EYE OF THE STORM

 This is Rated [P.G] for the occasional four letter word
and [W] for Weird.
 Where ever you see =words bracketed like this it
indicates what someone is thinking =
 ========================

 The park was quiet that afternoon as Deif ran around on
a very long leash as Fraser and Ray sat at a table eating
and talking away. Well to be more accurate, Ray was eating
and talking between mouthfuls, Fraser was just staring at
him. It finally registered and Ray looked at his food, then
checked his shirt and followed that by wiping his face with
a napkin looking for evidence of sauce or the like on his
face - there was none. He threw down the napkin.
 "What are you staring at me like that for?"
 "I'm sorry."
 "Don't give me I'm sorry, give me an explanation."
 "It was..  something you did."
 "What?"
 "And said."
 "What?"
 "I'm so hungry I could eat a horse. Then you bit into
it your burger and said.. .And I probably am."
 "Oh *soooo* sorry, I made a tasteless joke."
 "No.. . You just reminded me of someone who said
exactly the same thing once..  It wasn't a burger though it
was a piece of meat we took from an ice box in a hunter's
cabin..  I lost my appetite when she said that."
 Ray chuckled at that and took another bite of his
burger.
 "Of course you would never say what she did to make me
run outside and throw up."
 Ray savoured his bite, and made Mmmhmmm noises, then
swallowed and looked at his burger before he waved it in the
air along side the table.
 "Deif.. Come and get it."
 Deifenbaker bounded up and leapt into the air Ray
dropped it and the wolf clapped his jaws around it then
landed and gulped it down.
 "What was wrong with it?"
 "It was a really sick joke, ok..  I was going to say,
definitely horse, probably Arabian, thoroughbred..  Gelded
too."
 Fraser's jaw dropped.
 "But it put me off it..  and don't tell me that's
exactly what she said."
 "She said, definitely a horse, Gelded, thoroughbred,
probably Arabian. You said the same thing in a different
order."
 "What a coincidence."
 Fraser smiled faintly.
 "No..  I don't think so."
 "Hey I have no idea who you're talking about Fraser."
 "I wasn't inferring you knew about that joke she made.
I just meant..  I stopped considering that sort of thing a
coincidence a year ago. It's not the first time you've said,
done or.. in someway moved or sounded just like her.. And by
sound I mean..  Tone of voice."
 "Uh-hu."
 "It just happens..  But that's the first time you've
ever said almost the exact same thing, and did the exact
same thing she did.. "
 "Like I said, coincidence."
 "No.. It just *is*, it's why I.. . like your
company." Fraser said hesitating a moment midway.
 "And you liked her company?"
 "Very much."
 "So what was she like?"
 "She was.. like you is so many ways. "
 "Uh-hu."
 "We were unofficial partners - like you and I. We
worked together to solve crimes..  After a time, whenever I
went on patrol, she joined me and it would take us two weeks
to make a complete circuit..  Four if something came up,
like illegal hunting, a crime.. or a wanted felon crossing
our path. And we got each other into trouble all the time."
 Ray laughed.
 "And she even shot me once..  By accident."
 "When she was aiming at someone else and you got in
the way."
 "I was trying to avoid being knifed by an enraged
poacher who had no respect for the law, when she cried don't
worry Benton, I'll save you..  Ripped my rifle out of its
scabbard and shot me instead of him."
 Ray chuckled.
 "Clumsy."
 "Couldn't hit the side of the barn with a rifle if she
was standing inside it."
 Ray laughed.
 "But she had a dead eye when it came to throwing
knives, bola's and using spears and lances. We used to
practice our lance work against her, which is how I became
her unofficial partner, or was that the other way around, I
could never work it out. It generally depended on where we
were and who was referring to us. But as I saying we used to
practice against her."
 "We being?"
 "The other mounties at the post."
 "Ah."
 "And no one could ever take her off her horse."
 "Until you came along."
 "There are times when in the course of his duties to
achieve his goals a Mountie must improvise. I improvised,
and made her laugh so much she not only dropped her lance,
but fell off her horse."
 Ray burst out laughing
 "Then she spent the next three years trying to return
the favour."
 "Did she?"
 "Make me fall off my horse laughing? No. In stunned
amazement, yes. Once."
 "How?"
 "Do you remember that woman you arrested in front of
the Embassy for Indecent Exposure."
 "She flashed you!" Ray said laughing and slapped the
table.
 "In a manner of speaking. I stopped at the river to
give my horse a drink and was looking over the water when
out she rose from it, with nothing more than a big fish
flapping around madly in her arms between her and indecent
exposure."
 Ray slapped at the table again and again as he cackled
with laughter.
 "And then it got away.. and I hit the dirt."
 Ray thumped the table.
 "Stop, before I wet myself."
 "And then she was standing over me and asking are you
all right, Benton..  Here let me give you a hand up..  Did I
mention she was my age and a had a body like.. Mae West."
 His hands flew up to cover his eyes and then he peeked
through.
 Ray fell off the seat laughing. Fraser reached down and
detached Deif's leash from the table leg, then walked around
the table to look down at Ray laughing. He waited till Ray
stopped laughing and just gasped and held his ribs.
 "Oh, there was one other thing.. "
 He squatted down to Ray's level."
 "April Fool.'
 Ray gaped, the laughed again.
 "Jokes on you Benni. I changed the date's on
everything in your place, got everyone at the consulate to
work with me on this and made sure you got a misdated paper.
I even crept into your apartment while you were dead to the
world and reset your clock and watch."
 Fraser stared at him then perched an elbow on his knee
and rested his chin on his palm while Ray rolled around
laughing and cackling at his great joke.
 "Did I ever mention that I'm Bi-sexual."
 Ray stopped rolling around and sat bolt upright.
 "And you look adorable when you roll around laughing,
and when you give me that green looked of startlement."
Fraser said with a grin.
 Ray threw a handful of dirt and grass at him, hitting
him fair and square in the face. While Fraser was the one
left looking startled, Ray bounded up and bolted way
laughing. Fraser sluiced it away, rose and bolted after him,
with Deif in hot pursuit.

    ======*======

 "I can't believe you did that," the dripping wet Ray
grouched as he fished his keys out of his pocket.
 "I can't believe you *really* set me up with the
Consulate's help."
 "The hard part was getting you to run yourself ragged,
first, so you'd think you'd slept the clock around, that
part appealed to the Dragon Lady."
 They stopped at the location where Ray had left his
car, there was no car, just a piece of litter blowing around
in the wind. Deifenbaker looked at Benton.
 "All right, Benni, where did I park the car?"
 Fraser looked around, it was the right place all right.
 "This *is* where you parked your car, Ray."
 The torrent of Italian that poured from Ray's lips was
both obscene and not for delicate ears as Ray stomped around
expressing his opinion of all tow away zones, till Fraser
pointed out it wasn't a tow away zone. Ray vented his
extremely obscene opinion of all car thieves instead, then
pulled out his cel phone which hadn't appreciated getting
wet. When he realised his cel phone was dead he glared at
Fraser who decided it really was time he got back to the
consulate, bid Ray a hasty farewell and departed.
 
    ======*======

 Fraser was sleeping deeply and peacefully when two
things woke him, Deifenbaker jumping onto him and a loud
banging on his door. With a little groan he pushed Deif away
and rolled out of bed, taking the blanket and wrapping it
around himself toga style as he crossed the apartment.
 He opened the door to find Turnbull on his doorstep.
 "Turnbull what are.. "
 "Mr's Vecchio contacted the consulate and asked us to
tell you that Ray was in the Hospital," Turnbull reported.
 The last traces of sleep fled.
 "She can't get there, there's a storm passing over
their part of town and the roads are closed. Your friend was
apparently one of the first victims of the storm's affect on
drivers."
 "He had a car accident."
 "I spoke to the station, they told me his car was a
total write off, and that it took the emergency services
people an hour to cut him out of the wreck."
 Fraser spun and moved through the apartment with
Turnbull on his heels following him into the bedroom where
he dressed hastily.
 "How many people were involved."
 "Three, Two cars, one 16 wheeler rig..  Apparently the
car behind your friends couldn't stop at lights, and rammed
his car directly into the path of the truck."
 Turnbull pulled a note pad from his pants pocket and
flipped through it.
 "Ah, here it is. They said the Truck driver hit.. "
 "Turnbull, either tell me what his injuries are, or
shut up."
 Turnbull flipped to the next page.
 "No one at the station knows what his injuries are..
They've been two busy trying to deal with all the other
storm related emergencies. His family were notified and if
Mrs Vecchio was aware of the seriousness of his injuries she
didn't relay them to us. She just asked us to ask you to go
to the hospital in her place."
 Fraser jammed his boots on and grabbed a coat pulling
it on as he headed for the door with Turnbull on his heels,
grabbing Fraser's formal red coat off its hook as he went.
 "You'll need this if you run into any of the
blockades."
 Fraser spun around and took the coat Turnbull threw at
him. The great coat was tossed at Turnball as they hurried
into the corridor and the red serge took it's place.
 "Do you have a car?"
 "The inspector sent me out in a taxi..  I've already
asked for another to be sent here, if it hasn't arrived yet,
you can take that one."
 He pulled a wad of notes from his pocket extracted some
and stuffed them into his pocket then the remainder went
into the pocket of the great coat before Fraser retrieved
it. Then as he began to race down the stairs, off came
Turnbull's hat thrown through the air, to land on Fraser's
head. He jammed it down and looked up.
 "The money for the Cab is in your left pocket."
  Fraser nodded and running down the stairs pulling the
coat on as he went.

    ======*======

 Fraser was highly relieved to find on his arrival at
the hospital that Ray's injuries were minor. He was led into
a room where the deathly pale Italian lay with an I.V
attached to his arm and tube's taped to the side of his
face, feeding something into his mouth. His nose was
bandaged and his face was one huge mass of bruises and a
plaster cast covered his entire rib cage.
 "Ray.. "
 "Wazn' s'pecting.. you.. "
 "The storm has forced your family to remain indoors it
had already passed through my area and they were able to
convince the consulate to send someone out to send me in
their place."
 Ray's eyes closed.
 "Thought.. .I waz a dead man."
 "You were extremely lucky..  Others haven't been as
fortunate this night."
 "They're gonna be pizzed.. "
 "Who?"
 "The car boys..  Told me..  It was a brand new car..
Special car..  Rebuilt from the ground up..  They were
raving about all the special feature's..  Tol me..  if I got
so much as a scratch on it they'd have my hide. First time
out..  of the yard and I totaled it."
 "It wasn't your fault, Ray..  Another driver was
totally at fault."
 Ray looked at him.
 "From what I heard, someone ran into your car from
behind and rammed your car into the path of a truck."
 "Is that what it was..  Couldn't see a damn thing..
Couldn't move..  When that car hit, the airbag exploded in
my face..  And the next thing I know..  something..  *big*
hit the car..  there were all these explosions..  and the
car went..  flying..  rolled..  over..  and over..  Larz
thing I remember is..  someone screaming get away from the
car..  it's gonna blow..  "
 "Obviously it didn't. Because I was told it took over
an hour to cut you from the wreck.. "
 "Remember..  bits and pieces.. .. . Someone..  kept..
asking me questions." He gave a doped little giggle.
 "All I could zay waz they're going to kill me..  I'm a
dead man..  they're going to kill me."
 Fraser gave a weak smile.
 "And to think you were cursing the thieves who stole
your car."
 "Good point..  If I'd been in the Riv..  I wouldna
survived that accident."
 "Agreed..  I'd be interested in know what its special
features were..  To enable you to come through an accident
like that with nothing but bruises and shock."
 "And cracked ribs."
 "Oh..  they didn't mention those."
 "And a busted beak and what might be a hairline
fracture of the cheek."
 "They didn't tell me that either."
 "Still think I look adorable."
 Fraser reached out and stroked Ray's hair or what was
left of it.
 "I think you look like you just went ten rounds with
Mike Tyson."
 Ray gave a weak smile and a groan.
 "And that's just how I feel."
 "Hurts..  so..  much.. "
 "Didn't they give you anything for the pain?"
 "Yezzz.. . but..  everything..  hurts..  still..
anyway. Just..  dulled the pain..  couldn' give me anything
strong..  Shock. Talk..  to me..  Distract me..  tell me..
about her..  Mae West..  Wazn' jokin' waz you?"
 After a pause Fraser shook his head.
 "No. She was real. The Mae west line was a lie, the
rest was true."

    *----*----*----*

 Ray watched Fraser return with a bowl of slushy ice and
a spoon and smiled weakly trying to sit up, everything
trembled and he feel back grabbing at his plastered ribs.
 "Don't do that, and it won't hurt as much," Fraser
said, and set the bowl aside then adjusted Ray's bed and
pillow's before helping him to sit up. He felt Ray trembling
as he arms wrapped around him, then Ray's shaking hand
landed on his arm and he looked into Ray's face to see eye's
filled with pain again.
 "Hurts.. "
 "Where?"
 "Everywhere.. most.. of all.. where you're touching
me."
 Fraser stopped and then a took a peek at Ray's back.
That was covered in bruises too making Fraser wince.
 "I'm sorry."
 "S'o.k forgive you for some of that, mouth feels like
the Sahara."
 Fraser began feeding Ray spoon fulls of slushy ice.
 "I have bad news.. Swallow."
 Ray swallowed.
 "I saw your mother in the corridor."
 "She made it."
 "The Emergency Service's crew bought her here, with
Francessca..  Francessca in Emergency now, being treated for
a fall down the stairs."
 "Oh G-d.. is she.. "
 "I can't tell you more yet..  But your mother knows
your condition and..  told me to tell you about Francessca.
And the house."
 "What happened to the house?"
 "I'm not sure about the order but.. It was hit by
lightning, no longer has a roof or window's in the upper
storeys. Your mother described it very graphically.
Francessca was running down the stairs when it happened and
the concussion shook the house to its very foundations and
Francessca slipped on the wet stairs while she was trying to
get one of the children out. The baby."
 "Is.. "
 "The baby is fine.. apparently Francessca managed to
throw her to your mother as she was falling, which is why
she was unable to recover her balance."
 Ray cursed away in Italian.
 "The rest of your family was transferred to a shelter,
you house was not the only one hit in your block. Six lost
roofs, one was struck and burned down."
 A Doctor rushed into the room.
 "Mr Vecchio, we're transferring all critical patients
to another hospital, and non critical to their homes if
they're not in the declared zone, you fall into the Non
Critical category. There are two more Vecchio's here, who's
home was destroyed are you related.. "
 "My mother and sister."
 "Your sister is to be transferred to another hospital,
for treatment. We can transport you to the same hospital as
your sister.. "
 "What's going on.. Why are you.. "
 "We *must* evacuate now..  The storm is heading right
for us."
 "That must be some storm."
 "They've never seen anything like it."
 Fraser moved to the window looking out at the
approaching storm his eyes wide as he recognised that unique
patten of the seething clouds.
 "I have. There is nothing natural about it."
 Ray and the Doctor both looked at him.
 "Ten years ago.. .Today, if Today is April 1st?"
 They both nodded as he looked around.
 "And there was nothing natural about it either."
 Then he spun
 "I need a phone..  I need to chart its course if it
started where I think it began.. "
 The doctor tossed Fraser a cell phone and then turned
back to Ray and started preparing him to be moved.
 Fraser rang the consulate.
 "Turnbull you got back safely, good, I need you to do
something find out where that storm started and chart its
course. Tell me if it started over an open air dam which
supplies water to the greater metropolitan area. And find
out if there was any form of aircraft seen over that damn
before the storm began to gather. You can call me back
on.."
 The doctor supplied the number and Fraser relayed it.
 "What is going on, Fraser?"
 "There was a forest fire which devastated a large area
in the Yukon Territory..  A scientist who lost his wife in
the fire began experimenting with ways to build a storm and
use it to put out a forest fire."
 "And he did it.. "
 "I don't understand how, I'm not a scientist, but I
know he built a storm just like this one, to combat a fire
that threatened the district, the only problem is once he
built it, it kept growing..  The only control he had over it
was the direction it travelled."
 "How?"
 "Some form of airborne apparatus.. .which he used to
draw the storm onto its destination..  It takes time to
build up..  But once it does.. "
 "It destroys everything in its path."
 "Right..  And the pilot can't do anything but control
which direction it goes.. Once it builds up, it can't be
stopped unless the Storm maker is taken out."
 The phone rang. Fraser answered, listened and nodded.
 "Turnbull, contact the RCMP main .. ."
 "Is he ?" The doctor made loopy gestures.
 "If he said it happened, it happened."
 "Yes, you understand..  Yes, that aircraft started
it..  Yes..  It's controlling its direction..  You can find
out all about it by getting the records on the Storm Maker
from RCMP central records, the last time it was unleashed
was ten years ago today, its creator was arrested for the
destruction it caused..  Find out where he is.. this time
I'll hold, make it fast.. "
 "Benni?"
 "It started over the dam, several people sighted a
light aircraft which looked like something out of a science
fiction movie making passes over the Dam and reported it and
what they saw is exactly what happened the last time the
Storm Maker was used.. "
 Fraser looked out the window again.
 "This storm is his work..  There is absolutely no
doubt about it..  Its path of destruction has been anything
but natural..  Your neighbourhood, Elaine's, Huey's..
Everywhere people who are among my circle of associates live
- it's struck."
 "What about your neighbourhood."
 "It passed over it before it had built up enough force
to destroy buildings in its path. It has that power now, Ray
and it's growing.. It could destroy a house..  When it
reaches here..  It won't have enough power to destroy the
building, but it can inflict an incredible amount of
damage..  No window will survive, the lighting it's
generating will blow out the generators.. ."
 The Doctor started taking him very seriously.
 "That's what they told us.. That's why we're
evacuating."
 "He can't change its course in a hurry, but it is
possible..  That I can make him change its direction.. . If
he's piloting the Storm Maker.. "
 The phone trilled he answered it.
 "That was quick, what did you..  He's out.. I expected
as much. Evacuate the consulate..  And get everyone in the
immediate area to evacuate also.. The next place that storm
will hit will either be, the consulate or the 27th."
 Ray bolted up and the Doctor grabbed him as he made a
strangled scream of pain.
 "Yes tell them to evacuate also..  And tell them
*everything* about the Storm Maker..  Make them listen, if
they don't evacuate, they will be killed."
 The Doctor tried to get Ray to lie back down but Ray
wasn't having a bit of it.
 "Benni.. . *Why* is he doing it?"
 Fraser flipped the phone closed and handed it back to
the Doctor as a prelude to carefully scooping Ray up into
his arms.
 "He thinks I destroyed the first storm maker, his son
was piloting it. He swore that he would destroy everything
that was precious to me. And now he's keeping that vow, he
was released from prison for good behaviour six months ago
and today is the anniversary of his sons death."
 "How do we stop that thing before it destroys the
city? "
 Fraser headed for the door.
 "He knew I was here, that you and your family were
here. That's why it's heading in this direction..  But how
he learned that.."
 "How did you get here?"
 "I started out in a cab, but an Emergency Services
blockade stopped us, and I ran the rest of the way.. "
 "The Emergency Services teams.. He must be listening
in on their band..  They must have called it in when you
ignored the blockade and started out on foot."
 "Doctor I advise you to inform the authorities a crazy
Mountie by the name of Fraser just abducted one of your
patients - Ray Vecchio..  And the storm will veer away from
its current path when they start tracking me. And you
will.."
 "Make damn sure they track you..  Understood."
 
    *----*----*----*

 As Fraser carried him down the corridor full of
orderlies trying to evacuate people, Ray told him to stop as
they passed a patient limping through the corridor on
walking crutches.
 "Excuse me, Ma'am I'm Detective Ray Vecchio and this
is Constable Benton Fraser.. "
 The woman was ignoring him to drool over Fraser.
 "We need to borrow your crutches, I need them to save
the city."
 The patient looked at Ray as if he'd gone mad.
 "All right Benni..  I tried it your way, got any
bright ideas. I need those crutches if I'm going to get
around."
 Fraser smiled at the woman.
 "Would you care to trade them in for a dinner date
with the city's most eligible Mountie?"
 Ray got his crutches.
 "Thank you Ma'am, most appreciated. Contact the
consulate and leave your details.. "
 "Move it Benni, we've got a city to save."

 They were stopped just once at the doors by a very big
nurse.
 "Fraser and Vecchio?"
 "Yes."
 "Hold still."
 She took hold of Ray's chin and told him to look into
the pen light torch she produced after checking his eyes and
pulse she produced a loaded syringe and yanked up Ray's
patients gown to uncover his thigh. Ray yelped as he got his
shot then the nurse pulled out a ampoule of medication and a
syringe in a sterile packet and shoved them in Fraser's
pocket.
 "This is for when that shot wears off. You'll know it
when that happens and now the shocks wearing off he's gonna
feel every bruise and cracked rib and be no use to you
without it."
 Fraser nodded.
 "It's the strongest stuff we have, 10cc's a shot, any
more than that in one hit and that birds gonna be flying
high, got it?"
 Fraser nodded and the Nurse tugged Ray's robe down,
stepped out of the way and dangled a set of key's in the air
along with a pistol.
 "Transports right outside. Vecchio women are being
transferred out - *now* by the ESC."
 "Two decoy's..  Us and them.. "
 Ray snatched the items from her hands as Fraser carried
him past.
 "How efficient."
 Ray held the key's in his teeth, and checked the
pistol's load.
 Ray muttered through the key's.
 "What?"
 Ray jammed the pistols clip back, and pulled the key's
out of his mouth.
 "Very, this baby's got a full clip. We can attract a
lot of attention with it."
 They approached the Ambulance and Ray reached out to
yank open the door. The driver looked at them and Ray aimed
the pistol at him.
 "You're being hijacked by a Crazy Mountie."
 "Wrong vehicle..  They one you want to hijack is over
there."
 He pointed and the pair looked around and Ray's eyes
widened as he saw the sleek Red Ferrai the driver was
pointing at, then he grinned.
 "Raymondo!"
 He peered around and saw his mother jumping out of the
back of the Ambulance. She rushed to their sides and clucked
a little.
 "How's Frannie, Ma?"
 "Her leg's broken, she has concussion the rest is
superficial."
 "Ray, we have to leave now."
 "Right, take care of Frannie Ma..  And whatever you
do, stay off the phone and don't try to track down the rest
of us, there's a whacko out there who'll go right for them
if you do. Do you understand?"
 She nodded, and pulled off her necklace and reached up
to drape it around Ray's neck before she turned and rushed
back around the ambulance to join her daughter. The
Ambulance driver attracted their attention.
 "The Doc say's, Don't worry, his baby has
Comprehensive cover..  Do whatever it takes..  It's
covered."
 "Best news I've had all day, all right, mush Benni,
that Ferrari is ours."
 
    *----*----*----*

 The Emergency service workers watched the sleek Ferrai
roar through the sheeting rain approaching their road
barrier and tried to flag it down, the window opened enough
for them to see a red coated figure at the wheel, then gun
shots rang out. They hit the dirt, and watched as it ran
right through the blockade. Out came handsets to report it.

    *----*----*----*

 Ray looked around to see them climbing to their feet
handsets to mouths, then checked the clip on the gun he'd
just fired another burst from.
 "I hope we don't have to attract much more attention,
Benni, I'm running out of bullets here."
 "Then let's hope the Doctor was as equally efficient
at predicting our need for another weapon."
 "Bullets Benni, I need bullets."
 "The pistol was probably taken from a patient. Look in
the glove box, there may be another there."
 Ray opened the box and looked in and rammed the clip
back in and then reached into the box and pulled out a piece
of paper with his name on it, unfolding it.
 "What does it say?"
 "Look in the boot."
 Fraser pulled the car over and jumped out, Ray watched
him move around the car, then laughed as Fraser closed the
boot returning with a pump action shot gun and passed it to
him before climbing back in.
 "Very efficient."
 "This will attract all the attention we need to get
that sucker to follow us."
 Fraser clipped his belt on and then checked the road
behind them before pulling out.
 "I wonder where he got this.. "
 "It took us time to reach the exit due to the crowding
in the corridor's, perhaps he used that time to get us what
ever he thought we'd need to achieve our goal."
 "As if this is going to help us take that sucker out.
What we really need is.. ."
 "By now Turnball has informed your people about the
Storm Maker and they've launched their own response team to
take him out. All we have to do is lure him out of the city
into the open where they can take him down."
 "You don't have a plan here, do you Benni - the only
thing on your mind was getting that Kook away from the
hospital. Just like the Doc when he got them to launch that
chopper and say Franni & Ma were on it."
 "Oh, no.. "
 "So you do have a plan?"
 "To lure him out into the open where your people can
move against him without destroying half the city trying to
do it."
 "And what happens if they can't take him out?"
 "Then we have a problem, the longer he stays up, the
more destructive the storm will become. Which is why we had
to destroy the first Storm Maker..  It was causing untold
devastation in it's wake.. "
 "How'd you take it out?"
 "They used a relay of men and horses, to get a
portable Anti-Aircraft missile launcher into the area it was
heading for.. . It was actually my partner who took it
down."
 "You mean Mae West?"
 "Yes."
 "You gave Mz couldn't hit the side of a barn if she
was standing inside it your Missile launcher to take it
down."
 "There is a big difference between a rifle and a
missile launcher Ray. Besides..  I didn't have much choice,
when we reached the eye of the storm my horse bolted.. And
threw me..  She was the only one who could fire it in time
before it passed over."
 "How many times did she have to fire that baby to take
him down?"
 "At least three times.. She lied and told everyone I
did it. To make up for shooting me. She figured they'd pin a
medal on whoever did it, which they did."
 "And you let her lie?"
 "First she can't ride..  At least not very well, she
can stay on a horse, but not at speed..  She alway's used a
bike to keep up with me, and I left her behind, when the
horse went over ground the bike couldn't..  She wasn't there
when the horse threw me, and when I was thrown I lost
consciousness..  It was all over when I came round, and I
was in a different place, she made it look like I'd done it
in a daze and came back leading my horse and acted as if she
had only just tracked me down. And since she's such a bad
shot, I just automatically assumed I'd done it in a dazed
state."
 "How did you find out she did it?"
 "She dislocated her shoulder firing it. She told me
she did it coming off her bike over a rough patch of ground.
I believed her until I saw her in her halter top the sling
didn't cover her shoulder and there were no grazes on her
shoulder just a very big bruise..  If she'd dislocated it
the way she told me she had.."
 "There would have been grazes."
 "Exactly..  That was when I worked it out."
 "And you didn't tell anyone?"
 "She was very.. . persuasive.. "
 "I bet.. "
 "That's not how she persuaded me, Ray."
 "Oh..  How'd she do it then."
 "She took Deif hostage.. until I agreed to keep the
truth to myself and accept the medal."
 "Whatever works.. "
 "It worked very well. He followed her around instead
of me after that.. "
 "Oh, so how'd you win him back?"
 "He came back to me when she was killed."
 "Oh."
 "He helped me track her killer."
 "Track, not capture.. "
 "Deif can't track a man over water.. "
 "Did you catch him eventually?"
 Fraser shook his head.
 "Once Deif lost his scent we lost him."
 "You *know* it was a guy - not a woman."
 "There was a serial killer in the area.. One who'd
already killed six women. 2 in our area. That's why I didn't
try very hard to win back Deifenbaker's affections..  I
thought that he would protect her."
 "Didn't do a very good job of it, did he."
 "On the contrary, he did try and was almost killed
trying to protect her. And he was a great help tracking her
killer once he recovered. He lead me to another body, a
man's this time, mutilated so that we couldn't identify him.
The killer stole his identity."
 "You're sure of that?"
 Fraser nodded.
 "There were no other attacks in the area.  Deif lead
me to a river,  where a boat had been moored.  It took over
5 months to find someone who'd seen the boat, to get a
description a name and a description of the man who'd moored
it there. 18 months later, we identified the body. His wife
identified the remains by identifying scars we found and
very distinctive marks. He was an American, The boat was
found somewhere in America 6 months later, and the person
using his identity was almost caught then."
 "But he got away."
 "A week later another body turned up, mutilated in the
same way. The killer stole someone else's identity and his
bike. A Harley Davidson I believe. They identified the tyre
marks they found at the scene as belonging to a Harley, the
man was definitely a biker, he had numerous tattoos, and
unfortunately very few bikers will assist the police with
their enquires."
 "Which is why he's never been caught, because you
don't know what identity he's using."
 "Exactly. Though they do regularly take photo's of his
tattoos to parlours and biker events in an attempt to find
someone who can tell them who.."
 "Look out!!!"
 Fraser was forced to hit the brakes and swerve to avoid
a tree brought down by the storm as it had approached the
city they were leaving behind. He almost lost control of the
car and it took everything Ray had not to scream as he was
thrown forward, the belt bitting into his body as it kept
him from being thrown of his seat.
 Fraser fought to bring the car's motion back under
control and Ray concentrated on watching his white knuckled
hands on the wheel.
 "Don't..  ..  Fight it.. .Go with it Benni..  and ease
up on the brakes..  the..  side.. get us.. to the side."
 Fraser's grip on the wheel relaxed as he followed that
advice and controlled the urge to jam down the brakes. He
successfully managed to bring them out of the skid and onto
the grassy strip at the side of the road and brought the car
to a shuddering hold then applied the hand brake and sagged
back in the seat just staring at the road.
 "That was too close for comfort."
 He noticed how dark the sky was and reached for the
window controls lowering it. He poked his head out the
window to scan the skies before he looked back at Ray
opening his mouth to speak but his announcement went
unspoken when he saw the Italian slumped in the seat, arms
wrapped around his rib's head thrown back, blood running
down his chin.
 "Ray!"
 "I.. .I.. .think.. .That.. I just broke a rib when
that..  threw me..  into the belt," Ray said with an
effort.
 Fraser threw open the door, jumping out of the car and
went over the hood to get to Ray's side, threw the door open
and examined Ray.
 "No..  But it probably aggravated the injuries."
 "I think..  I'm gonna throw.. up.. or.. faint.. "
 Fraser reached around to release Ray's belt and gently
drew him out of the vehicle and helped him to the ground
where Ray did start throwing up. But there was nothing in
his stomach to throw up and all he did was dry retch and
make the most agonised groans Fraser had heard since he'd
carried his dying partner's through the snow, as he clung to
Fraser's arm with a grip so tight the Mountie almost cried
out in pain.
 Then Ray released his arm and started scrabbling at
Fraser's pocket and Fraser remembered the medication and
he pulled out the syringe and ripped the package away with
his teeth as he fumbled in his pocket for the ampoule and
then filled it. Ray slumped forward onto one arm, the other
wrapped around his plastered rib cage, while Fraser was busy
with the syringe. A press of the plunger sent a jet of the
medication into the air clearing away the air bubbles then
Fraser reached out for Ray and sank the needle into
Italian's neck and Ray let out a positive howl of pain,
rearing up.
 Fraser snatched his hand back fast to avoid needle
break then wrapped his arms around Ray holding him as the
Italian almost fell back.
 "I'm sorry, Ray..  It's the fastest way."
 They cradling the Italian close, he reached for the
syringe again and injected the shot direct into his jugular
before pulling the needle out and fumbling behind Ray's back
to recap it as the Italian shuddered and dry retched over
his shoulder, whimpering between retches now. With an effort
Fraser got it back into the pocket and reached up to stroke
Ray's head till the medication started taking effect.
 He watched the dark skies with dread as he did so and
pondered wether giving Ray the prescribed dose instead of
the whole ampoule full was doing Ray any favours. Then Ray
finally stopped retching and whimpering and just trembled in
his arms as reaction set in.
 "It's.. .here.. .isn't..  it ..  Benni?" He panted in
Fraser's ear.
 Fraser nodded and Ray pushed at his chest weakly.
 "Not going to die on my knees.. like this..  Get me
back in the car.. "
 "We can't.. ."
 "Do it! Driver's seat, Now..  And I'll show you how a
Ferrari ought to be driven."
 "But.. "
 "Now!"
 Fraser jumped a little and then complied picking up and
carrying him around the car to put him in the drivers seat
and strap him in. Ray's hand went out to fall on the wheel
and Fraser started the engine before he gently as possible
closed the door and threw himself over the hood to get to
the passenger side and climbed in. Looking around he saw
that Ray was deep breathing, eyes closed, his chin resting
on his chest.
 "Are you sure you can drive, Ray?"
 "That stuff works like a charm..  The pain's..
manageable..  now.."
 Then he got his feet on the pedals found the clutch and
put the car into first before easing the car off the verge
and back onto the road.
 "There's a cel phone in the box."
 Fraser reached into the glove box and pulled out a cell
phone and checked the power levels.
 "Punch in Welsh's number then gimme and take over the
gear stick - and you better be ready to react fast when I
tell you to change gears."
 Fraser nodded and punched in the number Ray fed him
then handed over the phone before he reached for the gear
stick.
 "Ok..  Keep your eyes peeled for a turn off, we've got
to get past that tree.. That means exits."
 Fraser's window went down and he poked his head out
shielding his eyes and searched for an exit.
 "Welsh.. Vecchio."
 Ray, sign, exit, 2k."
 "Got it - No I meant Benni. Keep going, Sir"
 Fraser ducked back in and wound up the window and
sluiced water of his faced and wiped his hand dry on his
pants before reaching for the gear stick. Ray glanced down
and then put the pedal to the metal as Fraser changed gears
anticipating his next move. Ray nodded and made uh-hu's then
dropped the phone into his lap getting both hands to the
wheel to make the turn off.
 "O.K Benni, I've got bad news.  That great plan of
yours is kaput. They got the hint, and they've got trouble's
they can't get any choppers off the ground to act. That kook
took the storm out over all the chopper bases and let the
storm take care of them before he started moving in on us."
 For the first time in memory Ray heard Fraser curse and
reached for the phone again as he got the car back onto a
straight stretch of the deserted Express way.
 "Sorry about that..  Yeah, that was Benni. He's not
very pleased."
 He listened to Welsh.
 "Well, he didn't have another plan, but I've got one..
Did you evacuate the ..  You did.. Damn.. Stand by."
 He dropped the phone into his lap again and eased the
pedal back.
 "Reverse this baby, we're going back."
 "But..."
 "They can't take him out Benni.. And he *is* tracking
us now. It's do or die. If we don't take him out, he'll take
us out. And trust that, if can make the precinct, we can
take him out Benni..  Reverse now!"
 Fraser crunched the car into reverse and Ray swung the
wheel around till they were facing the other direction.
 "Third."
 Fraser changed gears again and Ray floored it.
 "How do you intend to take him out, all we've got is
a pump action rifle and a pistol. That's not going to take
him out."
 "Back at the 27th there's something in the weapons
locker we can use. We confiscated it from some gang who'd
seen too many episodes of Miami Vice and had big idea's and
big guns.. "
 "How big?"
 "Try a Stinger, that's an over the shoulder missile
launcher. That baby could take out a chopper or a fighter
jet.  Unless that sucker's got a titanium hull on that plane
of his, it'll take him out."
 "Agreed, what is your plan? Apart from acquiring the
stinger?"
 "How high up do you think he is?"
 "I couldn't say.. It was Mae who shot him down..  Not
me..  All I can tell you is that he'd be in the Eye of the
Storm."
 "Lieutenant.. . You heard, good, get me what I need
from the Met boys, I need height, I need, coverage, I need
speed, got that, good, now, this sucker is gonna be coming
after Benni and Me.  We can use that, to sucker bait him,
that means you get that locker open, and then get someone
out up as high as they can get with th.. "
 Welsh interrupted..
 "What is it?"
 "Well let me put it like this Benni, it's a good thing
we lured that maniac away from the hospital, a good three
quarters of the crew are there."
 "Oh dear."
 "And the rest had their vehicles wiped out trying to
reach a chopper with one of those Stingers."
 "One of.. How many were there?"
 "Six. And enough ammo to blow away an entire city
block."
 Welsh chipped in again.
 "What was that?"
 He listened nodding. Then dropped the phone to make a
hard turn off the express way before picking it back up.
 "All right, I made the turn off, what now?"
 He listened nodding and agreeing with his commander
then checked his fuel gauge.
 "Uh-uh..  We're running pretty low on gas here. We
need ..  What..  "
 He listened to Welsh outline a plan on the fly and
nodded.
 "Got it."
 Then switched the phone off and threw it at Fraser who
snatched it out of the air.
 "You carry it."
 Fraser tucked it into a pocket.
 "What's the plan now?"
 "Ok.. Here's the deal they can't contact the teams
because this guy is definitely listening in over all the
bands. So here's what he's gonna do to help us out. he's
gonna get a route between us and the station and from there
to the place the Met boy's give us as the perfect place to
take that Psycho out with the stinger, but that'll take
time, so what we've got to do is keep that guy on our tail
until they get the evac completed."
 "The longer it takes.. ."
 "It's bloody obvious, Fraser and he knows that it's
only going to get worse. They'll move as fast as they can.
We ditch the Ferrari and high jack an Emergency Services
vehicle. He can direct us in the right direction to get
another when the fuel runs out to give them time to
evacuate. And get someone to fuel this beast up and drop it
off somewhere we can pick it up for the return trip. Because
this beauty's built for speed and we're gonna need it."
 Fraser nodded.
 "Understood."
 "Huey's still mobile. He's heading out our way now,
He'll take care of the car. And drop off the key's for the
locker."
 Ray swung the car around the corner and Fraser's hand
flew to the dash as the manoeuvre threw him against the
straps then back against the seat.
 "I see lights. The blockade must be up ahead."
 Ray took a deep shuddering breath and tried to ignore
the pain. Fraser glanced at him.
 "I'm ok. I can do this."
 "Do you think you can walk? It will look very strange
if..."
 "I'm not your hostage Benni, the guy knows we're
partners. It's about time we started acting like it. You
take the rifle, and get those crutches ready for me. "
 Fraser found the pistol and then tossed it onto the
dash before Ray.
 "Good."
 Fraser collected the rifles and crutches and held the
crutches on his lap and balanced the rifle on his shoulder.
The lights turned out to be exactly what Fraser thought they
were, the blockade. Down went the window and out went the
rifle to blow a stop sign apart as the service worker held
it out. As one the team scattered in all directions, well
aware there was a maniac Mountie in a shiny red Ferrari
taking pot shots at other teams.
 Ray brought the car to a halt close to the Service
teams four wheel drive and Fraser threw his door open and
climbed out to stand in the rain, looking menacing and
firing off a round every time a service worker poked a head
up or around shelter. Ray dragged himself up to his feet and
got the crutches on, then grabbed the pistol and thumped on
the roof.
 "Let's move, Benni."
 He headed for the vehicle while Fraser fired off a few
rounds to deter any heroes on the crew before he threw
himself over the Ferrai's hood and moved off after Ray,
moving at his back, keeping him covered till he reached the
vehicle and clambered in. He checked the ignition, then
reached up and pulled down a flap and the key's dropped down
into his hand.
 "Great the key's are right here. All right Benni,
climb in and pray none of them decides to be a hero and
tries to stop us."
 Fraser ran around the vehicle and convinced the heroic
type with an Akubra hat on her head that it wasn't a good
day for it to head back to shelter with a round or two
before he clambered in and slammed the door. Ray put the
pedal to the metal the moment Fraser's bum hit the seat and
Fraser slammed back into the seat, while Ray sped out of
there.
 "Belt up Benni."
 Fraser caught his breath and belted up.
 "And find me one of those CB radio sets."
 Fraser popped the glove box open and one tumbled right
into his lap. Ray snatched it out of Fraser's hand and
activated it.
 "Hey Storm Boy, You messed with the wrong Family." He
growled into it.
 "Ray!"
 "Stuff it, Benni, You hear me Psycho, your number is
up. You messed with my Family, you took out my house, you
messed with my crew and you messed up my city, and I'm gonna
take you and your Storm Maker down for it. You hear me,
Mister, you and Michael Jackson's Greatest hits have got
something in common, *You're Both History.*"
 Then he tossed the CB at Fraser.
 "That ought to do it."
 "There was no need to do that to make him move after
us."
 "Maybe not, But it sure as hell felt good."
 The phone trilled and Fraser snatched it out and when
he answered it he got a furious Welsh expressing his opinion
of Ray's stunt.
 "It's for you Ray." He said holding the phone to
Ray's ear and watching him wince.
 "Yes, sir, No sir..  Fraser, can that guy jack up the
power?"
 "I don't know Ray, but it's very possible we'll find
out after that tirade."
 "Yes sir.. Got it..  No more tirades."
 Then he punched off.
 "Well, lets hope that he wasn't the only one that
little broadcast pissed off," Ray muttered as he threw the
4-Wheel drive into a sharp u-turn and headed back the way
they'd come.
 A lightning bolt struck a building behind them and Ray
floored it, the vehicle narrowly escaped the shower of
debris that fell in their wake. Down went Fraser's window
and he poked his head out looking up.
 "I can *see* him! He's right over us now!"
 "I thought that thing couldn't move fast?"
 "You took us straight into the eye of the storm."
 Another lightning bolt struck a nearby building and
Fraser reared back as Ray swerved to avoid a shower of
debris from it.
 "You call *this* the eye of the storm."
 "It's not a natural storm, this is just what it was
like in the Eye of the Storm ten years ago. The Lighting is
always at it's worst in the eye."
 "Now I understand why your horse bolted."
 "Lightning strike, a few meter's ahead.. "
 "Fraser there's lighting striking everywhere."
 "I meant ..  Forget it, just floor it. This vehicle is
one big lighting rod. We've got to get out of the eye."
 "What do you think I'm trying to do?! I've already got
the pedal to the metal, this crate doesn't go any faster
than this. Compared to the Ferrari this thing's a snail. Go
point, I can't see a damn thing any more."
 Fraser poked his head out the window and directed Ray
yelling back instructions, until the 4-Wheel drive ran
through a deep puddle and the sheeting slush blinded him. He
reared back sluicing it off his face and blindly searched
through the glove box.
 "Benni?!"
 "Water threw mud into my face."
 Ray's window went down and he poked his head out,
steering on handed as he leaned on the door. Fraser found
what he was looking for and pulled out a packet of pocket
tissues and ripped one out and dabbed at his eyes till he
could see again. He looked around teary eyed to see a
blurred view of Ray and blinked away trying to focus on him.
Ray looked around and his eyes widen when he saw blood
running from Fraser's eyes. But he had to keep his eyes on
the road and forced himself to look away and not hit the
brakes the way he wanted to.
 "Hey Benni, is there any of that dope the nurse gave
you left?"
 "Yes. Why?"
 "Give yourself a shot and don't tell me you don't need
it. If you do, I'm gonna hit the brakes and sedate you with
the bloody gun, got it."
 Fraser didn't argue, his eyes were on fire, and he
fumbled the medication out. When he finally got the needle
ready he ended up stabbing himself in the finger as he tried
to plunge the needle into the bottle. He muttered something
uncomplimentary about mud and used a finger to direct the
needle into the ampoule.
 "We have a problem, Ray."
 "Don't tell me you lost it."
 "No..  I can't see clearly enough to find a vein to
inject it and you have to stop the car long enough for me to
do it."
 "Great," Ray growled, then something ahead caught his
attention.
 "There is a God! Our problem is solved."
 He swung the car around and a few moments later Fraser
found himself in darkness.
 "Wha..
 "Tunnel Benni.. "
 He drew himself back in and then reached out to take
the hypodermic and made Fraser hold out his arm.
 "Clamp your hand around it."
 Fraser obliged and when a vein popped up, Ray stabbed
the needle home and Fraser shouted.
 "No!"
 "What?!"
 "You didn't get rid of the air bubbles first."
 With a growl of frustration Ray pulled it out and
pressed the plunger squirting the precious fluid up till
there were no bubbles in the tube, then he sank it back into
the vein and this time Fraser didn't object as he pressed
down on the plunger.
 When Ray pulled it out Fraser held up the cap. Ray
capped it and returned it to Fraser to pocket then looked
around the cab of the vehicle and grinned.
 "Well, well, what do we have here."
 "I don't know, what do we have?"
 Ray unbuckled and scrambled into the back, muttering
obscenities as he went and Fraser had a blurred view of him
moving around amongst bright coloured blobs, then Ray became
one of them.
 "You changed colour."
 "Suit's Benni, clothes. No more drafty Hospital gown
that doesn't close up at the back."
 "Ah, I see. Well, Actually I don't see very well at
all but.. "
 "I can take care of that too.. . There's a medical kit
or three here..  Let's see what we've got.. "
 Fraser heard him opening boxes and rustling in them.
 "Ditch the syringe, we've got plenty here, and pass me
that bottle.. "
 Fraser complied.
 "Jackpot. One of those guys must have been a trained
paramedic. There's a virtual pharmacies worth of stuff back
here. They've even got the same stuff. Here put this in your
pocket this suit doesn't have any."
 New syringes and two more ampoules were passed to
Fraser.
 "Ray, you can't take more than..."
 "Benni, shut up, and put your head back and open your
eyes, wide."
 Fraser complied with a little sigh and Ray leaned over
him with a syringe full of saline solution and cotton pads
that he used to rinse the Mountie's right eye. Fraser
blinked away and Ray rinsed his eyes out five times till
Ray's hand closed tight on his shoulder.
 "Don't blink now, whatever you do."
 "What is it?"
 He was aware of the blob that was Ray moving away,
heard rustling then Ray was back - with a magnifying glass
to examine the eye closely.
 "Just what I thought, a tiny sliver of glass.. Hold
very very still. I don't want to cut your eye here."
 He angled the syringe just so and gave it a hard
plunge. Saline solution jetted across Fraser's eye and not
blinking took an extreme effort on his part. He was rewarded
for it with a burred close up view of Ray's face and felt
his breath on his face then the dabbing of the cotton.
 "O.K, got it.. you can blink now."
 Fraser did and half his vision cleared.
 "If we survive this you're coming back to the hospital
with me, as a patient and getting your eye's checked out, no
telling what sort of damage that inflicted. All right, open
the other eye nice and wide, Benni and let me see what
you've got in it."
 Fraser obeyed and focussed on Ray's concerned gaze, and
heard his intake of air.
 "Oh, you're definitely going in as a patient, I am not
even gonna try to clean this eye out.. "
 Then he was moving away, to return with various things
collected from all three of the kits. The eye was squirted
with something that took away the pain, then soft cotton and
gauze was applied and taped down before Ray snapped an eye
patch over it.
 "There, that ought to keep it from getting any worse
than it is."
 "What did you put in my eye?"
 "Local anaesthetic, Benni..  You had glass in the eye,
and I do mean in it."
 "Oh.. . Would you climb back over here.. I'm getting a
crick in my neck."
 Ray looked around, grabbed another suit and two pairs
of goggles and then scrabbled back into his seat, the suit
he tossed at Fraser.
 "Here put this on, no point in getting yourself any
wetter than you already are."
 The goggles went around his neck while Fraser struggled
into the suit.
 "The worst thing about..  her death was that there
were so many things I wanted to say to her and never..
said.. to her. And I have never stopped regretting that."
 "Uh-Oh, are you going to get mushy on me, Benni?"
 "You have no idea what was going through my head as I
ran to the hospital..  All they could tell me was that a
truck had taken out your car, that it had taken over an hour
to cut you from the wreck."
 "I can guess what was going through your head,
Benni."
 "I.. value your company more than you know, Raymond
Vecchio - if you were a woman I'd have proposed marriage to
you long ago."
 Ray chuckled and smiled.
 "Thanks for the compliment."
 "And.. .I know how much I irritate you, but you have
no idea how much you drive me crazy and - The kind of crazy
that make me glad I wear a uniform that has a mid thigh
coat."
 "Oh.. ."
 Then it hit him what Fraser meant.
 "Ohmig-d, you weren't joking about being bi."
 "No."
 "I never..  imaged that you'd.. "
 "I said I was bi, I didn't say I was promiscuous."
 "Just one guy."
 Fraser nodded.
 "He was..  a friend.. For years..  And that's all he
was for  years..  I drove him crazy, doing what he called
panting after..  Mae. Well, actually Mae was panting after
me, but that's another story."
 "That wasn't her name, was it?"
 "No..  she had a very hard to pronounce name. And if I
say Mae you know who I mean."
 "Did he make a move on you before or after she died."
 "After..  But he didn't.. it wasn't so much a *move*
as a confession after we were partnered up because no one
trusted me not to disappear going rouge after Mae's
killer."
 "He got hurt and thought he was gonna die."
 "No..  I was the one who was hurt..  a head injury..
He had to try and keep me conscious..  And talked and
talked.. and when I started drifting off, he grabbed my
attention and kept it by making his very startling
confession."
 Ray chuckled.
 "I didn't react to it so he thought I'd forgotten it
and I was just.. waiting for some sort of sign that it
wasn't just some strange addle headed imagining.. "
 "Cut to the chase."
 "We got snowed into a cabin together, and.. he had a
bottle of bourbon in his saddle pack..  And that's how it
started."
 "Ah..
 "But it was.. never a full on.. sexual relationship."
 "So you never.. "
 "No."
 "That means your not Bi."
 "No.. It doesn't. We had a *relationship*..  After the
cabin incident, we shared a bed and a bedroll..  We just
never did that. I was extremely inexperienced, one intimate
encounter short of a virgin to be exact."
 "Mae?"
 "Yes."
 "Before or after the storm maker.. "
 "Shortly after."
 "Was she good looking, beautiful, plain, pretty.."
 "She was stunning, absolutely stunning."
 "So why'd it take so long to .."
 "Her brother was the District's Zuko..  What happened
only happened once because I learned to control my reaction
to her after he slammed me into a wall and said he'd have me
castrated, very slowly with a blunt and rusty knife, before
he used a few traditional methods of executing people if he
ever heard so much as a whisper about our relationship being
anything but platonic."
 "That'd do it."
 "It worked very well. Much to her disgust, she never
stopped trying to get me into her bedroll. But the fish
incident came very close."
 Ray chuckled.
 "I took a dip in the river, fully dressed instead."
 "Much to her disgust," Ray quipped.
 Fraser nodded with a chuckle.
 "Yes. She caught another fish and hit me with it."
 Ray hugged his ribs and gave a little moaning laugh.
 "So.. I irritated her a lot - just as I irritate
you."
 "I'll have to remember to batter you around the head
with a fish some day."
 Fraser chuckled at that and Ray reached out to lay a
hand on his thigh and squeezed it.
 "Just for the record, Benni I value your company
too."
 Fraser removed his hand.
 "Don't.. touch me like that."
 "Sorry."
 Then he belted up started up the vehicle again.
 "Ready?"
 Fraser belted up, nodded and pulled the goggles on.
Ray's went up, and he eased the 4-Wheel drive into motion.
Fraser looked at the dash, and saw a tape poking out of the
tape deck and out of curiosity popped it in and hit play.
 "What ever it is, jack the volume up. That'll really
drown out that thunder."
 Fraser complied and as he sat back, a woman's voice
shrieked out.
 Hey Baaaabe.
 Followed by a dance beat.
 "Dance music..  Great..  Some Rock 'n' Roll would be
*perfect*.. "
 Fraser started looking through the glove box and
checking out the tapes for names he would recognise as Rock
acts, then the woman's voice returned.

 Heaven
 When you touch me baby
 Heaven
 When you touch me baby
 I'm in heaven..
 
 Fraser hit eject so hard it flew across the cab.
 "It wasn't *that* bad Fraser."
 Fraser jammed the first tape that came to hand into the
deck and hit play to the immediate sounds of a snare drum
and cymbal.
 "More dance music."
 Then a guitar followed, in a manner that was definitely
not dance style. Someone's fingers were definitely flying
over those strings.
 "Perhaps not."
 Thunder..
 The tape followed the first one on a high velocity trip
through the cab and Fraser stuffed another in and the result
was moody pipes and deep drums.
 "Great - what a perfect piece - Gothic music to go
with the Gothic atmosphere out there.. "
 Fraser ejected that one too.
 "Make up your mind Benni."
 In went the next tape, moody tones and a bass guitar
sounded, then a rude brass line, and power drums. Ray nodded
and thumped the side of the cab in time. The tape went the
way of all the rest.
 "That's it, Benni, the next tape stay's put no matter
what it is."
 "Ah.. This sounds like a Rock band."
 "What's the name?"
 "Noiseworks."
 "Never heard of them."
 Fraser popped the tape into the deck and hit play to
the sound of a synth and bass. He almost ejected it
remembering that Ray wanted Rock music, then he remembered
Ray said the tape had to stay put so he left it.
 You never expect it to be in your wildest dreams
 So you take a step backwards for a little while
 You'll find it's there it's something that I can't
explain.
 =That describes this storm=
 So I remain trapped inside still holding strong
 Still holding onto you, to you

 Take me back to you, it's been a long time
 Although woh every night I think of you
 It's such a lonely life
 
 Watched you say good bye as you drove away.
 I didn't know that it would be your last time with me.
 You said life ain't worth living if nobody cares

 Ray ejected the tape, much to Fraser's relief he hadn't
wanted to hear any more.

 "Find something less morbid."
 Fraser returned to raiding the tape collection.
 "What else is there in there?"
 Fraser looked at a case.
 "AC-DC."
 "Now that's rock. Slot it in Benni, that'll do it any
day."
 "The case is empty.. .Here's another. Inxs..  Or this
one..  The Angels.. "
 "Hmm.. Sounds like they had an Aussie on their team
half those names are Australian bands.. "
 "How about this one, it has a punk rocker on the
front, by the name of Billy Idol? "
 "Go for it."
 Fraser popped the tape in and as Ray put the pedal to
the metal, Fraser hit play. What came out of the speakers
was not, Billy Idol it was a woman singing.. .
 Ohhhhh .. . so if you'll just say you want me too I'm
Never gonna let you go.. .
 Ray hit the brakes and Fraser grabbed at the back of
the seat to stop himself being thrown forward. The tape shot
out with a pound from Ray at the deck.
 "That was not Billy Idol."
 "The case said Billy Idol."
 "Look Fraser, you find me the right piece of mood
music or.. I'll stuff the next tape down your throat."
 "Yes Ray."
 "Get me something Hard and Rock and get it right this
time. I don't want to hear any more of that soppy fluff. I
want something that drowns out the thunder and the only
thing that would drown out is the sound of me strangling
you."
 Fraser nodded and rustled through all the tapes and
recognised the name on a tape, and glanced at Ray then
popped it into the slot and hit play. Ray's fingers drummed
on the wheel while he waited, and once again it wasn't Rock
he heard, it was definitely a dance track and Fraser's hand
shot out but Ray's hand came down and grabbed his wrist and
stopped him.
 "Wait.. I know that song..."
 No force of
 You are the kingdom
 No Force of
 You are the kingdom
 No Force of
 You are the kingdom
 History.

 Ray hit stop.
 "Find that CB and hit transmit and hold that up to the
speaker and keep it there till I say stop."
 "Why?"
 "I want to remind him we're still out here and that's
a hard dance remix..  Of.. " Ray grinned, "Michael
Jackson's History."
 Fraser chuckled and rustled up the CB and obeyed, Ray
hit play, then with a deep breath put the pedal to the metal
and they roared out of the tunnel, like a bat out of hell.
 Within a minute the phone was trilling but neither Ray
nor Fraser heard it over the thunderous volume of the music.
Ray let out a low whistle as  the 4-wheel drive sped through
the streets swerving, skidding around piles of derbis torn
up tree's and tossed flaming wrecks. It looked like a war
zone outside the tunnel.
 "O.K - Stop"
 Fraser put the C/B on the dash and popped the tape out
and went looking for another.
 "When you said that thing can wreak devastation you
weren't kidding. It looks like a war zone out here."
 Fraser jammed another tape in the deck, then poked his
head out the window to check the skies.
 "He's passed over. We're not in the eye any more."
 "He lost us..  But you can bet he's gonna be looking
for us after that musical piece reminded him we're still out
here."
 "The road block."
 "Yeah.. Good idea."
 He orientated himself, then sped off for the road block
they'd hijacked the vehicle from. Fraser hit play and there
was a blast of guitar and a rough male voice singing.
 We've gotta get out of this place.. If it's the last
thing we ever do."
 Fraser glanced at Ray who made a throat cutting
gesture. The tape joined the rest which were accumulating in
a pile between the seats and a new tape was slotted in. With
a thumping base line.
 "Soft rock.. Hmmph."
 You know they think we're crazy. You know they think
we're all insane.
 "But I like it."
 He proved it, with his hand thumping away at the side
of the cab in time to the beat.
 But you don't have to grow up, you don't have to grow
old, and I'll tell you why. We're never gonna die.
 Ray stabbed out rewinded it a tad then gave Fraser the
signal and the C/B came down and attached itself to the
speaker. Ray hit play.
 We're never gonna die
 We're never gonna die
 Kiss em all good bye
 We're never gonna die
 We're never gonna die.
 When it segued to the music the C/B went back to the
dash.
 "Find something else to piss him off Fraser, we need
him to get pissed enough to come back after us."
 Fraser nodded and found another tape and popped it in
to the strains of a base beat and snare drum.
 "Hmm.. "
 I've been up and down.. I've been all around I was
mystified all most terrified..
 Fraser looked at Ray.
 "Fast forward, I know that, that's Kiss. You finally
hit the hard rock jackpot. Maybe there's some good mood
piece there."
 Fraser fast forwarded through each track, listening to
the track's start and getting the cut off from Ray on every
track..
 Mmmm Yeah.. .
 Ha!
 Dodododododododo
 Doodododoodododo
 Tonight I want to give it all to you.
 In the Darkness..
 Ray made the cut throat gesture but under the influence
of the drug he'd let Ray shoot him up with, the imp in
Fraser came out and he left it running.
 There's so much I wanna do
 And tonight
 I want to lay it at your feet
 Cause girl I was made for you
 And girl you were made for me
 I was made for loving you baby
 You were made for loving me
 Ray slammed the eject and the tape made a fast exit.
 "I said cut it."
 "It seemed to speak to me, Ray."
 Ray growled and Fraser popped in a new tape, another
Dance music tape by the sound of the intro but as he was
about to eject it the tape chopped and changed.
 "Home job.. let it run for a bit see what it's got.
This guy obviously likes rock.. Dance Rock, Soft Rock,
Gothic Rock...It's mostly rock.. And there's gotta be some
Hard Rock in that collection somewhere."
 Then he added in a low mutter.
 "But I seriously doubt it."
 "Road block, Ray"
 "I see it, Benni. Brace your self it looks like they
strengthened it with drums. But if they want a wrecked
machine, that's their business."
 A grungy guitar and thumping drums filled the cab and
Ray's hand went up and hit the roof.
 "That's more like it, whatever it is."
 "Ray, That's Huey!"
 The vehicle came to a screeching skidding stop before
the blockade and Ray's door flew open. Huey raced to the
vehicle and was soon helping Ray out. Fraser quickly
snatched up a handful of tapes and shoved them down the
suit, including the Kiss tape, before he climbed out,
collecting his shot gun on the way out.
 "They know what's going on, that babies fuelled and
ready to fly, and the Eagle is cleared for take off."
 "Already?!"
 "It didn't take long at all, people have been watching
the storm footage on TV all day as soon as the cars went
through with the megaphones blasting, they hit the road, no
one stayed, no one argued.. By the way, The Lieutenant's
steaming that you didn't answer the phone."
 "He rang, I didn't hear it.. "
 "Over that music, I don't doubt it."
 "Mood music, But Fraser's idea of what constitutes the
perfect mood music and mine aren't exactly the same. I say
Hard Rock, he gives me Michael Jackson."
 Huey chuckled and looked around to see Fraser toting a
rifle on his shoulder with an eye patch under the goggles.
 "What's with the patch?"
 "A lighting strike covered the road with glass slivers
and Fraser copped a load in the eye."
 Huey grimaced hissing in sympathy.
 "That's why we disappeared for a while there..  I had
to find a place to stop and clean out his eyes."
 Huey dangled a set of key's before Ray's eyes. Ray
snatched them out of his hands.
 "Anyone know where the Storm Maker is now?"
 "As soon as you hit the road again, we'll have him
back on your tail."
 Then he produced a piece of paper.
 "This is a list of the best places to try and take him
out with a Stinger," Which ever you can reach first, or
that you can lure him too - makes no difference, they'll all
get you into range."
 Fraser climbed back into the Ferrai and the tapes came
out of the suit and into the glove box where he sorted them
out till he found the one he wanted and checked out the
titles again. With a little nod he popped it in the tape
deck and turned the volume right down before starting the
tape. He listened to the intro while Ray discussed details
with Huey and then rewound the tape back to the start and
turned the volume up nice and loud.
 He jumped as the Akubra hatted woman ripped open the
door and stuck a flare gun in his face then she wiggled her
fingers at him.
 "Hand over the goodies."
 "Which goodies?"
 "The tapes you nogoodnick."
 Fraser handed all but the one in the deck and the Kiss
tape back she checked them out and then wiggled her fingers
at him again.
 "The Kiss tape too."
 Fraser delved into his pockets and then pulled out what
remained of the money that Turnbull had given him and waved
it at her.
 "I'll buy it from you."
 She snatched the notes from his hands and counted them
up.
 "With this kind of happy lettuce you could get a
ticket to their show."
 "Show? What show?"
 "They were supposed to be playing in the area sometime
next week. After this the chances of that are unlikely."
 "What a pity they sound like fine musicians."
 "Sometimes."
 "So what's a nice girl like you doing in a war zone
like this?" Fraser asked.
 She laughed and moved back to slam the door closed. He
rolled down the window.
 "Do you ride?"
 "What?"
 "Horses?"
 "Yeah.. "
 "I thought so, you have the hands..  And that hat,
it's an Akubra isn't it, an Australian Cattleman's hat."
 "It's *our* national hat as far as some people are
concerned."
 "I'm sorry I didn't mean to offend."
 Ray slipped into the front seat his crutches thrown
into the back by Huey.
 "Perhaps I will see you again at the show."
 "Yeah, right.. "
 Fraser detected sarcasm in her voice and searched the
box finding paper and pen and wrote down his address and
held it out to her.
 "My address..  If you want a companion to attend with
you."
 She snatched it from his hand, then stuffed it down her
bra.
 Ray slammed the door and started up the car.
 "Two dates in one day, Benni you're on a roll."
 Fraser's window went up and Ray put the car into gear
while Huey called out for the block aide to be cleared. The
workers went into high gear, rolling drums away and removing
barriers clearing the road.
 "They started blasting our location over the airwaves,
he should be turning back and heading our way again in no
time, so we've got to get to the station before he catches
up."
 "Did you get the keys?"
 They dropped into his lap and went into his pocket.
 "Ready?"
 Fraser nodded then hit play. Ray jumped as the
extremely recognisable strains of an AC-DC standard started,
then broke into a grin and gave him the thumbs up making
Fraser return the grin. Pedal to the metal the Ferrari
roared out of there at high speed with a p'd off E.S worker
in an Akubra shaking her fist at the tape napper.
 
    *----*----*----*

 Welsh stood on a street corner with a road block team
waiting for his signal. He lifted his binoculars again and
looked through the sheeting rain. There it was a gleaming
red Ferrai tearing through the streets heading their way. He
signalled the men and the blockade was pulled apart, the
road cleared in record time.
 To the sounds of a strident bagpipe, loud guitar's and
a pulsating beat the car speed through the area and the
workers called it in, rebuilding the blockade, then Welsh
told them to haul butt - double time before the storm swept
through on their tail. One look at the boiling skies above
was all it took to convince them that clearing the area asap
was a great idea.

    *----*----*----*

 To the wailing guitar of Steve Steven's, Ray brought
the Ferrai to a screeching halt in front of the station
house and Fraser threw open the door and threw himself over
the hood to reach the other side and help Ray of out the car
and into the crutches then followed him, pulling a
medication ampoule and syringe from his pocket. He ripped
the packet with his teeth, extracting the syringe then
loaded it up as he moved slowly behind the hobbling
detective.
 "Forget war zone, it looks like they were filming
Apocalypse Now here.. "
 "Ray.. Stop."
 Ray stopped and looked around. Fraser held up the
syringe. Ray didn't need to be asked, he rolled up his
sleeve and clamped the arm till Fraser had a vein to drive
the needle home into.
 "Can't fool you can I?"

 "You should have said something earlier."
 Ray rolled the sleeve off and hobbled away.
 "We couldn't afford to stop and take the time to shoot
up - give yourself a shot while you're at it. Once we leave
we won't be stopping again till we reach a target site."
 Fraser nodded and rolled up a sleeve, yanked off his
lanyard and wrapped it around the arm, pulling it tight with
his teeth, waiting for a vein to pop up.
 Ray swung himself up the stairs and turned to watch as
Fraser jammed the needle home and injected himself, then
with perfect aim, tossed the syringe into a bin before
racing up the steps, tugging at the lanyard to loosen it,
without pulling it away.
 "Keys."
 Fraser handed them over and Ray got to work on opening
the doors. Fraser turned to study the skies.
 "I'd say, we've got perhaps twenty minutes Ray."
 "Better than nothing, Benni. O.K we're in."
 Fraser spun, moving and surprising Ray by scooping him
up into his arms to carrying him into and through the
building at a run.
 "Fraser!"
 "We don't have time to pander to your pride. Now,
which way?"
 Ray pointed Fraser turned into the next corridor and
raced down and through them as Ray directed him pointing the
way out till they reached the weapons locker. Fraser set him
down and Ray jangled key's sorting through them till he
found the one engraved with a W.L and slipped it into the
lock springing it. He backed up.
 "O.K Benni, haul it open."
 Fraser grabbed the steel door and hauled back with all
his might. The door swung open and he jumped back. Ray
pointed into the room.
 "3rd shelf from the roof, that long box."
 Fraser nodded and hurried in to find the box and haul
it down. He opened it to pull out the Stinger and slung it
over his shoulder while Ray hobbled in and worked out where
the ammo was. Fraser pulled another out and slung that over
his shoulder too.
 "Found the ammo, this box."
 He turned and saw Fraser with two Stingers.
 "You will drop me off at the first target area, and
move onto the next with out me. If I miss, you have to take
him out."
 Ray stared at him as he approached and pulled the
indicated box down ripping it open to pull out belts of
ammunition, a dozen to a belt.
 "Don't argue with me about it."
 "I'm..  not..  I just.. "
 "Never even considered it until now."
 "You got any of that dope left, there's no way I'm
going to be able to haul that thing up G-d knows how many
flights of stairs without a major dose."
 "I'll give you one last shot before I leave the car."
 Ray nodded and let Fraser sling one belt of ammo around
his torso, then Fraser was scooping him up again, grunting
under the load with all the extra weight he was carrying.
Ray started to object.
 "18 minutes."
 Ray shut up and let Fraser carry him out kicking the
door closed behind him before heading off down the corridor.
Ray slipped the paper Huey had given him out from under the
band of the watch he'd borrowed and looked over the page of
target sites as Fraser carried him through the deserted
halls.
 "Jackpot.. Benni, splitting up will give us the best
chance of taking him out *together*.  Two of the places on
this list are across from each other.  With you on one roof
top and me on another."
 "We can get him in the cross fire."
 "Bingo Benni."
 
   *----*----*----*

 Fraser kicked open the roof top door and looked out
into the roiling skies wincing a lighting crashed across the
skies. With a deep breath he stepped out and looked up. The
Storm Maker had definitely taken the bait.
 He moved to the edge of the roof and looked across at
the building across the way. The door opposite exploded
outward and Ray lurched through it, the launcher and slung
to his back, ammo around his shoulder, rifle in his hands.
Fraser waved to him as he looked around and Ray slung the
rifle over his shoulder before he balanced himself and waved
a crutch at him. Fraser watched as he lurched across the
roof looking for something to brace himself against.
 Fraser looked around, then moved to the middle of the
roof before unslinging his launcher and checking it out.
With out hesitation he loaded it up and then swung it up
into position and took the weight on his shoulder and
sighted the cloud with it, looking for that tell tale sign
that marked the Storm Maker's presence.
 He sighted it, out of range but closing in fast and
looked across to see Ray loading up his launcher and heft it
up onto his shoulder. He saw Ray repeat his actions and
pulled out the cell phone Ray had made him collect from a
desk as they passed through the station house. He hit redial
and saw Ray start then yank his phone off the ammo belt and
flip it open.
 "Ray, its coming in due south."
 Ray looked around and sighted it.
 "Yeah, I see it now..  Can't miss that huge ball of
light in the center of that maelstrom."
 "It's out of range, we have to wait till it gets in
range or we'll just be wasting ammunition we may need if we
miss."
 "Got it.. "
 Then Ray was hanging up and dialling Welsh and Fraser
watched the eye of the storm through the stinger's site. It
changed course slightly and then began moving, faster on a
direct course for their location. His phone trilled and he
answered.
 "I got through to Welsh they broadcasted our location
over the E.S band..  That sucker's .. "
 "Taking the bait, he's moving in, faster now. Hold
your fire till he's well in range..  And if we lose contact
wait till I fire, and then follow it up."
 "Gotcha..  Hey.. look at that formation behind it,
doesn't it look like a bunny to you."
 Lighting shrieked between the buildings and there was
an explosion down below.
 "The Doc's gonna be pissed..  I think that was the
Ferrari."
 Fraser moved back to the edge and looked down.
 "No.. .It wasn't our Car..  I think it was that Dodge
left in the street."
 "Pity it didn't.. "
 "Didn't what?"
 "Dodge," Ray said, then giggled.
 Fraser sighed Ray was definitely flying high, just as
the nurse predicted he would be if he got more than 10cc's
of the drug at a time.
 Ray stopped giggling suddenly.
 "Ray? Ray, say something?"
 Then he heard the phone scrape on something, and Ray's
voice at a distance, when he looked across the way he
realised Ray had the hand held C/B radio set.
 "Shit!"
 Then he ran back to the center of the roof and set
himself, sitting on the clouds again finding the eye of the
storm, still just out of range.
 Ray was ranting every third word an obscenity as he
expressed his opinion of having his city and home trashed.
As Fraser watched, the eye of the storm picked up speed
again, and then Ray was raising something high into the sky
and window's exploded in the building he was on the roof off
as lighting struck and gale force winds hit. Fraser felt his
own building rock as it hit, and dropped the phone, bracing
himself with his free arm, watching and waiting.
 "Come on, come on.. "
 Then Fraser was startled as music filled the air and he
snatched up the phone to hear Ray cackling away.

 Good God! Help us all
 Cause Everybody's hearing it around the world
 And we only wanna live
 If you open your mind you'll hear it ringing
 The Bell I hear the Bell
 if you open your mind you'll hear it ringing.
 
 "Hear that Benni.. Now *that's* hard Rock."
 "Yes, I can hear it, but where is it coming from."
 "The P.A of this building, I set it up to play the
local Hard rock station full bore Benni.. . The moment that
sucker blew out the window's they stopped blocking the
sound..  Great track isn't it."
 Fraser sighed and sighted on the cloud again.
 -Yes! That's it, just a little closer.-
 
 Need no messing around
 We gotta break outta here before the sun goes down
 But one thing I wanna say
 Speak your mind don't live the life
 Of a sheltered man.
 With Love in our Hands
 Then all the millions of people will understand
 It's the one thing in our lives
 So if you open your mind you'll hear it ringing.

 "It is an.. interesting song, what is it?"
 "I've got no Idea.. . But I like it..  The Bell, I
hear the Liberty Bell," Ray sang along with the music."
 "Ray, its in Range *NOW*"
 "Goodie.. "
 Then a rocket shot across the sky.
 "That's for Liberty.. "
 Fraser sighed and tracked the rocket across the sky and
as expected, it missed. He fired and missed. Both men cursed
and reloaded, Ray singing along with the music as he
prepared to fire again.
 "This ones for Francessca!" Ray roared as he fired.
 He missed and Fraser brought his Stinger around for
another shot at it, and sighted the storm, and his ears
caught a change of music, as a Guitar wailed and he listened
to it, waiting for the perfect shot, as Ray reloaded.
 Don't Lose your head
 don't lose your head.
 No don't lose your head
 Hear what I say.
 
 -I'm afraid Ray's lost his.-
 
 Don't lose your way, yeah
 Remember Love's Stronger,
 Remember Love walks tall.

 -Tall!-
 
 He scrambled to his feet and grabbed up the phone he'd
set down.
 "RAY!!!! Hold your fire, you won't hit it!!!"
 After more than a few agonised seconds he heard Ray's
voice.
 "What do you mean? I thought I came pretty close with
that last shot."
 "I *remember* I *was* semi conscious, I had to tell
her how to load and fire the launcher..  I saw her take it
out, she couldn't hit it, till it passed *directly* over her
head..  We have to fire at the belly of the beast to take it
out."
 "Now he tells me."
 He saw Ray lower the Stinger and rub at his shoulder
and back.
 "God that thing's got a kick."
 Fraser heard the song end and the announcers voice,
then cut Ray off and dialled the number the announcer
announced as being the request line and listened to a very
vibey voice answer. He made his request and heard that vibey
voice take on a disgusted drawl and then mentioned that he
was trying to save the whole damn city and if he wanted to
request something fluffy, they could damn well play it. The
not so vibey phone gal hung up. Fraser dialled Ray back.
 "Hey, Benni I lost you there for a while."
 "Must be the storm Ray," he said lying through his
teeth.
 All right all you guy's and Gal's out there watching
the skies this is a request from the guy in Red to the Green
Eyed Italian across the way.
 "Hey Benni..  Did you phone in a request."
 "Yes, Ray."

I can't fight this feeling any longer
and yet I'm still afraid to let it flow
What started out as friendship
has grown stronger
I only wish I had the strength
to let it show

I tell myself that I can't hold out forever
I say there is no reason for my fear
cause I feel so secure when we're together
You give my life direction
you make everything so clear

 "I can't believe you got them to play something so
fluffy."
 Fraser laughed at that.
 

And even as I wonder
at keeping you in sight
you're a candle in the window
on a cold dark windless night
And I'm getting closer
than I ever thought I might

And I can't fight this feeling any more
I've forgotten what I started fighting for
It's time to bring this ship into the shore
and throw away the oars forever
Cause I can't fight this feeling any more
I've forgotten what I started fighting for
And if I had to crawl upon the floor
come crashing through your door
Baby I can't fight this feeling any more

My life has been
such a whirlwind since I saw you

 Then the music became a shrieking electronic static
wail, and the phones shrieked with it. Fraser dropped the
phone and fought the urge to cover his ears as he winced and
sighted on the eye of the storm. He took a moment to look
around to see Ray reaching for his launcher as a bolt of
lighting streaked through the sky. His shout of rage and
grief was drowned out in the immediate thunder clap as the
lighting struck the roof of Ray's building.
 Then he shook the after glare away and sighted, firing,
and reloading, firing and reloading. He froze when he saw a
second rocket streak across the sky and looked around to see
Ray standing, not kneeling and lowering his launcher to
reload.
 His cry of joy was drowned out as another lightning
strike and thunderclap shook the building to it's very
foundations. He looked up and saw the last rocket miss its
target as the eye of the storm moved in directly overhead.
Up came his launcher and two rockets screamed through the
sky as the lightning struck all around them, the buildings
shuddered, rocking and swaying in the near cyclonic winds
and Fraser fought to stay up, as he reloaded and looked
around to see Ray doing it too. Then he saw Ray scoop
something off the roof and bring it to his mouth, screaming
into it. He doubted it was the phone, most likely the C/B
and he raised his Stinger and sighted again, then looked
across the way, seeing Ray raise his stinger.
 They both locked their sights on the stinger, and
fired. He lowered the stinger and reached for the belt, then
looked down and realised he was out of Ammo. Then he looked
up, dropping the stinger and crossed his fingers as the
rockets streaked through the air and then passed *over* the
eye of the storm. He cursed and looked over at Ray, still
yelling away into the C/B nursing it on his shoulder as he
reloaded the stinger, then swung it up on his shoulder and
sighted. And then something incredible happened. The
lightning and thunder ended, the shrieking winds that were
part of the storm dropped and it was as if they really were
in the eye of the storm.
 The clouds parted in the eye and he had a temporary
glimpse of the fantastic vessel that was the Storm Maker.
 "And this one is for wrecking Fraser's Fluffy Stuff."
 Fraser almost laughed, but his laugh caught in his
throat as well as his breath as Ray fired and he watched the
rocket streak up and up. Memory returned, of that day, ten
years ago, of lying on the wet ground, watching another
rocket streak upward, fired during the same moment in time,
as the *real* eye of the storm passed over their heads, it
was their last chance. There was no more ammunition, then
and now, if it missed, they would never get another chance.
 His hands raised, fingers crossed so tightly his
fingers turned white, and didn't breath, wishing with all
his might that this shot would hit it. That this shot would
take it out. And then it happened, it *missed* skimming past
the nose of that vessel.
 He heard Ray hurling down the launcher and then popping
sounds and looked across the way and laughed, it was all he
could do as he watched Ray fire round after round from his
pistol at something he couldn't hope to hit. The music
returned in a blast of sound.
 
 Life is a mystery
 Everyone must stand alone
 I hear you call my name
 and it feels like home.
 
 He rushed to the side of the roof and looked down and
around, then ran along the edge till he reached the flag
pole sticking out of the roof. He dragged the rope up and
then measured it and the gap between the buildings visually.
 Ray tossed his gun down in disgust and scooped up the
C/B again and yelled into it.
 "So you win you bastard but hey, I'm the one who's
getting the last laugh, Fraser wasn't the one who took the
1st Storm Maker down."
 Fraser climbed onto the ledge, wrapping the flag around
himself and tying it off.
 "It was his partner the broad who followed him around
like a cat on heat! How do you like that, a Broad who
couldn't hit the side of a barn if she was standing in front
of it took your first Storm Maker out."
 Fraser jumped off the ledge then backed off as far as
the rope would allow then launched himself forward running
to take a flying leap over the ledge and into the air.
 "Fraser!!!!"
 Ray ran to the edge and saw Fraser sail through the
air, twisting as he went catching hold of the rope as it
carried him over the gap then the mad Mountie was passing
through a shattered window and into the building.
 "Fraser you are Insane!!!"
 He waited for Fraser to reappear and just when he
thought the man had managed to kill himself the rope went
slack and slid away, dragging the flag with it. He let out a
pent up breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding when
Fraser peeked through the frame, gripping it to hold himself
up as he looked up at him, waved then disappeared back into
the building. Satisfied that his friend was safe and semi-
fine Ray returned to his ranting.
 "And another thing you *Moron* the woman is *dead*
D.E.A.D, you came all this way, wreaked all this havoc and
devastation for nothing! The person you want vengeance
against ain't here, never was, and never will be, because
she's dead!! You hear me. You may have won the battle, but
you lost the war, because what you want, what you came all
this way and devastated this city to do is beyond your
reach. So enjoy your *victory*.. .it's a pretty hollow
one."
 Then he threw the CB away and walked away from the edge
to see the door burst open and Fraser burst through it and
race toward him. He didn't even try to stop the Mountie from
wrapping his arms around him, then he felt something sliding
across his back, and Fraser was pulling away.
 He gaped then slapped himself in the head as he
remembered taking the rifle from the car to blow the locks
off the door of the building they were standing on. Fraser
raised it, sighted and fired, round, after round after round
at the fantastic aircraft that hovered over them. He fired
until there was nothing left to fire and a pile of spent
shells were clustered around their feet then he tossed the
rifle down and growled in frustration.
 "You took that insane leap through space just to make
that futile gesture of defiance..  Benni - That was.. "
 "Not futile.. Look!"
 He pointed up into the sky, Ray spun looking up and his
eyes widened as he saw the futuristic aircraft's nose
dipping, as it started falling from the sky, a trail of fire
racing across it's belly.
 "Ohmig-d! You hit it! You did it!"
 He threw himself at Fraser hugging him.
 "You took him out!"
 Fraser wrapped his arms around Ray as he staggered back
a foot or two, then his hands moved, and he was cupping
Ray's head, and pulling it up for a kiss.
 How long it went on for he never really knew, Ray
didn't seem to mind in the slightest and returned it measure
for measure and it only broke up when very building in the
block shuddered and a huge explosion rent the area, as the
Storm Maker crashed to earth and went up in a ball of flame.
 Then and only then did it break up, and Ray giggled as
he nuzzled Fraser's neck.
 "Did the Earth move for you too, Benni?"
 
   *----*----*----*

 The End.. (for now)

 Copyright Red Skye December 30, 1997
 =====================================================
 Continued in Eye of the Storm II
 

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