There were no less than twelve armed men and women standing between them and the bridge. They were outnumbered two to one, but Darien had been through far worse. They had one shot, right now, to smash through the defences of their enemy and take the bridge. In theory they could have Blinked straight into the bridge itself, but dropping into a closed room without knowing exactly where the consoles were laid out would be dangerous, not to mention that they would lose their advantage of having more than one route of attack.

Three ramps led up to the bridge, each one connecting to dozens of other passages like the branches of a tree. That left three exposed approach points that a conventional fighting force would never wish to assault. The twelve guards had a defensible position and could fire downhill into a killing field devoid of cover.

But a squad of Blink Operatives was not a conventional fighting force.

They materialised a couple of corridors away, approaching the bridge silently. The motion trackers held by Hekket and Amber told them that the ship's security personnel had had the presence of mind to anticipate their move, spread out with four guards to each passage.

Darien quickly formed a plan to outflank the defenders, a plan that would only work with his team's special abilities to utilise. They gathered twenty meters away from the left hand passage, hunkering down close to the walls and watching all directions intently. With twelve guards split between three corridors he knew they could mass a local numbers advantage. All they needed to do was force their adversaries to gather in one place. Then a Blink squad could out-manoeuvre them like no other military unit in the galaxy.

"What's the move?" Idas asked, his voice low and barely audible.

"We split up," Darien whispered. "Niamh, you, Hekket, Uther and Idas are one group. Amber – you're with me. First, we let them see all of us – make a big show of hitting the left passage with as much force as we can. We need a couple of quick take-downs. That will pull the other guards out of position. Hekket, keep your eyes on the motion tracker. When they move, that's when we split." He looked pointedly at Amber. "Once we see them shift position, you and I will Blink to the top of the opposite passage and hit them from behind. Okay?"

Amber's jaw was tight and she looked thoroughly uncomfortable, but she nodded her understanding.

"This is the last leg," Darien continued. "We hit them hard and fast. Then there's nothing between us and the bridge where we can put a stop to all of this." He paused for a moment, searching for the right words. "Keep it together for just a little bit longer. Then we can all go home."

No-one spoke up to disagree. Faces hardened with resolve and they made a final check of their combat gear. Then it was time. Darien squared his shoulders and took the lead, moving with painstaking care up the corner of the passage. Right behind him he felt Niamh's presence and she placed a hand on the back of his armour.

"I'll draw," she whispered. "You cover."

He took his Compac in both hands. "Go."

They moved simultaneously. Niamh leapt past him, throwing herself into a roll as he angled his body around the corner and took aim. At the top of the hallway he could see the four guards, all partially concealed behind the cover of firing steps that protected the bridge itself – a common design. In the event of being boarded it was better to have a fire-fight outside the bridge where the attackers couldn't destroy the vital machinery.

Taken in haste, his first shot screamed wide and blasted a light fixture to shards. The second thudded into the nearest guard's shoulder and took his arm off at the socket. A shot from Niamh's cannon struck another square in the stomach and he tumbled over, his body sliding a few yards down the corridor and leaving a smear of blood in its wake. In that instant Uther hurtled past him to join Niamh at the opposite corner.

Darien jerked back as the snarl of rifle fire from the remaining guards sprayed down in retaliation. He heard voices frantically shouting for back up and the thud of booted feet. Idas leaned around over his head and snapped off a shot from his Compac.

"It's working," Hekket hissed from further back. "They're gathering everybody up there."

"Let me know when they are all at this passage," Darien replied. He poked his head around the corner for a second, but had to pull back immediately as more bullets rattled down toward them. Organised now, the guards were dug in around their firing steps, keeping a constant wave of suppressing fire down on the operatives.

"Two of them are coming down the central passage," Hekket warned, pointing and gesturing frantically for Uther and Niamh to watch their flank. "Far side is clear. Darien, Amber, you're good to go."

Darien looked back at Amber. "You ready?"

She swallowed hard. "Yeah."

"Alright, then Blink!" He closed his eyes, visualising the dimensions of the passage, calculating the distance between him and the empty space he needed to transition into. Empty passages, no drift; a straightforward jump.

He reappeared just in front of the now abandoned firing steps that protected the right-hand passage, Compac raised and ready. For a second he stayed still until he felt the twinge of Amber's arrival just a couple of feet from him. He scuttled forward and turned to the left, taking aim at the six guards left at the top of the bridge approach.

One of them half-turned before a shot from Darien's Compac hit him in the throat. He toppled lifelessly to the ground. The next fully faced them, rifle levelled but Amber put a shell straight through his weapon. The assault rifle blew apart under the impact and sprayed shrapnel in all directions. The man fell screaming, clawing at his face where shards had raked him.

Confusion reigned in the ranks of the guards as they tried to react to the pincer movement. One stood to face them, only to be hit in the back by a round from the operatives at the opposite end of the passage. A burst of fire whacked across Darien's torso plate and thigh, knocking him off balance, but he moved with the impact, the armour protecting him from any serious injury. He fell prone and shot the offending guard through the heart.

Amidst the chaos Amber let fly with a stun grenade. The little sphere slid neatly into the middle of the surviving guards and detonated. A blinding flash and bang sent them reeling and the ensuing storm of Compac fire put an end to their disorientation permanently.

For a moment Darien waited, crouched on one knee with his Compac aimed. Gun smoke wafted through the air, the acrid, burnt smelling filling his nostrils. Beside him Amber let her barrel drop and her face looked drained of colour.

"Sound off!" Darien shouted.

"No casualties," Niamh called back. A moment later he heard the patter of footsteps as his comrades made their way up the passage. Niamh emerged through the gap in the defensive firing steps first, casting left and right with her cannon, but the guards were dead. The other operatives gingerly picked their way through the bodies until they rejoined outside the main door.

The bridge door was big, but not as large as the airlocks that had protected the rear section of the ship. Darien could see that it was locked, but that didn't worry him unduly. He averted his eyes from the heap of dead guards, trying to control the adrenaline that was pumping through his veins. The others gathered expectantly around him.

"Good job, everyone," he told them as he clipped a fresh magazine into his Compac. "Hekket, any motion?"

"There's one person in there," the medic answered, inclining his head toward the bridge.

"Logan," Niamh growled.

Darien nodded grimly. Then he indicated the formidable bulkhead barring their path with his gun. "Uther, get us in there."

*

The bridge door slid soundlessly open, revealing a small dome-shaped room with consoles built into the walls in a ring. Right in the centre on top of a raised dais was a captain's chair, unoccupied.

And there was one person in the room.

Darien took aim with his cannon, resisting the urge to simply blow a hole in the man's torso. He could only assume that this individual had to be Theodore Logan, the ex-operative who was behind every hellish thing they'd discovered on this ship. Up close he didn't seem so special – a man of average height and build, with a receding dark hairline and watery grey eyes clad in a featureless dark green jumpsuit. A haphazard mess of stubble covered the lower half of his face and his mouth hung slightly open. Darien could hear him breathing.

With slow, deliberate steps he moved forward, feeling the other members of Hammerhead Squad fanning out behind him to both sides. Logan didn't move, but Darien could see a heavy pistol hanging loosely in the man's right hand.

"Drop the weapon," he growled.

Logan's mouth closed and he stared vacantly at the operatives. Then the fingers of his hand unfurled and the pistol clattered to the deck. Idas darted forward, sweeping it up and stuffing it into his combat vest before backing off again, Compac levelled at their quarry's chest.

"Amber," Darien said. "Find the matrix and turn it off."

"You can't!"

Weapons rose and fingers tightened on triggers at the sound of Logan's shrill yelp. The man didn't move from his position, but his eyes were wide with something that looked like panic.

He glanced at Amber. "Do it."

She nodded, tearing her eyes from Logan and examining the consoles. As she did, Darien let the barrel of his Compac drop, straightening up and staring hard at the man.

"Theodore Logan," he said. "You're under arrest."

"You would judge me?" Logan babbled. "You privileged hoarders would dare to judge me? I am helping the human race achieve its potential."

"Spare us – we've heard the speech," Niamh grunted. "Your 'experiment' is over."

"It will never be over! There will be others like me. This will never end. One day we will unlock the secrets that you and yours keep locked away in your ivory tower! We will defeat the barriers of space and time and Blink will no longer be for the few, but for the many!" His voice climbed in pitch until he was almost shrieking, and Darien realised that Theodore Logan had completely lost his mind. His obsession had driven him over the edge.

"You're a kidnapper," Darien said. "And a murderer. You're insane."

"Murderer?!" Logan laughed hysterically.

Shaking his head angrily he looked to Amber. "Have you found that damned console yet?"

"I think so," she replied. "But just give me a minute. If I hit the wrong button I might end up sending the ship on another Blink by mistake."

"Please don't do that," Uther joked lamely.

"So what now, brave, brave, Blink Operatives, eh? Are you going to kill me?"

"We're not your jury, Logan," Darien muttered, turning away. "But you'll answer for what you've done here. Then hopefully someone will blow your sorry carcass out of an airlock."

"This won't end here, Operative. You think you know Blink? You think I'm crazy but you have no idea what is coming. Your precious colonial government teeters on the brink, and soon it will all come crashing down. When it does your leaders will not just forget what I have done here. They'll remember. They'll record everything; use everything. They'll see what I was able to do all by myself and they will see...they'll see it all!"

"Amber!" he growled, not wanting to listen to Logan's incessant babbling for longer than necessary.

"I've got the command sequence," she told him. "Initialising now."

"Fools," Logan hissed. "You don't know what you have d-,"

He broke off when Niamh punched him in the stomach. Darien looked at her sharply, but didn't say anything. He'd been toying with doing the same thing himself. Logan doubled over and crumpled to his knees, spluttering and coughing for breath. Niamh's biological eye glinted dangerously as she stepped back.

"I can only take so much crazy in one day," she snarled. "So why don't you do everyone a favour and keep your damn mouth shut." Logan could only cough in response. Darien caught her eye and motioned her away with a small jerk of his head. Casting a disdainful glance at the former operative she turned, making a show of examining the other consoles.

A few seconds later there was a dull bleep from the machine Amber stood over, and she looked over at him. Lips pressed tightly together, she nodded.

"It's done. We should be able to disconnect Indigo from the cage now."

"Good work."

"She needs to stay!" Logan gasped. "They all do! You can't undo my work!"

Darien stepped close to the man, anger simmering beneath his skin. "Watch us."

"Bastard's not even sorry," Hekket murmured in disgust.

"Sorry?!" Logan screamed, struggling to his feet as Darien turned away. "What should I be sorry for? Millions of people are erased every day for no reason! And suddenly when I try and turn their deaths into something meaningful, something monumental, I am considered the murderer. I am considered the criminal. You are all jealous tyrants, strangling the life out of a species. I apologise for nothing; NOTHING!"

All the pieces crashed together like an avalanche in Darien's mind. Part of him believed the babbling lunatic. When the reinforcements arrived they wouldn't destroy the ship. They would nod sympathetically when they found the cages and experiments. They would express their condolences; make sage mutterings about the end not justifying the means. And then they would gleefully hoard every scrap of information they could. Logan was right. It wouldn't end here.

Unless they left nothing to find.

And the man's complete lack of remorse for his horrendous actions was the thing that finally made Darien snap. With fury boiling in his veins he spun back around, rearing up and smashing the butt of the Compac savagely against Logan's jaw.

A sickening crunch of impact echoed through the chamber. The man went down with a howl of pain, spitting blood and teeth onto the deck, but Darien wasn't finished. Before anyone could stop him he stepped forward and jammed a boot down against Logan's chest pinning him in place.

"You're wrong," he grated. "This all ends here." Then he levelled his Compac at the man's head.

"No, you can't-,"

"DARIEN!"

He ignored it all and pulled the trigger.

At close range the tungsten-cored round blew Logan's skull apart, spraying blood and brain-matter across the deck plating. Darien stood looking at it for a moment, his face twisted with rage. Then he pulled up the Compac and turned away, still quivering with adrenaline as he removed his foot from the twitching corpse's chest.

And then he faced his squad mates.