stephanie said.
 
"Part of it's a satisfaction thing" Matthew said.
 
"Agreed, but one of the reasons is money. If she'd been able to get her 
hands on that 300 mill that her parents left her, I doubt if we would still 
be here. Having to change identities, pay for forged documents and 
arrange abuctions  would eat up her resources like anything" Stephanie 
explained.
 
"So if Liz has run out of money, then the we are safe from the guild?" 
Kat asked.
 
"I would imagine so." Stephanie agreed.
 
"Couldn't she just sell them the plans for her DNA system?" Matthew 
asked.
 
"That'd be worth hundreds of millions. TGEN were looking at a billion 
dollar turnover when this thing went to market" Cathline exclaimed.
 
"The other thing about the Assassins was that they were members of the 
Isma'ili sect, a fanatical branch of Islam. They would regard such a 
device as pure evil. No the guild wouldn't touch the DNA system. The 
infidel could use it but not them .To them it would be like making an 
alliance with satan."
 
"They've already done that" Kat said bitterly.
 
"So the system cannot generate any extra money for her" Cathline said.
 
"Correct. Now onto my next part"
 
"Hold on a second, We've some leverage with the guild now" Kat Said.
 
"What's that!" Cathline exclaimed.
 
"Me. Hassan would do anything I asked of him. I could go to him and 
persuade him to refuse any more contracts with the 'Hell Bitch', hike the 
prices or even turn them to our side" Kat Said .
 
"Brilliant" Robert said.
 
"Not quite." Stephanie said.
 
"Why?" Matthew asked.
 
"Because the guild do not operate like that, their motivation is purely 
monetary. If Hassan refused a contract or turned against a customer 
,whether physically or financially then his forces would turn against him. 
It would be seen as a sign of weakness. It would get us nowhere. Besides 
he might not let you go a second time" Stephanie said.
 
"Sorry. I'm tired out. We've all been thru hell today and I need to rest. 
Can I suggest we pick this up in the morning" Robert said.
 
"OK, I suspect our two newly-weds would like a room alone so I suggest 
they take my room, the rest of us can crash out on sofa's and floors". 
Cathline said .
 
"Thanks" Kat said and took her 'husband' by the hand and led her 
upstairs.
 
"Right you guys. I'll take the sofa. Stephanie you can take the spare 
room, Robert you can take the floor." Cathline said.
 
"So this is it, our first proper night together" Matthew said closing the 
door behind him.
 
"Yeah. It hasn't turned out like we thought on our wedding day has it?" 
Kat said.
 
"You can say that again"
 
"Now we come to this moment, I feel so awkward. I'd planned this in my 
mind for months and once again it's not worked out as I expected" Kat 
said.
 
"Kat, Listen I love you. My commitment to you stands as strong today as 
the day we married, stronger maybe"
 
"Me too. You know, whatever happens the 'hell bitch' can never win. 
The more shit she throws at us the stronger we grow. She can turn me 
into frog and I'll still love you. She can destroy my body, reducing it to 
ashes and the scatter them to the four winds but every place where they 
land they will shout I love you." Kat said.
 
"You've got very melodramatic recently" Matthew said with a grin.
 
"Yep, but you know I'm right." Kat said.
 
"That's exactly how I feel right now. I hate being a woman, it feels so 
foreign, so strange as if I'm not really me anymore. But every fibre of me 
is crying out for you. I now know that only being with you makes me, 
me, makes me whole. This body is only a husk. The Matthew Stephens 
you married is still inside, it's taken me a while to realise that but now I 
do. I've no idea how our relationship will work out but what I do know is 
that it is foundations are solid." Matthew said.
 
"I can't believe that Vickie and Jane are dead. They died saving us, 
nobody has ever done that for me. " Kat cried.
 
"I know. That makes eighteen. I hope you don't mind but I can't y'know 
tonight. I'm too tired and shocked at what happened today, besides it's 
my time of the month" Matthew said sadly.
 
"I feel the same way,It's not appropriate anyway, we must mourn our 
fallen friends tonight. Tomorrow is payback time" Kat said.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Have You Missed a Part?. The complete version of 'Hell Hath No Fury'
Can be found at http://www.nifty.org/nifty/transgender under Magic-SciFi
or Sapphire's Excellent website at http://www1.mhv.net/sapphire or
http://www1.mhv.net/sapphire/zip/furytril.zip to go right to it.

Comments etc should be directed to darkside@nym.alias.net


Vickie Tern@AOL.COM

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