S1E01 DOOMWATCH - THE PLASTIC RAIN

8/14/2019 S1E01 DOOMWATCH - THE PLASTIC RAIN

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SEASON 4 EPISODE 1

THE PLASTIC RAINWritten by GRANT FOXON & SCOTT BURDITT

PART ONE

Dezak Oil was unsinkable. The Oil Company was seriously rich.

Occasionally, the Arabs would cause a headache but nothing the allencompassing Dezak Oil couldnt cope with. In the Texan head office, DesMarker was a proud oil baron. Money was a toy and Houston was hisplaything. He had everything. He sat in his luxurious office eyeing up Sally, his

beautiful leggy blonde secretary as she dropped yet more yawn-worthypaperwork on his desk. The phone rang. Sally hit the intercom.

Its Mr Mortimer, to see you Sir.Send him in.Good morning Mr Marker Mortimer looked worried.Call me Des.They shook hands. Des noticed Mortimers sweaty palms.

I have some interesting news for you Sir.News?, what do you mean? Des wiped his hands on his jacket.I have it on good authority that a threat to our somewhat extravagant

lifestyle has reared its ugly head again.What are you talking about man? Des was listening now.Have you ever heard of an Aminostyrene called Variant 14?Cant say I have, but nothing crushes the spirit more than poverty Mr

Mortimer.Quite. I have just spoken to our British colleague, Sir Nathaniel Graham

M.P. In no uncertain terms I have told him to get the situation under control.What situation? Des was listening now.

We have had a number of threats from the terrorist group the L.C.F.Whats this got to do with us?Let me explain. A Sir George Holroyd was the Minister in charge of a

government department for the observation and measurement of scientific work back in the 70s, codenamed Doomwatch They tackled an accidentaloutbreak of a virus called Variant 14 that specifically consumed plastic oncontact. Recently, the department has been ordered to regroup under SirGrahams watchful eye as the British government is under pressure to tacklegroups like the L.C.F using their best scientific minds as direct military actionhas proven long term to be ineffective. It looks like we could manipulate SirGraham to get this new Doomwatch to work to our advantage without them

even knowing it. He already has a Timmons from M.I.5 keeping this new


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group in check and he will report back to Sir Graham, who in turn will reportback to us.

So, What does the L.C.F want from us?Well, they want an end to mankinds thoughtless destruction of the

planet. They see companies like ours as a direct target, they Des interrupted

him. Des knew where this conversation was leading and it made him angry.Good God man, I am sick of this line of thinking. These Luddite groups

make me angry. Progress. We need oil and we need plastic. The modern worldcant cope without it. Oil is finite, but until the day it dries up we can tacklethese people with whatever it takes. I dont think they have thought thisthrough. If they destroy large amounts of plastic, they are actually helping us!

Thats exactly my point Mr Marker. Sir Graham has links with the L.C.F.He is going to allow them to hack Doomwatchs computers to discover theformula for recreating the plastic eating virus Variant 14. In so doing, theL.C.F will invariably attack and large amounts of plastic will be destroyed. So,

who do you think will ultimately benefit from all this destruction?

We will. When they need to rebuild, our orders for oil will hit the roof.So, I suggest we raise our prices per barrel now in preparation and cash in.

Brilliant. Mr Mortimer!. See that Sir Graham is well rewarded for thiswont you?

Quite, besides the L.C.F are stupid. The public wont stand for it, thepeople want their plastic. Try taking their mobile phones off them, theirprecious computers, see how long that lasts, they will soon come around then!

PART TWO

The black and white television droned on quietly in the background,completely ignored. The wooden case that surrounded it was covered in stainsfrom shot glasses that had for years been placed on top of it with no thoughtfor any electrical safety or the protection of the wood. The television was in nodanger of being polished either, even now a half full tumbler of single malt

was precariously balanced on the edge of the set.

History. It has a habit of repeating itself. Man learns from his mistakes, but not all mistakes are remembered. The presenter Nigel Chanter, washaving another rant on Channel 6. Yet another Media Connections piece of

Doom-mongering Adam thought. He wondered if anyone listened to this kindof stuff anymore. Surely people preferred to sit at home and do nothing andexpect the government to sort everything out if it was thatimportant.

It was a miserable July morning. A typical British July, it was pouringdown. Adam Quist sat alone in his cottage staring out of a small windowlooking quite miserable watching the rain. A shadow of his former self, he hadsurrounded himself with books and artefacts of a time long since gone. At 37hed consigned himself to a life of solitude.

Enough had been set-aside in his fathers will for him to live the rest ofhis life. He stared at his fathers photograph.


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His father Spencer Quist, had died a decade ago and Adam had suffered with depression, especially as hed never joined Doomwatch when had thechance. Something he tried not to think about. The sheer weight and notorietyof his fathers scientific and academic legacy hung heavy over him.Unfortunately for Adam, he now sought solace in a bottle.

He always intended to follow in his fathers footsteps, but Doomwatch was dissolved shortly after his father died following the actions of a certainradical member known as Clive Sellers. Clive Sellers had ruined everythingfor Adam. If Clive hadnt attempted to go to the press over a now muchcovered up White Hall story and severe cutbacks, Doomwatch would probablystill exist.

The road Adam was supposed to follow had been taken away from him.Drink. It was an obvious alternative road to take. A road that many hadtrodden before, wasting lifes opportunities. Why didnt he just get over the

fact that Doomwatch was gone and his fathers work was done. Hed given up.Even now , he still thought about his father, but could never bring himself toopen the boxes that were given to him when he died. Hed put them in theattic. Maybe some day hed look at them.

Adam was never going to be very close to his father. Spencer Quist wasvery forthright and was far too consumed with his work, spending long hoursat the office. When he finally did come home he never really seemed to knowhow to express his love to Adam but Adam always knew his father was a goodman even though his mother said a lot of his problems stemmed from his guiltover his involvement in the Manhattan Project and the death of his first wife

for many years.

His father still felt like a hero to him. He cared about the planet and it feltlike his father regularly tried save the world. If only he still had thatpurposeful road to follow.

If only he would often say to himself as he took another swig ofWhiskey straight out of the bottle.

It didnt seem to matter now and the rain pouring down wasnt helpinghis mood. Adam had shook hands with the devil. He had sold his soul and nowlived alone with his books and his bottles. Desperate for a way out. Desperateto be able tofeellike a useful member of the human race. His mother tried her

best but Adam wanted to be left alone. He needed help and little did he knowthat salvation was indeed on its way.

The car sped through the countryside with ease. Faster and faster, theelderly driver showing no fear. The map that lay on the passenger seatsuddenly flew off onto the floor as the driver braked sharply.

I love the country! he exclaimed.The cow just looked at him and stood in the middle of the road

unflinching. A quick blast of the horn had no effect. This was going to be fun.He wound down the window, stuck his head out and shooed the cow out of the

way.


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The weather didnt improve, although in other ways the day did. Atmidday the doorbell rang and it startled Adam. An elderly flamboyant dressedman wearing a respectable colourful pink shirt, expensive suit and cravat wasstanding there sheltering from the rain in the porch. He was slightly gaunt butstill had a fire in his eyes. He also had a walking stick and a mile wide grin.

Hello? said Adam. The elderly man didnt reply straight away, insteadhe studied Adam.

Yes Yes youre Quists alright. No doubt about it He said.

A thought stuck Adam. This man knew his father so he must be areporter or maybe someone more dangerous. Spencer Quist and Doomwatchhad made many enemies. Adam decided to get rid of him quick.

Look, who ever you are Im rather busy andNo youre not interrupted Ridge. The man pointed with his stick to a

three quarters empty whisky bottle on the table near the door. Adam felt apang of shame go off like a firework in his stomach.

Look who are you? said Adam.My name is Dr John Ridge. I worked with your father many, many years

ago now. You may have heard of me? said Ridge proudly.

Adam couldnt quite take it all in, he was acutely aware of a strong smellof Whiskey coming from him, so he quickly shook his head to clear it. Hefumbled in his pockets for some mints. The man Ridge just smiled and madehis own way into the cottage. He then sat down on an armchair while Adamstared at him in disbelief.

Very nice Adam, but a bit cluttered for my tastes. Ridge said raising aneyebrow and rubbing his finger over the dusty coffee table.

Look, what do you want? Adam was annoyed. He knew the place neededtidying up but he just couldnt be bothered, but all of a sudden he feltembarrassed.

Ridge looked up at Adam and realised for the first time Adam wasnthappy to see him. Me? Nothing. You on the other hand are in luck my friendsaid Ridge.

Luck? How? Have I won the lottery? I doubt it as I never play.

Doomwatch. Now surely that rings a bell?.Of course.Well thats something. As you know, it was officially incorporated into

various ministry departments. However, its effectiveness and publicawareness as moral crusaders for the truth is long since gone. But now weneed it back more than ever and to do that we need you.

Youre barking up the wrong tree. Now if youll kindly leave me alone Iam busy.

Ridge rubbed his forehead in frustration.Listen you idiot, you studied science at Edinburgh. You are Spencer

Quists son. You are a natural born leader, you can do this and we need youAdam shook his head violently.


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Im getting old disgracefully, Im probably an alcoholic and I have littlein the way of people skills left.

Excellent. Well you could be perfect for a local MP. But I think you areperfect for a new invigorated Doomwatch.

Adam sighed. Was this guy for real? Turning up out of the blue claimingto be a friend of his deceased father, even though his mother had nevermentioned him? Ok, so his mother never liked to discuss Doomwatch andeven attributed the demise after his fathers death.

And yet something compelled Adam to listen to this man.Ridge watched Adam intently. Studying him. Ridge thought Was he

ready? Just because he was the son of Quist was he really ready for thechallenge? The files he had read confirmed it, but was Adam Quist too fargone Neil Tannahill was assigned to another department but he was stillavailable should he not be able to convince Adam. He decided to go nuclear.

What do you know of the L.C.F? Ridge studied Adam carefully. The

words L.C.F resonated through Adams fuddled mind. Then he remembered.

The L.C.F, isnt that. Werent they responsible for the recent traincrash on the news using a chemical weapon? Wasnt it actually reported lateras an acid attack?

Ridge sniffed and pulled a cigar out of his pocket and lit it up. Adamcouldnt believe the man. Do you mind? he said.

Oh you dont like smoking. I forgot, nowadays were the lowest of thelow. Social lepers as it were! This comment had no effect on Ridge as he

continued to smoke while Adam dumfounded, just listened to what Ridge hadto say.

The L.C.F. It stands for Liberation Conservation Front. An organisationset up some time in the nineties. Its run by a man I am ashamed to say I usedto know, as did your father Ridge paused.

Clive Sellers. I dont suppose that rings a bell either?Yes. Yes that does. Wasnt there some cover up, which led to Doomwatch

being split up?Yes, officially. Clive attempted to go public with a story about a navy

military operation that even now, cannot be openly discussed. The

government threatened the papers editor and the story was suppressed. Word was put out quietly that if the story was printed, heads would literally roll.Clive was a liability. Clive was fired, denied a pension and some of hiscolleagues were put out of a job. Despite a tarnished reputation your fathertried to help him. It was a case of train and de-train with Clive. I know how hefelt. I had a breakdown in the seventies. I said and did some very stupid things

which to this day I deeply regret, but I thought it was for the greater good. Youcant hold society to ransom, it doesnt work and the L.C.F need to learn thattoo. Of course, they didnt reckon on Clives darkest intentions. He wasntabout to give up. He decided to take matters into his own hands. Usually byforce. Clive is an impatient man and wanted his revenge. He travelled tosomewhere in West Africa around 1992 and began gunrunning for quickprofit. He founded the L.C.F. An extremist unaccountable to any government


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version of Doomwatch. The Liberation Conservation Front as they are knownis a force to be reckoned with Adam. They are an efficient covert eco-terroristorganisation. They claim to believe in protecting the Earth above all else nomatter what the human cost.

Not exactly the good guys right? said Adam.No. They believe in eugenics and Clive Sellers promotes himself as the

idealistic founding leader of the L.C.F. Those closest to Clive obey him withoutquestion. His beliefs make him feel like a messiah amongst ordinary morallychallenged people. Clive wants to protect the earth from the abuse of man andeco-terrorism seems the only direct and immediate way of doing it.

As I said, Clive was a previous team member at Doomwatch, but heproved himself to be too much an idealist to be trapped by restrictions of thisgovernment funded organisation. Form filling, bureaucrats created, auditorsand officials were of no interest to him.

To Clive, our world is dying, raped of its mineral wealth and poisoned byman and his insatiable greed whatever the cost. Clive sees most of the peoplein this world as selfish ignorant sheep. The L.C.F is now a formidable

worldwide organisation and is linked to many political murders spanning theglobe. The F.B.I and C.I.A are particularly keen on crushing the leaders whereBritain has shown little interest in their global affairs until now. All this would

be easy that is, if we could actually find them. Word is, they are planningsomething big, some sort of spectacle, so they are vulnerable.

So far the damage theyve done has totalled to millions. But its not justabout the cost. People are sympathetic to their cause. They respect their

independence. They have somewhere in the region of a million supporters world-wide through a large network if internet sites proxied throughlegitimate servers. This time Clive might be planning a mass murder.

A virus? said AdamOf sorts. That train accident wasnt so a straight forward chemical attack

as reported in the news. It was biological. We believe a plastic eating viruscalled Variant 14 might be playing a big part in his plans. The Virus itself isharmless to humans so we have no idea how they will be applying it. The traincrash might simply have been a test.

Adam sat back shocked. Ridge continued to puff on his cigar.Anyway. Ive said too much. Are you coming back with me old chap?

No. Adam said to quickly.Ridge suddenly looked crestfallen.No? Are you mad? Ive just contravened the official secrets act for you!Well I never asked you too.Dont you crave adventure and excitement? You wont find that in the

bottom of a bottle AdamNow look!I supposed the apple fell a bit too far from the tree didnt it? said Ridge

getting up.Just get out! Adam couldnt take anymore and his head was still

buzzing.


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Adam staggered to the front door and held it open inviting Ridge toleave. Ridge slowly stood, checked himself in the dusty lounge mirror andslowly strolled to the front door. He looked at Adam once more and thenstrolled over to his bright red Jaguar S type and climbed in. He then drove off.

Adams heart sank. Yet again the opportunity to sort his life out had

now gone. Why didnt he jump at the chance? Maybe if he had a clear head,things would have been different. Slowly, Adam walked back into the livingroom. What have I done? He decided to make himself a coffee and sober up.He hoped he actually had some coffee let alone any fresh milk. It was then hethen noticed a small card on the coffee table. He picked it up.

Run out of cigars! Just popped to village to buy some more. Be back inhalf an hour, pack a bag old chap.

Ridge.

Adams heart began to rise as he found himself unable to suppress thesmile.

PART THREE

The impressive mirrored glass media centre building reflected the brightsunshine over the passers by in Londons West Bank. Little did they know

what darkness lay within this facade. From the humble beginnings of thewomens magazine Lucy, the company grew year on year, as it had done nowfor over a decade making its shareholders very wealthy. The Companytransformed itself from print into broadcast media and it produced high

profile adverts and documentaries for radio and television, whilst gaining anever-increasing Internet audience for its many promotions. MediaConnections is the dream place to work. Its a high profile, effective mediagiant. Its respected and loved by millions.

Its also a perfect cover for the L.C.F.

Despite the poor economy, people still read and they still listened. Thecompany was able to use this effective media front to put across its idealistmessages. The message of conservation, preservation and working withnature, above all else was always strong. Always keen on anti pollution and the

dangers of overpopulation stories, many listened. Those who followedspanned class, race and culture. They listened because they cared. There wereeven a few in the police force who were sympathetic and one very importantBritish civil servant.

Clive knew that in the East they always had very little intention ofhelping in the plight to save the world. Indeed, their own people who werestarving in there millions. The West was no better, there was still a hugeamount of red tape to overcome, especially in the current health and safety-constructed nightmare that governments used to discuss issues to death whileeffectively doing nothing. Supporters of the L.C.F knew that they would alwaystake swift and direct action. Indeed its membership was always on the rise.Members enjoyed the relative freedom to make a difference, no matter the


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cost.

Clive sat in his glass walled office staring intently at his computermonitor. The images of the documentary on the screen did not make forpleasant viewing. Nigel Chanter was as ever narrating.

.mankind is still destroying everything around it with little thought tothe consequences of such actions. The Earth is going to become a giganticslagheap. The virus called man is raping the Earth, all in the name oftechnological progress. In reality mankind is getting lazier and stupid. The

populace have been weaned onto technology and its never-ending upgradecycle and the mountains of rubbish this produces.

While you play with electronic gadgets and sit vegetating in front of theTV, the government has you exactly where they want you. In your own

private pen, spied on using the internet. The worlds resources are

continually shrinking under the human population boom and Plant andanimals are disappearing. Nature has tried to cull human growthunsuccessfully with disease. But humans are clever at self-preservation, nomatter what the consequences. People are living longer. Something needs tobe done to address the balance and for man to live in harmony with the

planet

Clive was angry. This was a terrifying concept. It could only lead toinevitable annihilation. If mankind wanted to die amongst its own rubbishthen let it. But the holocaust that would ensue would almost definitely kill allof the remaining life on the Earth. This virus had no right.

Clive had taken this moral crusade on himself and was determined tofind the answer. His team of scientists had tried to replicate the formula forthe plastic eating virus he knew would wreak havoc. The test on the train wassuccessful, but the virus died within minutes without finishing the job. This

was no use for what Clive planned.As ever, the answer lay hidden. One of the files dated back to 1970, which

involved his long dead friend and social ally, Toby Wren. In this file containeddetails of a top secret virus labelled Variant 14 aka The Plastic Eater. Theinstructions to make it forgotten in a rusting filing cabinet. Forgotten by all.Except Clive.

The file documented in detail the circumstances out of which a viruscreated out of the desire to breakdown the plastic in waste products wasproduced. The problem was the virus was incredibly effective, too effective. Ithad an insatiable appetite for all plastic. It caused havoc. It had escapedaccidentally a couple of times in the 70s, resulting in an accidental planecrash. Which had given Sellers another idea that he couldnt let go of.

Despite the outbreak, the virus was contained and officially destroyed.In reality the bacterial council who dealt with these contagions rarely disposedof them. If there was the slightest chance it could be used as a weapon fordefence of the realm it would be safely filed away. Variant 14 was much more


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effective than any mere missile or nuclear device and much cheaper too butfar too uncontrollable and dangerous to deploy.

Sellers had an associate, Karl Womak. A loner all his life who didntunderstand people and instead sought pleasure in the artificial world of

computers. He was a misunderstood genius. Clive saw his hidden potentialand recruited him. Sellers gave him confidence and a point to his existence.Karl was an effective malleable ally.

With the information Karl had obtained, the L.C.F were able to hack intoa little known supercomputer at the newly re-opened government Departmentfor the Observation and Measurement of Scientific Work. Doomwatch wereoriginally setup to investigate any scientific research public or private whichcould possibly be harmful to man. The computer was also referred to simplyas Doomwatch. The same codename given to the department. TheDoomwatch computer was a machine originally built by Colin Bradley and his

team in the beginning of the 70s for predicted disaster. The machine wasdecades old but still proved to be an amazingly effective tool and stored a lotof legacy information that badly needed transferring.

Unfortunately, it wasnt built to resist the attacks of Karl Womak.Doomwatch was at one time attached to the military ARPA network ofcomputers and it still had the information on its antique tape reels concerning

Variant 14, until budget cuts and progress took over and the machine wassimply turned off and stored for many years until its usefulness was properlyrealised. The computer was now reconnected and hooked up to a brand newLinux server nicknamed Mainframe while all of the information was beingtransferred.

Karl had used his hacking skills to access Mainframe and discovered thelocation of the original Variant 14 microbiological research station at BeestonLaboratories and the files on the subsequent results from a secret test atDungeness. Tonight, with the help of a team of trained L.C.F supporters hehad he would steal the original chemical formula to recreate the virus.

The training of the men and women wasnt hard. Clive had been in themilitary prior to Doomwatch. The recruits were passionate about fighting for acause they believed in. One of tonights team was Clives closest associate andsometime lover Carly Whyte. A beautiful disillusioned 27 year old, she was

smart and still in love with Clive and believed in his ideology. In fact she sawtheir relationship now as very much a master and his pupil.

Clive shut his computer down and closed his eyes. Mentally he waspreparing himself for what must happen tonight. The laboratory in Beeston

was deliberately unassuming in appearance. Security would be the key issue.There was no room for error. Therefore he had told his people and preparedthem to shoot to kill. Tonight thirty people would be dead. More blood onClives hands, but everyone had the blood of the world on theirs.

Clives conscience still hurt him. He would look into their eyes and pullthe trigger. It was necessary. He had to. He has to change the world before its


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too late. Clive thoughts were interrupted by a shallow and weak knock at hisdoor.

Come in he called.Clive watched as Pete Wilks slinked into the room, his elbows up and his

body language rather submissive. Clive was a good judge of character and

knew that Pete was weak and immediately guessed he was attempting to backout of tonights attack. This was totally unacceptable.

Pete, hi how are you? What can I do for you? he smiled wryly.Pete smiled in return nervously and hesitantly sat down.Clive. Its justwell I dont know how to tell you this but, I cant go

tonight. Im really sorry I thought I could but I, I just cant do it.Clive paused a moment and then smiled.No problem Pete. You of course wont mention tonight to anyone?Pete vehemently nodded his head.Oh God Clive, of course not. No, Im with you 100% I justcant kill.Of course, after all the L.C.F cares about the world and its people. Now if

you dont mind, Ive got work to do.Pete immediately stood up and offered his hand. Clive just smiled and

opened the door. Pete nodded and headed outside. Clive then closed the doorand walked over his phone he dialled Carlys number.

Hello Clive?We have a little problem.

Half an hour later and Pete had arrived home at his modest abode nearcentral London. He walked in and collapsed on the settee. He wished he hadthe courage to follow Clive tonight into the fray and kill in the name of justice,

but he just couldnt, he felt like a failure.

Pete was too much of a coward and he hated himself for it. He lookeddown at his enormous rotund belly and then around his living room thatechoed the word, loner. He was an empty shell of a being. Maybe it wasnt toolate to call Clive and say he had made a terrible error. Just then the phonerang. Pete answered it but the phone was immediately put down. Petedropped the phone confused and walked into the kitchen heading towards theSara Lee he had saved for tonight in the fridge. Just then there was a knock atthe door. Pete walked over to it and answered it.

Pete recognised the beautiful lady standing before him. She was there

with Clive at the training sessions. She smiled.Hi, Pete isnt it?Yeah. You were there at the training sessions right?Carly smiled at the recognition.Thats right. I heard you cant go through with tonight. Well, I cant

either. In fact Im worried, can I show you something?

Pete nodded and Carly led the way to her black Land Rover. She openedthe boot. Pete peered inside. Without warning, she picked up a jack frominside the boot and clubbed Pete over the head with it. She then threw himinto the boot with ease and then tied his hands together with rope and closedthe boot. With a quick look around she then ran back to the house and lockedthe door using the keys she had grabbed from Petes pocket. After getting back


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in the Land Rover, she then removed her gloves and threw them into the glovebox and drove off at great speed.

Slowly, Pete awoke just as the boot lid was opened. He recognised Carlystanding over him. His head ached and he felt blood trickling down his face.

She helped him out of the boot. He noticed he was in either a forest orwoodland.

Wha.., What are you doing?Move this way. Carly gripped Karls arm and led him through an area of

the woodland at gunpoint. The pain cleared for a bit and he kept trying toengage her in conversation but she ignored him, shoving him most of the way.Finally Pete froze in terror as he saw the already dug hole in front of him. Hetried to scream but Carly pushed him into the hole.

Its no good screaming. Theres no one here. As calmly as she spoke shewalked away. Pete desperately tried to get out of the eight-foot hole. It was no

good. He couldnt. There wasnt enough time for Pete to even scream before abullet was fired into his head and he collapsed, dead.

It was 02:17 p.m.

All was ready. Slowly L.C.Fs team led by Clive in black clothes and balaclavas approached the perimeter. One solitary security guard paced thegrounds. With the wire cutters Clive created a hole just large enough for histeam to break in one by one. When the guard was close enough they grabbedhim and forced him to the ground.

The access code for the terminal. What is it?

Clive screamed as he held the knife to the guards throat.I cant tell you.What is it? Clive pressed the knife into the guards neck until it began

to draw blood.Alright! 684391 Delta.

Clive signalled to an operative who ran to the terminal and entered thecode the door then opened. Clive smiled and cut the guards throat. He thenled his men inside into the complex as they hid the body among some nearby

bushes. The operation was over in just 20 minutes. Taking each person bysurprise with their brute force. The mission was easy.

Later, Clive sat down with a neat Vodka and ice. He was wrong. 47people actually died that day. But he now possessed the correct formula forplastic virus Variant 14. All was ready.

PART FOUR

The car journey had proved fascinating. Ridge was pleasant company.Sardonic and slight eccentric, he had filled Adam in on his previousadventures. He also reminded Adam that he should be proud of his deceasedfather and that he was one of the greatest characters Ridge had ever met.


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Adam had begun to wonder whether all this was because Ridge had madea promise to his father before his death. There certainly was a huge amount ofrespect between Ridge and his father. Ridge had also briefed Adam on thepossible likelihood of Doomwatch being reformed as an independent body if

the L.C.F where stopped.So this virus. Are you going to tell me any more about it? Adam studied

Ridge for a moment.Ive just received news that Variant 14 has recently been stolen and we

believe it was the L.C.F who attacked, and killed everyone at Beeston and tookthe virus. A very efficient job it was too.

Do you think Sellers was there?Undoubtedly. Hes a control freak with military training. Probably

paranoid too. Hed have to be.And this plastic eater. It attacks plastics, right?You catch on fast dont you Adam? Yes, all plastics and probably some

other similar chemical structures are at risk.Then what happens?It breaks them down on a molecular level. There were a couple of

incidents in 1970 with passenger aircraft in San Pedro and Variant 14 wasshelved. The chemical used on the train attack seems to be an attempt torecreate Variant 14, it obviously was supposed to cause more damage but theformula used was wrong

But why wasnt it just destroyed?Come on youre not that nave. If it can be used as a weapon by the

military anyway weve got an antidote that we think may work. However, theoriginal virus is incredibly contagious and once its released it spreads like

wildfire. Can you imagine what would happen to this modern world we live in? We are surrounded in the stuff, our entire world as we know it would meltaround us in hours.

Thats bad...Bad. Bad! Its catastrophic! The recession has got nothing on this

blighter. No, the L.C.F has to be stopped now, once and for all. Ridge wasgetting excited.

What do you mean?Take a look in that glove box there.

Adam opened the glove box and was shocked to discover a gun and a caseof bullets. Adam wasnt familiar with guns but it looked like a high quality, but

slightly antiquated weapon.Its a Colt 45 Ridge smiled.Youre not seriously going to use that are you?I dont think you fully understand the gravity of the situation old boy.

Were talking about the end of the modern way of life and these people areabsolute fanatics and you have to carryprotection.

Adam couldnt take anymore. He was under the belief he was asked toassist to make a difference and to stop a corrupt organisation. Not become akiller. After all it was L.C.F who are the real killers. Not Doomwatch.

Stop the car. Stop the car! I want to get out, this is too much. You are toomuch!


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Ridge sighed and pulled over. Adam jumped out the car and lookedaround. Ridge emerged after a minute and lit up a cigar, then offered it to

Adam. He declined.Look, Adam there is no other way. Theyre insane. Variant 14 was a

mistake. Youre right, it should have been destroyed, but it wasnt. Now the

L.C.F has it and who knows how they will try and abuse it now they have thereal thing.

Is it really such a bad thing?Come on you dont mean that.But murder...Look this isnt what Doomwatch stands for. But Sellers must be

stopped.I thought he was a friend.You listen to me. Your father and Toby, two very dear friends I lost who

would be appalled at murder. But they would agree that the stakes are just toohigh. Its just the sort of thing your father would turn a blind eye to. Its for the

greater good.

Isnt that how the L.C.F justify their actions?For Gods sake Im not justifying murder. It can neverbe justified.I thought terrorist organisations are like hydra? Cut the heads off and

another crops up in its place...No, Sellers is the L.C.F. Believe me there is no other way and time is

running out! Adam was convinced. He climbed back into the car and it sped away

down the road towards London and towards the new temporary headquartersfor Doomwatch.

*****************************

Karl Womak had really enjoyed poking around Mainframes files. He hadcreated himself and invisible backdoor key and despite the computer regularlyhaving security password and codex changes, each time Karl knew how tocrack it with ease and was always straight back in.

It had already paid off as Clive now had access to the virus he said wouldalways bring about L.C.Fs ultimate victory over the so-called advanced

world. Karl enjoyed this thought and that he, an ignored figure would

ultimately play such a pivotal role in the reshaping of the human race.

*****************************

The early 19th century building was rather unassuming. Inside it was verydifferent. A state of the art laboratory was set up. Adam followed Ridges leadinside looking around in awe at all in front of him. He was then introduced tohis new fellow scientists.

Ridge seemed to vanish distracted by a file hed been given. Instead hemet Paul, a smiling pleasant well-built man with a slight Manchurian accent.He shook Adams hand with quite some force. He immediately engaged Adamin a conversation about his thoughts on Variant 14 and explained he was a


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chemist/biologist and very proud that he graduated from Oxford with majorson atmospheric chemistry and synthetic biology.

Adam immediately felt inferior and embarrassed, but once again itseemed his fathers reputation preceded him and Paul was in perhaps more of

an awe of Adam than the other way around.

At this point Ridge reappeared with another man. The man looked leanwith an aggressive face, but a slightly camp voice. Adam would discover thiswas Timmons sent on detachment from a security section of M.I .5.

Are you sure? said RidgeYes. Its seems that is how L.C.F found out about Variant 14. said

TimmonsRidge seemed worked up and annoyed.Paul, shut down that infernal abacus! Do it now! Ridge ordered

What?Just do it man, pull the plug on that overgrown calculator right now!No, we dont want them to know we tracked their entry point. replied

TimmonsEntry point? said AdamThe L.C.F has broken into our supercomputer. said Ridge.What? said Paul.Well attempt to trace their geographically location. Timmons picked the

phone up ready to dial.Oh come on, theyre not going to advertise their presence man! Theyve

been too clever. Unlike your department, Einstein. said Ridge

Timmons put the phone down and skulked away.If were trying to get Doomwatch fully re-established should we really be

upsetting him like that? said Paul.Never mind him. Me, on the other hand, Im going out. In the meantime

look after Adam would you? said RidgeWhere are you going? Adam looked confused without looking back

Ridge replied Out.Dont worry, he does that a lot. He is somewhat unorthodox. Paul rolled

his eyes.

PART FIVE

Ridge stared down at the malt whisky in front of him. He was anenigmatic man but when there was no one around to impress, he became aprisoner of his own neurosis. He no longer felt great shame for his actions in1972. Time was indeed a healer, and after all mental illness was no longertaboo. Despite that, it had made him feel weak. A weakness that still lurks inthe shadows of his mind. Ridge never happily discussed his depression. Ridgeknew Quist never looked and thought of him in the same way after threateningthe world with phials of anthrax. But who could blame him? Thankfully, hehad been stopped. The government paid for his private treatment and Ridge

was saved. But he was no longer the same man. He had become damaged.


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In future, Quist reconsidered certain assignments because he didnt wantto run the risk of sending Ridge in. Risk. The words echoed around Ridgesmind like some evil black dead weight. Threatening to pull him under anddrown him at any moment. Instead, Clive got the assignments. An idealist

who was once school friends with Toby Wren. They had similar ideals and

maybe because of the guilt Quist felt he put upon too much on Clive. Certainpsychological mandatory examinations stated that Clive had suppressedsociological disorders and tendencies. He would even go on to make the samefoolish mistake as Ridge. Only Clive would take it one step further.

One day, Clive would take too much interest in a file simply markedVariant 14.

*****************************

Adam sat in the laboratory his mind in a thousand different places. Noneof them good. As yet, no one had any clue what to do next. Forensics

confirmed Clive was present at the raid but no other DNA matches had yet to be discovered. The accomplices to the raid were believed to be foolishmembers of the public, fighting for a cause they really didnt fully understand.Many of which probably never even returned a library book late.

There was no time to find them.

The L.C.F would already have the new batch of the virus prepared andthey would certainly use it. It was only a matter of where and when, but nomatter what transport was again a possible target. It worked once before, andClive thought that there was nothing better than an encore.

The one hope would be if M.I.5 could trace the leak from the Doomwatchcomputer, but that was a small hope.

Clive Sellers details had been released across the country to policestations and to military barracks and was now classified as the countries mostdangerous man on the loose. A press conference was due to be called thisafternoon, however, no one dare tell the truth. A fake cover story was beingprepared. Something, which hopefully would cause dissention in his ownranks. The story would link him with sexually molesting young boys and girlsin the eighties and nineties. This would definitely lead to his capture.

Adam felt repulsed at the actions being taken by the government for thegreater good which is what Clive Sellers hated too. Adam decided he neededsome air and made his excuses and headed outside.

The sun was shining and a mother was walking down the street with hertwo young children. A far away ice cream van could be heard playing popeyethe sailor man. Adam wondered if wasnt all a dream. Whether the virus really

would change anything or whether he was just another insane fanatic. Wasthere really was any hope for the human race or human society? When thedifference between the good guys and bad guys becomes blurred canDoomwatch really make the difference? Become a force for good like it was in


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the past? Adam was determined that in a sick society any heroes aredesperately needed, regardless of the situation.

Adams thoughts then turned to Ridge then the gun and theirconversation earlier.

Unbeknown to Adam, he was being watched. In a nearby car sat Carly.She studied Adam. She wasnt at all impressed. Of course she had neverknown his father.

Clive was desperate to get this Adam involved. As if he craved Quistsacceptance. What with Spencer Quist dead his son was the next best thing. Hecouldnt believe his luck when Karl found Adams details on the Doomwatchcomputer.

Clive honestly believed Adam might join his cause. He wanted to rubDoomwatchs nose in it. It was early days and recruiting Adam would do that

perfectly. But Carly had different ideas. Maybe it was jealousy, maybe thethought of Clive trying to impress someone other than herself evoked jealousemotions? One thing for sure, Carly didnt like this idea, especially with somuch at stake. This was a time they had to be extra careful and involving

Adam was just crazy. It would be easier to just kill him.

Adam was oblivious to Carly. He was too busy imagining what it would be like if society as we knew it was to simply melt away. So many of lifesluxuries would disappear, so much progress, and Adam wasnt a Luddite. Forevery truly great accomplishment- an end to small pox, man landing on themoon, Penicillin, the list was endless, there were pointless wars, genocide and

above all, pollution. Pollution of the planet and pollution of the mind.

The Variant 14 plastic virus was created as a biological weapon whichactually had the power to do good. It could have helped to tackle the build upof plastic waste. The government creating their own chimera to stop anotherman made problem. Could there even be a future if society continued where it

was going? And what of man? What monstrous, greedy demon would man become in 100 years? Whilst in the third world starvation, leprosy anddysentery kill in their millions, what of Western man? Will 80 or 90% of thepopulation suffer from obesity, high cholesterol and heart disease? Teethrotting in the mouth and AIDS on the increase? It was then that Adam

doubted that maybe this had all been a big mistake. Maybe Ridge shouldnthave contacted him. Adam started to believe that there was nothing that hecould do. One man could not make a difference. Could he? So why try?

No. This was doing him no good at all. He very quickly pulled himselfback from the abyss. You cant think like this. This is illogical. In reality thereis no black and white. Only grey. The L.C.F may be pure in their own beliefs

but not their intent. Eco-terrorists profess to value all life. They dont kill. Butthe L.C.F was something new. They had to be stopped. Clive Sellers was mad.The destruction of the worlds plastics would inevitably lead to millions dyingand mass hysteria. Human society would not change without a significantprod in the right direction. It would just heal and carry on. Politicians areineffective. Clive must believe that if something is to be done to bring about


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change, the L.C.F must do it and they must do it now. He had a point, but thewrong doers would still be in control and those in the right would still suffer.That would always be true. At least in the present climate Doomwatch coulddo some good. No, Clive Sellers had to be stopped like Ridge had said. Nomatter what

*****************************

What? Are you insane? Paul looked deep into Timmons eyes and saw hedid indeed mean it.

The leak came from this department. It stands to reason that its Ridge.Timmons replied with dedicated venom.

Paul and he suspected everyone else but knew very little about Ridge. He was the only remaining member of the original Doomwatch outfit. He stillliaised with the government on certain matters. But he seemed so dedicated.Too dedicated surely?

Youre sure it was him? said Paul.I have just got off the phone with Sir Nathaniel Graham MP and he

assures me that Ridge looks like the guilty man. Were currently tracing thehacker who got into Mainframe. As soon as we do, Ridge, Sellers and all theother eco-nutters will be locked away for a very, very long time. Timmonslooked pleased with himself.

What about Adam?Timmons pondered this before replying.I dont know. But we should assume that he is in on it with Ridge. Ill

send him away. A long flight I think to keep him out of the picture while weinvestigate.

*****************************

Ridge stared at himself in the mirror long and hard. He noticed he waslooking particularly old. Living alone was not good for Ridge. He wasnt anatural loner, but his old school values made him feel like a dinosaur in amodern age. He was actually beginning to feel like an extinct species. Hereached for his jacket and decided to head back to Doomwatch headquarters.He had allowed himself too much time to waste and now he needed to getstraight back into the thick of it. He had fulfilled his promise to Quist abouthis son and now he had a madman to stop. With that Ridge decided not too

look at himself in the mirror again.

*****************************

Clive Sellers was busy. His newfound infamy had neither particularlydisgusted or worried him. His image was now being circulated as a dangerouspaedophile that should not be approached. The affect on his fellow L.C.Fmembers had backfired. They believed him more than ever now and less in thecorrupt government that now ruled over him. He also suspected that thegovernment would welcome some drunken, yobbish lynch mob who wouldmurder him. He had gone into hiding in a laboratory he had set up a few yearsago. He planned how the virus would be unleashed. Variant 14 was such a


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harmless name and hed tried many times to recreate the formula. To man andother known living forms of life it was quite harmless.

Clive couldnt wait to unleash Variant 14. The incredible contagiousnature meant it would only be a matter of time before it spread across the

country. It was an effective weapon that would spread havoc fast.

PART SIX

Ive got it! shouted Paul as he looked up from his microscope, lookingparticularly pleased with himself. Adam who had been lost in thoughtsuddenly snapped back into the real world.

Got what?Weve been looking at this all wrong. Instead of worrying about

stopping L.C.F, we should be concentrating on an anti-virus.Adam nodded in agreement.Obviously. Does that sample help you?Yes, but it is going to take months, maybe years to find an effective

antidote and even then, how do we go about deploying and preventing furtherattacks?

Adam thought for a moment. This was getting serious.The silence was broken by a phone call. Adam answered the phone.

Hello?Adam, its Timmons. We have a problem. We have information that

leads us to believe Sellers will attempt to use the virus on an airliner. Thats

not all though, a certain oil company has been leaning on the government.This could cost the oil industry billions. We need a result fast.

I think weve got something Timmons. What? Youre sending mewhere?

Adam left the room making his apologies.Paul continued to stare down at the metal microscope at a metal dish

containing a dead sample of Variant 14. He was making notes on a notepadwith a pencil as Timmons entered in a fluster.

Well have you made progress? Timmons demanded.Paul waited a moment before looking up from his microscope enjoying

the moment.

Variant 14 attacks plastic on a molecular level. It seems to be made ofvarious vinyl acetates, chlorofluorocarbons and maleric anhydride.

Paul smiled at the blank expression on Timmons face.Of course Mr Timmons I wouldnt expect any of that to mean anything

to you.Paul had succeeded in aggravating Timmons.

What do you mean by that? he said attempting to assert his authority.Nothing Sir. You do know Adam is nothing to do with the L.C.F dont

you?.That leak came from mainframe.And I suppose it is inconceivable to you that the leak could have come

from M.I.5?


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Timmons seemed even more annoyed by Pauls implication that the leakcould have come from his department. Paul couldnt help but wonder if he hadtouched a raw nerve.

Maybe youre right. Maybe some one else in this department wasresponsible. Would you like to own up to anything?

Oh for God sake Timmons! Just go away. Ive got an antidote to workon. Why dont you make some optimistic plan about catching L.C.F and assist

your M.P. friends in their expenses?Now Paul had really done it. Timmons got right into Pauls face as he

spoke softly and menacingly. If you dare make a comment like that when SirGraham is here I swear I shall have you in a cell.

He then walked out the room in a huff. Paul wished he hadnt pushedhim so much. But there was no place in life for regrets and he had animportant job to do.

*****************************

Clive sat alone. The room was barely lit by energy saving bulbs. In frontof him lay a collection of books. He was composing his thoughts. His mind

was currently roaming an astral plane and thinking about the teachings of HsiYu Chi. The teachings of change. Modern life would change and L.C.F wouldforce the entire globe into a greener way of life. Man has no right to treat theEarth as badly as it did. We do not own this planet we merely inhabit it as adisease might inhabit a host. If we continue to devour, then we too shall killthe host. When the Earth finally breaks apart man shall finally learn animportant lesson. Too late. But the L.C.F can and will change all that. Fordecades, man could have put planned to take make steps to help save the

planet. But he didnt. Instead he let the problem worsen whilst he grew fat ofthe profits. He was a man obsessed.

*****************************

Ridge arrived at Doomwatch. His I.D pass was refused by the guard.Now wait a bloody minute! Ridge began to protest as Timmons

appeared.Ahh Mr Ridge. I was wondering if we might have a word with you?Certainly. Ive got two for you Timmons.The guard laughed but Timmons shot him a look.

I think you should come inside.The conversation was caught short by the arrival of Sir Nathaniel

Graham M.P. Timmons looked at Ridge, his eyes displaying weakness.Oh, doesnt your master know about mainframe? Shall we include him in

our little chat Mr Timmons?Timmons glared at Ridge and then rushed over to Sir Graham. Sir

Graham was a healthy if a little thin gentleman. He had a disarming air abouthim. He waved Timmons away and then headed towards Ridge.

I know you Ridge. Ridge isnt the leak. You were in the originalDoomwatch. You chaps were real trend setters back then. I did try and getcertain green issues pushed through the houses of parliament of course most

were swept under the carpet Im afraid.I dont know why they never got rid of me.


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Well Sir Graham, if all the green issues were pursued and provedunprofitable, theyd need a fall guy. Ridge used his best winning smile.

Timmons blood went cold until Sir Graham suddenly laughed.I like you Mr Ridge. Why dont you join us?Im afraid Sir Graham I am a little tied up, Mr Timmons here was just

about to arrest me for what was itindustrial espionage.Sir Graham looked Timmons up and down distinctly unimpressed.Nonsense. Have him join us Timmons.Sir Graham. His chest puffed out, began to march ahead. Ridge smiled

sarcastically as Timmons had no choice but to allow Ridge to enter. Timmonsblood began to boil.

Nice try Timmons. Ridge muttered as he walked on ahead. Ridge thenwaited and turned to Timmons as he caught them up, then looked back at SirGraham.

Forgive me Sir Graham, but you dont mind if I smoke do you?Not at all. That is as long as Mr Timmons has no such objection?

They both glared at Timmons.WellIJolly good, as you were Mr Ridge.Ridges smile beamed across his face as he lit up a cigar and overly

dramatically took his first drag.Now this is real quality. Would you like one Timmons. Oh wait you dont

smoke do you?Timmons could feel himself losing control.Look, there are more important matters at hand. Please gentlemen

follow me!Timmons led the way and Ridge and Sir Graham followed.

Inside the conversation continued. So you see Sir Graham. The leakcame because someone here allowed hackers to

No. Not true Ridge interrupted Timmons.What? Timmons replied yet again, annoyed by Ridge, he checked his

gun was still hidden in his waistcoat. Yes, it was, that made him feel better.The hack could have been external. Look only a few months back an

autistic middle aged bloke hacked his way through the C.I.As database.There didnt have to be a leak to allow someone to access mainframe

explained Ridge.Timmons could see his words were having the desired effect on Sir

Graham.Damn you Ridge.

Sir Graham, that was an isolated incident. And we are not the C.I.A saidTimmons.

You can say that again. I imagine if you were Sellers I would be in a cellawaiting execution long before now. But no, you gave him a low profile. Well

you dont give fanatics low profiles. Because this happens. Maybe you shouldread some history books Timmons. Might learn something there Ridge thentutted.

How dare you! snapped Timmons.Sir Graham finally stepped in.Gentlemen please. Its clear you have some issues you two need to iron

out. Well thats fine. But we have a more serious problem here. Now we acceptMr Ridges theory holds certain validity. But its less likely than what MrTimmons is suggesting. Therefore we look for our leak.


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Timmons jumped in. And I say we start with you Ridge. I read your file. You nearly started world war bloody 3. If anyone is with the L.C.F its you.Youve been behind the scenes for years. Planning with Sellers no doubt!

Ridge immediately went for Timmons but missed. Timmons then punched

Ridge in the chest and Ridge went down.Your way too slow old man.Now thats enough. The pair of you. Timmons get out now.But heI said get out!Timmons marched out.Im sorry about that said Sir GrahamDont worry. I think the stupid prat had a point. I am too old. said

Ridge.Nonsense.Ridge smiled and Sir Graham helped him up.

Do you really think the hacking was an outside job?Maybe, I dont know.

PART SEVEN

She was beautiful. Her long and slender body a sight to behold. Menfound her attraction irresistible, but she was cold to the touch. She stoodquietly in the hanger waiting, utterly wasted, waiting for chance to show the

world how great she really was. To many she was a symbol of pureextravagance for those with too much money and not enough time. To others,she was an environmental disaster. How apt. What a perfect symbol she would

make once again. This time, for the L.C.F.

It was an impressive display of technological advancement that alwaysdrew a crowd with her raw power and sex appeal. In that crowd Clive Sellers,stood in awe of the machine and wondered what it would look like with a largeL.C.F banner on the tail. He couldnt contain himself anymore and a broadsmirk spread across his face much to the bemusement of his fellow onlookers.This was going to be unforgettable. The world was going to love this. Posing asan onlooker, gave him the insight into what this once magnificent aircraftachieved as he was shown around the impressive collection. He couldnt waitto abuse it.

Concorde F-BTSD Sierra Delta.

One of the youngest of the remaining Concordes. She was kept lovinglyin near-airworthy condition. Le Bourget Air and Space Museum in Paris wasan easy target. Where else could you get a supersonic aircraft that wasnt inpossession of the military? The operation had taken over two years to come tofruition and leaving cold rain soaked Britain and arriving in France in the

bright sunshine to see his new baby fly gave Clive butterflies.

It was just perfect. The L.C.F was ready to strike. All the preparation

would now pay off. Despite the safety fears the tickets for an exclusive Paris toLondon and then New York, were sold out in just two minutes. How quickly


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people forget thought Clive. It was the perfect cover for the operation and anadded bonus that they could do some low flying for the entertainment of thepublic on the ground below whilst delivering a nasty little surprise.

The public on both sides of the channel obviously still loved her and both

thought they owned her. A once in a lifetime opportunity to fly on Concordefor one final time. The golden ticket sales brought in a nice unexpectedly largeprofit too. Little did they know how final that flight would be.

Albertine Dice had done an excellent job. His operations team hadproven ruthlessly efficient and the operation had gone with few setbacks. TheL.C.F staff had gradually replaced over half the original members of themuseum as most had unexpectedly left or disappeared without any formalnotice. Another L.C.F specialist trait. However, a high turnover in staff in justsix months didnt go unnoticed, but it was necessary. If anyone discoveredtheir plans it would all be ruined. Those that did talk about their suspicions

about the restoration work being done on Sierra Delta were taken care of.The large fuel tanks were filled to the maximum. Over 4500 miles in the tank,it would be more than enough for this specialtrip.

The container tanks were fitted to Sierra Delta in stages at night. Overthree quarters of the hold was converted into liquid storage space and themetal spray jets were fitted spanning the wings of the aircraft with metalliccontrol levers fitted for operation. All that was needed was the new Variant 14.

The night before the flight a black tanker pulled up at the gate and with awave of a security pass from the driver and a knowing smile, it was let straight

through. The tanker slowly made its way to the hanger, its liquid contentssloshed in the giant tank. Inside the cabin were five L.C.F engineers wearingprotective suits. The hanger doors were opened and the tanker disappearedinside. The doors were slammed shut and all entrances to the hangar werelocked. The men jumped out and immediately set to work. One of themattached a hose to the container and the other to the tanks in the cargo bay.The pump was started and the brown liquid flowed while the men checked tomake sure there were no leaks. As the tank was emptied as quickly as thetanker came it left. They were ready for the morning.

The sun rose at the end of the Le Bourget airfield and despite the early

hours, crowds had begun to gather. Not a single person didnt have either avideo camera or a mobile telephone at the ready to film the days event.

As the hanger opened, Ambre, a small girl in the crowd stopped eatingher chocolate bar and pointed shouting Regarde, Regarde! Her father cheeredand clapped as the low pointed nose of the aircraft emerged into the sunlight,momentarily glinting in the sun. A fine haze appeared to surround the craft asshe was slowly towed from the hanger.

It was forty five minutes before she was in position and it proved to be anextremely popular photo opportunity for the crowd as fathers lifted theirchildren up onto their shoulders, so they could see the lucky passengers

boarding the aircraft. Their arrival in sleek high powered cars was to be


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expected. Only the seriously rich were going to be on this flight, plus a fewlucky winners and bidders on eBay.

Sierra Deltas engines roared into life as she unleashed her power. The watching crowd roared and cheered louder in delight as the sleek aircraft

taxied slowly down the runway. The passengers on board were having a fieldday. Champagne and chocolates were plentiful and excitement levels werehigh.

Clive knew the aircraft was either unlikely to make the whole journey ormay even be shot down by the military when they discovered what was goingon. But it didnt matter, by that time it would be too late. His team of scientistshad mapped the journey the aircraft would take and drawn up maps of themost effective target spots to release the plastic eating chemical, the bonus

was the release of Variant 14 into the clouds which carry the virus for manyhundreds of miles completely unstoppable in its spread.

The sound of the jet engines was impressive, as Sierra Delta finally leftthe runway and soared into the sky at an astonishing 250mph. On board

Variant 14 was sloshing around in the tanks, hungry and dinner was on itsway

*****************************

In seat 1A on Flight 272, Adam sat frustrated. He had to get back toDoomwatch, fast. He had discovered his new mission was a decoy. The planesseats were uncomfortable to say the least. Cutbacks had to be made and

economy travel was the now the standard. It was too late to save thepassengers on Concorde. It just wasnt good enough. The briefcase containinga sample of the Variant 14 killing solution hed taken with him for further testssat by his side. Adam found it hard to take his eyes of it.

*****************************

Onboard Sierra Delta, Susan Haversham admired herself in a plastic

cased compact mirror. Her looks meant everything to her. Age wasnt going todefeat her and at 38, she still looked hot and she knew it.

The plastic surgeons had done a great job. Cost was no barrier to Susan,as she always got what she wanted. She felt 16 again. Susan sat with herentourage of fashion models and designers and snapped at the stewardess asshe walked by. You. Bring me a Coffee, now, with milk and no sugar and bequick about it. Her rudeness astonished her fellow passengers and despite her

beauty, she suddenly looked quite ugly. The stewardess pulled a face briefly,and then said Certainly madam and then she head off towards the front ofthe plane. A very special coffee was going to be made. Luanne had dealt with

many a celebrity before, and knew how to get her own back.


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The journey across the channel was swift and Emily sat in the rear baggage hold waiting for the signal. Her stomach was rolling, she wasntfeeling well. Then the signal came. The Captain announced they were flyinglow over London. Emily pushed the metallic lever hard. Emily loved everyminute of it. As she pushed the lever to the open position and the jets outside

of Concorde began to spray their deadly cargo, Emily didnt notice the leakfrom the mechanism. She touched Variant 14 without even realising it. Emilysuddenly felt the need to go the toilet. She felt sick. She made her way to thetoilets in the middle of the plane. Emily looked green. She started running butit was too late. She bent over double and was sick in the aisle.

Luanne was an efficient and sensitive steward, she spotted Emily fromthe front of the plane and quickly grabbed some cleaning materials and a sick

bag. As she made her way towards Emily, Susan grabbed her arm. Wheresmy coffee? she snapped. Excuse me madam I have another passenger toattend to, I will be with you as soon as possible and pulled herself free from

Susan who now let go easily as she stared down the isle at a women bent overmaking disgusting retching sounds. Just hurry up she called after her.

Something was wrong. As Luanne helped Emily to her to her feet andhanded her a sick bag. Quickly, in order to not upset other passengers, she

bent down and used her assortment of paper towels and cleaning equipmentto clean up as fast as possible. The smell was rancid. As she tied the plastic bagup and sprayed a lemon disinfectant, she asked Emily if she was feeling betterand gave her a mint from her pocket to chew on whilst she helped Emily backto her seat. Where are you sitting madam?. Emily just ignored her andstarted off towards the back of the plane.

Undeterred, Luanne made her way to the front of the plane and put therubbish bag quickly with the rest of the passengers cartons, cups and useddinner plates. As she turned away, she didnt notice the purple swirling liquid

break free from the bag. As it oozed out, it appeared to spread quickly aroundthe plastic trays and slowly they began to dissolve. Variant 14 was free againand it was hungry. The cups and then the plates were quickly reduced tosludge. Still unnoticed by all, Sierra Delta was now doomed.

Fifteen minutes later, a yellow light went on in the flight cabin andCaptain Jim French looked suddenly worried. Concordes Engine 1 shut down

for a couple of seconds and then came back on line. The Passengers noticed. Aslight panic crept over the plane and some people started to laugh nervously,trying no to look concerned. Susan didnt notice, or care for that matter what

was going on around her. She had been on many flights before. Turbulencewas nothing. She took a sip of her Coffee and nearly spat it out. The milk wasoff. She stared at the cup in utter disgust and was about to complain, when thecup suddenly dissolved and hot Coffee spilt over her legs. She screamed inpain.

In the streets of London below, Michael was fed up. Shopping wasboring, life was boring. But he needed to eat. He looked into the window of the

cake shop at a very large jam doughnut. Concorde roared overhead with astrange intermittent high pitched whirr. He looked up in the bright sky at the


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plane as it flew overhead and Michael clasped his hands against his ears.

As rain inexplicably started fall, he swore as he'd forgot to bring his umbrella.After the shock of the Concorde passing overhead, the doughnut he was eyeingup suddenly became less interesting. Drip, drip drip. What on earth is that he

exclaimed. He picked the gooey substance of his exposed shoulder and studiedit for a moment. As he felt the tackiness he suddenly started to feel queasy. Hehad a pacemaker fitted many years ago and for some reason this immediatelysprang to his mind. Inside Michael's body, a feast was going on. Variant 14

was absorbed into Michaels skin and gorged on the plastic in his Pacemaker.Michael felt light headed, his arms began to ache and he fell to the ground,panic stricken. Someone spotted him and rushed to help, but it was too late,Michael wasn't going to be miserable ever again...

Within minutes of the rainfall, the scene in the street was one of utterchaos. Cars narrowly avoided people, slamming into what shop windows

remained intact as the PVC that bound them together started to dissolve.People were running to avoid falling glass, women and their children, rushedinto the safety of the shops, watching in amazement at the scene around themunfolding.

In a clothes shop, coats and trousers fell to the floor one by one, themelting hangers giving way. Outside, yet more cars pathetically ground to ahalt, bumpers dragging behind them dripping over the tarmac.

Fern Stenson couldnt believe what was happening, all she wanted was20, to buy her son some cheap black shoes. The little pain had managed to

lose one at school the day before and had come home in his socks. He claimedBarry the school bully grabbed him and pulled it off his right foot and ran off.

As Fern stood at the cash machine, she entered her pin, tutted at the balanceon the screen and went to retrieve her card. As she pulled it, half of it oozedand stretched from the machine like bubble gum. What on earth? Shesuddenly was aware of the chaos around her and had to move sharply as a carskidded passed her and her son.

And yet, Sierra Delta carried on its journey of destruction, much to theamusement of Sellers, who watched the local news story unfold on Channel 6as the chaos spread. No-one knew what was happening. It was all going to

plan.

Sierra Delta was in chaos. After cleaning herself up as best she could,Susan was furious. She made her way to the toilets and was even moreannoyed when she discovered the mirror in the toilet lay broken on the floor.It looked like the plastic around the frame had melted. She snorted in disgust.She had grabbed her bag and was determined to get changed in the toilet. Asshe put on a fresh set of clothes, she went to grab her compact mirror to doher makeup. As she unzipped the compartment and put her hand in, she waspresented with a gooey mess. The mirror was covered in its own plastic. Whatthe hell is going on! she said, she was now livid. As she turned to open the

toilet door, the handle came off in her hand. Right!, she had had enough.


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Susan started bashing on the door, Let me out, you idiots! But her cries wentunheard amongst the rising sound of panic in the plane.

The no fly zone around the houses of parliament was strictly enforced,but today this enforcement was relaxed by the arrival of an icon. Flying lowover London, crowds cheered and people pulled over in their cars scrabbling

around in their pockets for their mobile phones. Just to get a blurry pointlesspicture. Why didnt people just enjoy the moment instead of trying to recordeverything? Surely it was the whole point of saying you were there in the firstplace? Clive was struggling not to jump up and down with sheer joy as thechaos ensued as Concorde roared overhead.

On board Concorde Lance was inconsolable. Lance was listening to hismp3 player. He had grown tired of listening to the latest top 40 chart he hadtorrented off the internet when the player inexplicably stopped. He swore hehad enough charge for twenty four hours and hed only had it on for a coupleof hours. He pulled the player out of his pocket and he was presented with a

stick mess. As he tried to pull the earphones out to investigate further, the twoleads fell either side of him and the speakers remained in his ears. He startedpanicking and shouting when he realised he couldnt get them out.

Susan was now going ballistic too. She had sat down on the toilet in orderto take her shoe of and use it to bash on the door. Before she could raise herarm, the window in the toilet began to rattle and the glass began to crack.Susan slowly turned around in horror as the glass gave way and she let go ofthe shoe she was holding only to watch it being sucked out of the gaping holein the plane. She jumped to floor terrified, instantly deafened by the escapingair. The toilet door began to buckle.

The planes engines were erratic. Lights blinked on and off in the cabin.The plane started to descend lower and lower. They needed to land and fast.Captain Jim French tried to use the intercom to reassure the passengers, but it

would just make a clicking sound. Sounds of commotion could be heard fromthe passengers.

The models were all screaming in unison. Their faces, hips and breastsand lips began to change and melt on a molecular level. They began toresemble zombies. As the plane approached Heathrow runaway, Emily knew it

was going to crash and burn. She began to prey for mother earth.

As Concorde approached the runway in near silence as its engines failedcompletely, the passengers couldnt strap themselves in. The interior of theplane looked like it had completely melted. Just 400ft from the runway thesteering mechanism collapsed. Peoples prayers were over-shadowed by thescreaming and sniffling of the passengers. Then as the ground came evercloser, there fell an almost calm silence.

The news camera crews watched on the ground. This was GOLD.Opportunities like this didnt come often. The footage from this incident

would make Media Connections a fortune. What an unexpected bonus thiswould prove to be.


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The plane slammed down hard on the runway and the passengers on board were thrown into the seats in front of them. As the plane skiddeduncontrollably on the tarmac for what seemed like forever, its landing gearcrushed and massive wings damaged it came to a halt, right next to a group offour budget airline planes.

Emily was alive. She held her breath. 50 passengers around her were nowdead. The virus was free, free to consume. Life would never be the same againand Emily would walk away alive. As the fire engines and rescue crew racedtowards the plane. Emily studied the scene around her. She was trapped

between a mother and her son. As she was rescued, she looked back at thecrippled plane on the runway. News teams raced to the scene. The threats ofL.C.F were real, they would be heard. She knew that people would listen andthey must adapt to a new world. A world that wasnt so reliant on plastic. Asthe few remaining survivors departed the plane, something strange began tohappen. The sirens on the fire engines faltered and died. Drip, drip, drip,

Variant 14 was having a field day. All around the Virus spread. It was too late,so many people, so little time to stop the spread. Before anyone knew what

was going on, all around planes internal parts started to melt and drop off.The Army and Police were present and they sealed off the area, letting no-oneleave.

Emily knew that this wasnt the end. Only she knew how many moreflights would bring what the press were now calling excitedly calling THEPLASTIC RAIN.

PART EIGHT

Later that day, as Emily sat alone on the hospital ward, she felt a failure.Her one saving thought was she had apparently gotten away with it. Theauthorities had no idea who she was. She had to get up. She lay back on her

bed barely able to move. Just then she noticed a nurse approach and with aneedle and injected straight it into her drip. The nurse then put her hand overEmilys mouth. The needle had been full of air and Emily watched as the air

bubble worked its way quickly down into her vein. Then smack into her heart.

Emily was dead.

*****************************

Returning from his flight Adam answered his mobile. It was Ridge.Ridge. Theyve sent me on a..Just shut up and listen ok? Ive just cleared with that M.P Sir Graham

that your OK. M.I.5 finally got a lock on whoever had hacked into Mainframe.A Karl Womack. Mean anything to you?

Adam thought for a moment before replying.No. Should it?No. Nothing. A loner with large spells of unemployment, but just

possibly a computer genius. Weve just heard that a woman, Emily was asurvivor of the plane crash that the virus was used on. She has been founddead, murdered by an air bubble administered through her drip whilst inhospital.


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It looks as though this Emily was the operative who accidently spread Variant 14 on the plane. And guess what? You wouldnt know her either. Another loner who led a sad existence. No known lovers or friends. L.C.Fcertainly knows how to pick them.

Do you realize how many sad lonely people there are in the world?

Adam looked around the airport. There were so many people standingthere lost and alone. Looking around waiting for nothing? How many ofthese were members of L.C.F?

Man is born to believe. And if no church comes forward with its titledeeds of truth, sustained by the sacred ages and by the convictions ofcountless generations to guide him, he will find alters and idols in his ownheart and his own imagination.

Benjamin Disraeli. Ridge finished the quote and there remained anawkward silence. Maybe the threat of L.C.F was far greater than imagined.

The L.C.F must have an enormous underground internet presence.Adam muttered in awe at the concept.

We must find out how they are recruited, How soon till you getWomack? said Ridge.

Any minute now hopefully.

*****************************

Timmons led the teams as they crashed into Karl Womacks flat. Theplace stank of sweat and general lack of good personnel hygiene. Postersdonned the walls of old horror movies. The computer screen lit up the

bedroom. Sat in the chair with his head back was Karl. Dead. He had beensuffocated. Timmons stepped forward.

They have left nothing to chance. Search the place and get a forensicteam in here. Be careful.

Timmons then suddenly noticed the back of the computer monitor hadbegun to melt and the power cables were dripping on the floor. Suddenly themonitor went off as the insulation to the power supply was gorged on by theplastic eating virus and the bare cables touched each other.

Variant 14. Its in here! Quickly get out! The virus is in here!

*****************************

Clive Sellers was still one step ahead of M.I.5. Variant 14 was being

released and Clive could see no possible way that any government could stop itin time. It was mere hours until the western world as people knew it wouldcollapse. He watched the six o clock news on the television screen and downedthe rest of his Vodka.

*****************************

Sir Graham sat in his office looking at a photo taken of him in SouthAfrica when he was a younger man. The world of the past seemed like such analien place. His heart and soul yearned for it. But he knew it was impossible.Now the world was suffering. All his life he had wanted a better world.Believed in the ecological issues. But he had been shunned and ignored. L.C.Fseemed like the only way to save the world. Which is why he joined them.


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Maybe in 365 days from now the world will be closer to the world he yearnedfor. He was tired of red tape too and no one would suspect him.

Sir Graham sat back and closed his eyes. He waited for the end of societyas he knew it.

PART NINE

Clive began what was to be, his final L.C.F Internet broadcast. With allthe media attention around the devastated towns and villages around thecountry due to the rainfall carrying Variant 14, what better way to force theinformation down their throats. He had the public in the palm of his hand. Hehad their realattention now.

Plastic is a poison.

Worldwide plastic in various forms is dumped into the oceans of the planet. Countless wildlife, from sea-lions, whales, birds and turtles ingestthis poison and die a painful death year after year. The worlds eco system issuffering.

This Plastic poison will take up to 1000 years before it decomposes inthe environment. This is totally unacceptable. Plastic is buried in landfills orthrown into the oceans and surrounding ecosystems.

But there is an answer. The process of polyethylene degradation can beused on an industrial scale for the biodegradation of plastic. As a result, thiswould save the lives of millions of wildlife species.

The development of a biotechnological approach to PE degradationshould be adopted and the reliance on oil and plastic reduced. The worldmustchange.

All over the world the press and the public read this. Adam knew thesewords were true, there was no denying the fact. Despite their Machiavellianbehaviour of late, at the core of L.C.F there was a very real effort to change theworld, but at what cost? Would the world be a better place covered in meltedplastic?

*****************************

I have word back from Sir Graham. Doomwatch are attempting to createan anti-virus.

Clive. They will do it!Carly, Doomwatch will be too late. Anyway theyve probably spread it

back to their mainframe when they found Karl dead, and I am alreadyplanning a second wave of attacks.

Did Karl have to die?Yes. He was operating out of control. We cant afford to make mistakes.But he was useful.He had served his purpose! Clive looked at her. Could even Carly still be

trusted?


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Clive knew the endgame was fast approaching. He still wished that hecould involve Adam Quist. Sir Graham had provided the useful informationand of course had allowed Womack initial access to Mainframe.

*****************************

Ridge continued to read the report on his desk. It was not pleasant.Variant 14 had begun to cause wide spread damage not only all over the UK,but Europe also as the rain fell. Sometimes small the damage was small, creditcards, stationary and a few toy shops and warehouses had their contentsturned into liquid paddling pools. Sometimes it was serious. People had died

when their replacement plastic body parts poisoned them.

Clive Sellers was still at large despite the widespread manhunt.Adam then came through the door.Some parts around the globe appear to be infected too?

Ridge just looked at him and nodded.Somehow, the bastards are spreading the virus all over. By the time we

have worked out an effective anti-virus the economy will be crippled. Damagesare estimated worldwide to be over seven billion. With the UK suffering the

brunt of the damage and most of the rainfall, not forgetting the loss of life.Ridge threw the report down on the table. Adam just looked at him.Where do you think Sellers would be? said Ridge.He must know he cant leave the country. So hes still in the country

hiding. With Karl Womack dead and his computer melted theres no leadsthere either. said Adam.

Maybe Clive is here under our noses in London? Ridge speculated.

Makes sense. He would have to be involved in some sort of media outfit?That way they could use it as a cover for their Internet activities. It wouldrequire a large amount of resources. If only Womacks computer wasntdamaged! Adam cried.

Well its no use now.Look Ridge the whole country, no several countries are searching the

globe, hes the most wanted man. What makes you think we can find him?Because old boy, were a lot smarter then they are.Just then the phone rang. Adam answered it.Hello, Adam Quist. Yes minister. Yes. I see. Thank you, minister.

Adam put the phone down.

It seems the upper echelons of our good country are also blighted withVariant 14. Theres been an outbreak in the House of Commons.

What?Sir Nathaniel Grahams office is infected. Adam replied.Sir Graham?. Said Paul.Oh yes, Sir Graham. I think Timmons should know that we might have

found our leak.Sir Graham was arrested less than twenty minutes later. Under the

circumstances, Timmons was allowed to use a certain degree of pressure.Contravene to the human rights act Timmons threats of violence provedunnecessary and Sir Grahams own self doubt made him confess very quickly.Crucially he confessed to the location of Clive Sellers.


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*****************************

The swat team got to the unassuming house as quickly as they could. Butas soon as they opened the door and stepped inside they were greeted with ahomemade incendiary device. The explosion was enormous, killing two

members of the team straight away.At Doomwatch Paul took the call shortly after.Were back at bloody square one again! Adam shouted thumping the

desk in frustration.Just then the phone went again. Adam answered. It was Clive Sellers.

Clive wanted to meet Adam.

PART TEN

Adam raced down the road to the hotel where Clive wanted to meet. His

mind was a maelstrom of thoughts. He remembered Ridge wanting to do thedecent thing and kill Sellers. However he knew that Ridge wasnt a killer. It

would make him no different to the L.C.F. However, a man like Sellers couldnever be stopped. He was the parochial mad dog. Arrest seemed the only way.

Adams blood chilled. He wondered how long the L.C.F had tapped intomainframe and to the state of mind of Clive Sellers.

Adam arrived at the hotel and parked the car and then headed inside. Atthe reception desk a rotund camp man greeted Adam and was told that a MrSellers was indeed expecting him in room 319. The man then rang through totell Mr Sellers Adam was here.

Adam pushed the door to the room and found it open. He paused for amoment, preparing himself and then went inside. Clive was sitting opposite,he had shaved all his hair away and had begun to grow a beard.

Adam Quist. You have no idea how much this means to me.You know youre the most wanted man in the country.Come now, I signed in under Arnold Sellers. I havent changed that

much, just another face in the crowd. Adam looked around the room. There wasnt much, just a few clothes

and some books.Tell me Adam have you come to put me in custody?

Adam realised he didnt know what he was here to do.

Why?Why? Why what Adam?All this. How many members of your own cause have you killed?

And for what?You couldnt understand?Oh no I know the arguments. Some of them make good sense.Eugenics due to over population. Our governments scared to tackle the

issue rather ignore it, unlike China where its dealt with.So you agreeOn paper yes. But when it comes to placing babies and foetuss in bins

then Im afraid it stops being palatable.


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Outside a shadowy figure arrived. With a long coat and leather gloves hemade his way into the hotel. There was only a handful of staff in the lobby. Thecamp man smiled but the figure pulled out a gun with a silencer and shotthem all. He then produced two petrol cans and began to pour them liberallyover the hotel.

Youre week Adam. Just like all the rest. Your a socialist. All very wellin practice isnt it. I used to be like you until I realised it doesnt work.

In the lobby the figure lit a match and dropped it. Fire immediatelyerupted. It reached the bar and all the alcohol exploded.

What was that? Adam quer

S1E01 DOOMWATCH - THE PLASTIC RAIN

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