Capt Baker raced out on to Pier 11 and skidded to an abrupt halt; the Saskatoon was gone.

"Argh!" Capt Baker snarled, yanking off his hat in despair. Evacuation sirens and warning lights annoyed him; anyone with half a brain cell was already long gone and his odds of escape had just lengthened considerably. Scratching his scalp, the wind slapped his face and whipped up his jacket as he stood forlornly, alone. Whiffing accelerant, he cursed his luck. Out of ammo, he surveyed the carnage. Impotent Futurist Airships listed on their tethering ropes as the navy sank without a whimper. No point commandeering one of theirs he mused. This time, it really looked like his luck had run out.

"Elvis..." he sighed miserably, kicking his boot. Rubbing his brow, and replacing his hat, he tried thinking of contingencies. What he wouldn't give for a parachute before the fireworks; hell he would even be tempted with a handkerchief. Soon the guts of Bigger Ben would be engorged with flame so using the lifts was no longer an option...and once the piping infrastructure was aflame, the Liquo would burn quickly and Bigger Ben would collapse on itself. If it was a consolation, being buried in the smouldering ruins, he could reconcile that the Futurist regime would be well and truly finished.

He tucked his hand in his pocket and withdrew his lucky Looney, giving it a light rub between thumb and finger. Seeking solace wandering along the wharf, through the snow and wind, he peered out and could see a loading skimmer parked on the end of the adjacent pier. He had a fluttering thought, but realised with the Futurist systems down, it would be as useful as flying a cheese grater.

Flipping his lucky Looney, he spied relief at the end of the pier.

"Delilah, you cheeky minx," he beamed, clapping his hands in ecstasy as he legged it down the decking, now knowing all was not lost.

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

Alistair barged through the door marked 'Exit' and skittled out on to the icy Observation Deck just as the Red Special thrusters spluttered and seized. Jamming his foot down hoping for one last surge, he was denied. Cradling Balderick, Alistair wrapped the raven in his scarf and opened up the top of his jacket, tucking the injured bird in for safe-keeping before looking for a secure place to wait for Robert.

Running to the ledge, he peered over. One of Bigger Ben's six clock faces flickered to death and he squinted through the failing airport lights to try and view the Port below. As he guessed, the Saskatoon was gone.

Balderick squirmed, cawing in pain so Alistair pulled open his backpack, removed the Brigadier V2.0 and swathed the bird in his scrunched up Def Leppard t-shirt.

"Not long now," Alistair lied, placing the injured bird comfortably in to his bag. "We're almost safe."

Crouching, he picked up the MES-IP and looked up at the large steel communications tower that loomed above him. On the deck, he waited for Robert and edgily, he hoisted the bag back on his shoulder. Using a deck viewfinder, he searched out for the Saskatoon, praying Robert wasn't too far behind so they could get away.

There were more, intense rumbles and Alistair dropped the MES-IP whereby the Brigadier V2.0 immediately pixalated beside him.

"Cripes it's cold," The Brigadier V2.0 brred. "Pleasant view though. Now...where were we up to?"

"No time to chit chat," Alistair replied, picking up his tutor appliance. "I need your help."

"You know I can't be involved," The Brigadier V2.0 chided.

"Listen: there's a mad woman who wants me dead, and she might be chasing after me."

"I'd love to help but..."

Alistair cut him off. "There isn't much time. I beg you to help me. I need to know how I can fight back?"

"You can't," Alice steamed as she burst out on to the deck. Alistair and The Brigadier V2.0 jumped around to face her. "What about your confused friend Robert Thompson?" Alice teased. "Well, when I shot him, he didn't quite get the chance to say farewell."

"Nooo!" Alistair moaned.

"Alistair, once in a while we must damn the consequences," The Brigadier V2.0 concluded. "My suggestion in this instance would be to RUN."

The hologram followed after Alistair as they took flight around the observation deck. The wind howled around them as Futurist banners fluttered in the gale; Alice stalked after them with her extended blades ready to finish this once and for all.

"Query," the Brigadier V2.0 offered. "Have you a parachute?"

"No, I don't have a parachute," Alistair snapped. "Why?"

"My suggestion was to jump."

"NO WAY!"

"An excellent, rational reaction." Reconsidering, the program motioned upwards. "In that case, you shall have to go over the top."

"Pardon?" Alistair stammered skittishly.

"Mount the communications tower and await a rescue," The Brigadier V2.0 reiterated, pointing up the wall. "I'll keep this beastie at bay."

"Are you crazy?" Alistair replied and the Brigadier V2.0 shook his head.

"I am a computer tutor. Fear not though, your impertinence shall not go unpunished," the Brigadier V2.0 growled as he snatched back his MES-IP device and dropped it to the ground, covering it in snow with the toe of his boot. Gripping Alistair by the collar and backpack, he hoisted his pupil up the rung ladder implanted in the tower base.

"Climb to the top," The Brigadier V2.0 ordered, flexing his knitted fingers. "And wait."

Alistair obeyed the order and his hands clasped the cold steel rungs.

"Don't ever forget Alistair...emotions are not a sign of weakness. Travel well my boy." The Brigadier V2.0 watched him to relative safety, then turned and smoothed his moustache in time for Alice to stride around and confront him. The Brigadier V2.0, in the face of impending battle, extended a thick energy-staff in to his hands that crackled with electricity. He spun it in his hands forming a humming blue circle of light that gave his face a ghoulish hue. Alice paused, stared at the hologram and raised her swords.

"I grow tired of dispensing with Loyalist fogeys," she derided as The Brigadier V2.0 tilted his head to one side, analysing his opponent.

"Ruddy giant chip on your shoulder, eh?" he grinned. "Well, let me be the one to help you remove it."

He swung the energy-staff and Alice ducked, but he jabbed her buttocks. Alice winced then issued her declaration of intent.

"You die first," Alice snarled.

"Ole," the Brigadier V2.0 beckoned.

Meanwhile, Alistair had clambered the tower struts and he giddily looked down to see the Brigadier V2.0 and Alice duelling. The Brigadier V2.0 noticed the boy watching.

"To the very top!" he instructed and Alistair swallowed hard before clamping his hand on the maintenance ladder and dragged himself towards the beacon nest cresting the tower.

Back on the deck, Alice thrust and parried but could not land a cutting blow. The Brigadier V2.0 continued to swing his humming energy-staff and effortlessly caught her with a parade of jolting strikes. Alice flared her nostrils, disgusted she could be out played.

"You have a soft underbelly," the Brigadier V2.0 chortled as he smacked her in the abdomen with a thrusting poke. Alice sucked in air, temporarily winded. "They're teaching you piffle in combat school," the tutor mentioned. "Harden up, wench!"

With her hands on her knees, she watched Alistair climbing up the transmitter tower with her crown. She didn't have time for this and strategized in her head.

"Your routines are fifty years too late," Alice toyed. Swiftly, she danced about him and The Brigadier V2.0 mustered all his strength to repel her advances. In a dark recess, he conceded that she was in fact, very nimble and adeptly skilled.

"You're a bit like eating glass, aren't you missy?" he provoked, sensing emotion was her weakness. "You shouldn't take your issues with your parents out on the rest of the world."

"My father was an anonymous Loyalist relic like you," Alice replied caustically. "I could never understand his obsession. It's irrational to place one's faith in one person."

"I pity you, if you're the modern face of the Futurists," The Brigadier V2.0 said as he licked his upper lip, letting the bristles of his moustache tickle the tip of his tongue. "You'll never understand what we're fighting for."

"I guess not. However, if I could put my father out of his misery, what does it say about what I could do to you and that boy?"

"I equate Futurism to flatulence: hot air, a bad smell and very little of substance."

Alice screamed wickedly and lunged at him. Her blades pierced through the Brigadier V2.0 as she tore like an abattoir butcher and the Brigadier V2.0 shoved her backwards, smacking her in the nose with the energy staff. Alice received a wet backside as she slid across the rooftop ice. However, her eyes widened as she watched his digital slashes repixalate, reforming the Brigadier V2.0 with nary a scratch.

"You're a holographic training program," Alice squealed, jumping back to her feet and searching high and low. The Brigadier V2.0 shimmered anxiously.

"There's more soul in these here digit-dots than in your every fibre," he yelled as he spun his energy staff while Alice avoided contact and deftly rounded her artificial combatant.

"It's no good," Alice declared, stealing the ascendency. "I have uncovered your weakness. Once I'm done here, your pupil shall be next. Now...how does that make you feel?"

"I don't feel."

"I will win," she warned. "I always win."

"Cocky, eh?" The Brigadier V2.0 replied; he swatted fruitlessly at Alice, who pirouetted around the hologram using her darting eyes to search the ground. She kicked at snow tufts here and there until her toe kicked the MES-IP device and it clattered across the rooftop. Triumphantly, she glitched the program as the hologram dived between Alice and his hard drive and diverted as much energy to his staff.

"Endline," Alice glared as she rolled, stuck out her leg and swept the Brigadier V2.0 off his feet.

Repixalating, The Brigadier V2.0 raised his staff. His pinpoint targeting plotted the perfect arc to cleave off her head. Alistair looked down from his vantage; his eyes enlarged in horror as Alice, raised her foot and venomously jammed her stiletto heel through the MES-IP device, piercing the Brigadier V2.0 straight through the heart.

"GA—AA-AA –AC-CK...!!!" the Brigadier V2.0 faltered as his holographic image shattered. Pieces of his depixalating digital form splintered across the rooftop. The flecks of the Brigadier V2.0's glimmering essence sprayed out in a splash of 0's and 1's, before they slowly twinkled out, like sparkler embers fading on the wind.

"NOOOOOO!" Alistair howled and plump tears washed Alistair's chapped cheeks.

"You're next!" Alice hollered before she raised her foot and slid the pierced MES-IP device off her stiletto heel, like one removed dog excrement from their boot. She took one look at the obsolete technology and casually tossed it over the ledge in to the void. Even at this great height, Alistair could see the cruelty in Alice's eyes and he fearfully resumed scurrying up the tower. Alice wiped her sole across the rooftop removing sticky defrag residue.

"Your ersatz friend is dead," she called. "If you don't surrender now, I cannot be held accountable for my actions. Now...give back my crown!"

Alistair ignored her.

"Why do children have to make things so, so difficult?" Alice asked herself as she hoisted herself up the metal rung ladder and began chasing after Alistair one last time.

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

"If you muck up his ship, there will be hell to pay," Rocket warned whilst Delilah was attempting to evade spasmodic cannon fire. Luckily for Delilah, the Futurist targeting was a shambles but the cannonballs still rocked the Saskatoon.

"Ohmigod Rocket, you're flying us?" Arcadia gasped as he entered the cockpit and lashed himself in to the navigator's seat.

"Ohmigod Arcadia – what have the bastards done to your hair?" Rocket agonised, as his colleague rubbed his recently shaved head. "How can you muster the strength to go on?"

Delilah swung in her chair and flicked the fly-boy a coded chip.

"Cpl Taylor, shut up and listen: Tunny is pre-flight programmed but we're taking a minor diversion. Please, re-set the co-ordinates."

"I thought we were absconding?" Arcadia clarified and Delilah's stern look told him not to pursue any further line of questioning.

"Yes ma'am," Arcadia salute, doing exactly as he was told and Delilah gripped the flightstick and bounced in the wind. A rubbished Futurist Airship manually over-rode its broadside cannons and opened fire. Delilah predicted the counter-attack, yanked the controls and did her best to evade the listing ship's guns. They barely avoided being shot-down but the Futurists pocked the outer skin and Delilah stabilised the Saskatoon the best she could, fish tailing as raised her concerns over the intercom, ordering soldiers to be sent to complete patches.

Her radio crackled with static and Delilah called out for Capt Baker and Elvis but received no response. She re-checked the locator device strapped to the dashboard and now found Alistair atop Bigger Ben. Again, she yanked the flightstick.

"You'd churn butter less," Rocket said sarcastically and the ship lurched as she tweaked the rudder setting and tail-flaps.

"You may do the honours," Delilah told Rocket, tossing him the detonator cap and the soldier's eyes widened with delight.

"Yes, ma'am," he said gleefully. Lifting the in-flight announcer to his lips, Rocket cleared his throat, opened the channel and spoke politely.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please place all tables in the upright position, please ensure all bags are stowed under the seat in front of you and please ensure all weapons have been locked away. And whatever you do, please do not bleed on the upholstery. Thank you for flying the stormy skies with us tonight."

"And just so you know, so you can tell your children and grand-children about it one day, if you look out the starboard windows, I, Elliott Savage, am soon to cause a gazillion pounds worth of damage."

The Tommies raucously applauded, piling to the cabin's portholes to get the best possible viewing positions.

"Must you always jest?" Delilah asked as Rocket replaced the comms.

He looked at her with feigned indignity.

"Me? Jest? Never!" he said with a twinkle in his eye.

"Rocket?"

"Yeah?" Rocket replied.

"Armageddon it."

"How quickly can you get us out of here?" Rocket enquired as he flipped the detonator switch and connected the safety wires then held his thumb over the red button.

"How soon is now?" Delilah answered, slamming the thruster.

"That sounds good enough to me," Rocket grinned. "Let's kiss this thing goodbye."