One hour earlier, on a barren hilltop in the outskirts of Jerusalem.
The hillâs initial height was approximately five to six hundred metres tall. Sadly, its height was reduced by half after it imploded and caved in. On top of this hill were a large group of people that seemed to be engrossed in their work. They seemed to be searching for something.
Mossad and the FA Organization had agreed to form a collaborative investigation team. This place was no stranger to Kerns, who had visited this site countless times. However, this was all new to Yan Fo and Augustan.
âThis is it.â Kerns gestured. âOur archaeologists had gone missing in this area along with two American archaeologists.â
Yan Fo studied the site for a moment and hummed. âIndeed, it is a large area. But with your capabilities, why havenât you found the site where the AE capsules originated from? Itâs been years.â
Kernsâ gaze shifted to the foot of the hill. An engineering team was slowly ascending the terrain. All the machinery used by the engineering team was military-grade. While a distance had separated him and the engineering team, Kerns could guess that they were from the Israeli military.
Yan Fo had gotten the answer to his question. It was at the foot of the hill.
Without an earthquake, the hill had toppled over without reason. This itself was an obvious clue. Yan Fo was only blurting out the question due to his disbelief.
Kerns replied, âI know what youâre thinking. We have explored this place more than ten times. Do you know why we werenât able to find it still?â
Yan Foâs gaze returned onto Kerns. âMister Kerns, I would prefer that you tell it to me straight.â
Kerns frowned. âMister Yan, this area has a unique magnetic field that rendered all of our equipment useless. It would point us to the wrong places and waste all our time and efforts. Once, our team had found another location. It was a hill too. Our equipment had told the explorers that the mountain had no cavity and that there was a triangular-shaped space within. It felt magical.â
Augustan too averted his attention away from the approaching engineer team onto Kerns, interested. âSo what happened?â
Kerns chortled dryly and shook his head. âIt was a fluke. We dispatched massive construction machines and an engineering team to excavate the mountain. We were working like construction workers that built roads and tunnels. It took us an entire year to tear the mountain apart but there was no triangular space at all. After that, all equipment had returned to normal. The hill had offered us nothing but rocks and soil.â
Yan Fo and Augustan locked eyes. While Kerns explanation was weird and did not make any sense, they both found themselves believing it. Other than this, what else could explain Israelâs failure to locate the right site after so long?
What kind of magnetic field was it to be able to drive their equipment crazy and fool them around?
Oh, unfortunate Israelis. Imagine getting all excited that theyâd found the location of a treasure and then beginning their lengthy excavation only to realize that they had been fooled. Not to mention, they had experienced this disappointment one too many times.
Kerns continued, âWeâre fooled again and again. Each humiliation paired with gigantic losses. This is the answer to your question. Through these years, we had desperately hoped to find the right spot. But if we had resumed our efforts in that manner, we wouldâve been able to fill in a new Israel in the vast Pacific Ocean.â
While his words were highly exaggerated, there was some truth to it.
âSo without your equipment, weâve already found the right spot. Itâs beneath us, isnât it?â Yan Fo made his own deduction.
âThis hill had collapsed out of the blue. It may be the place weâre searching for but who can guarantee that? The magnetic field had fooled us time after time. Thereâs no way to guarantee success,â Kerns relented. It was obvious that the man himself was tired of lies. Despite the truth was possibly within reach, Kerns found it hard to convince himself that they were close.
âI have a feeling that this is it. Beneath us is where the AE capsules were found,â said Yan Fo.
Augustan voiced, âThe mysterious magnetic field could be associated with the hill body. Have you not investigated this hill?â
Kerns shook his head. âNever. But we know that thereâs nothing here.â
There was a faint smirk of confidence on Augustanâs lips. âThen Iâm sure that this is the hill that youâre searching for. I really wish to know whatâs hidden inside. From your description, itâs almost like a mischievous child that loves to pull pranks. Itâs just right below you and yet it decides to direct you elsewhere.â
âAh, I sure do hope so.â Kerns shifted his posture. âThis is also why we decided to dispatch a team of engineers for the excavation. We hope to find the truth this time.â
Yan Fo uttered, âMister Kerns, how about we place a bet.â
âA bet?â Kerns frowned. âWhat do you want to place bets on?â
Yan Fo smiled. âI bet that I will find the answers one step ahead of you. The reward I ask for is to allow me entry into the site.â
Kerns snorted coldly. âMister Yan, I know you mean to obtain answers from that prisoner. I really donât see how youâll succeed. That fella probably has the highest pain tolerance Iâve ever encountered. No matter how much torture we put him through, he wouldnât say a word. Since youâre so confident that youâll get something off him⊠Iâll entertain you on this bet. The reward I ask for is that you leave Israel and never come back.â
Yan Fo chuckled. âThat is far. Itâs a deal.â
Doot doot doot⊠Doot doot dootâŠ
At this moment, Kernsâ phone vibrated.
Kerns quickly answered it. âHello, speaking⊠What?!â
The manâs loud exclamation made Yan Fo and Augustan look at each other. The feeling of dread started to wash over them.
âHow the hell did that happen?! You bunch of fucktards!â Kernsâ veins popped as he roared into the device. âChase after them! Immediately! You donât have enough manpower? Fuck you! Do you not know how to contact the Rapid Response Team? Call them over! Inform the police and have them lock the entire Jerusalem up! Iâm coming back now. You better have the targets locked before Iâm back or⊠You know whatâs coming.â
Though Kerns had not mentioned the prisoner, Yan Fo and Augustan seemed to have understood what happened. The two of them had rushed over to Israel from America with a mission entrusted by the CIAâs leader, Williams, and the White House. But before the two could even do anything remotely useful, the most important prisoner was brought away!
âI guess you can tell what happened, right?â Ending the call, Kernsâ expression was solemn. His eyes were positively on fire.
âThen what are you waiting for? We need to rush back.â Yan Fo was more on edge than Kerns.
âWhatâs the point of getting jumpy at this rate? Our helicopter is on its way. We can get to Jerusalem within eight minutes.â Kerns looked into the direction of Jerusalem city. While the incoming helicopter was nowhere in sight, he had faith that the Rapid Response Team was already coming to get them.
Driving back was not as fast as travelling by air. Yan Fo gave up on urging Kerns. The Asian male tried to probe, âWho do you think is behind this?â
Kerns shook his head. âWe have no confirmed suspect. The suspect had entered the base through the ancient drainage system. Itâs top-secret information. The suspect was not alone and they came with a detailed plan. Someone had disrupted our optical fibres and another had hired Arabians around the Gaza Strip to create chaos to disperse our attention. The person behind the rescue effort had snuck in through the ancient waste system, rescued the prisoner and killed Harde along with another field agent.â
Yan Fo furrowed his brows at that. âWe had just left the place and that person had managed to execute an operation of that scale. Which means that weâve been monitored and we didnât notice it at all!â
Augustan supplied, âTo spy on the Mossad Jerusalem base and us and then infiltrate the base. This is a feat that even the Bermuda Force or the Russian KGB is incapable of. Who else is capable of this? Who do you think could be the mastermind behind this operation?â
Yan Fo froze slightly. âWait, I think who youâre talking about. This operation does feel like something he would do butâŠâ
Augustan confirmed, âBut heâs dead.â
Kerns looked at Yan Fo and then shifted his gaze onto Augustan. âAre you talking about⊠Xia Lei?â
The mutual silence of Yan Fo and Augustan confirmed his thoughts.
Yeah, Xia Lei.
A man who dared to sneak into America with a single pistol and infiltrate Lockheed Martinâs headquarters to steal intellectual property. A man who dared to follow up the operation by killing most of FAâs best-armed members at the borders of Mexico and steal away Predator B. America felt like a territory without borders to him.
If there were feats that couldnât be accomplished by the Bermuda Force or the Russian KGB but still found itself resolved. Well, you could suspect that Xia Lei was behind it.
If there were espionage missions that the CIA and Mossad couldnât complete and yet found itself as a real-life success⊠You could suspect that Xia Lei was behind it as well.
Xia Lei was the king in the world of espionage.
âImpossible!â Kerns ran a hand through his hair. âWeâve got intel that Xia Lei was verified to be assassinated by the CIA!â
Yan Fo could only huff out a peal of breathy laughter. âThat bastard is skilled at trickery. Anything relevant to him must be taken with a grain of salt. Looks like itâs time for a visit to China.â
A helicopter hovered over them. It was two minutes later than Kerns had expected. Apparently, Israelâs Rapid Response Team was slow sometimes.
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