Chapter 4: A Trip To Riyadh

The sun came down on the busty day of Bangkok, as Nikolai Kane boarded the private jet waiting for him at Suvarnabhumi Airport sent by the CIA. The Bangkok mission had been a success, but his mind was already on Riyadh the next link in the chain leading to the Sphinx Protocol, Yuan had told him that General Fahad had his men everywhere and he should be very careful and cautious.

As the jet soared above the clouds of Bangkok on its way to Ruyadh, Nikolai leaned back in his seat, mentally preparing for the challenges to come, he knew that the mission in Riyadh will be more hectic than the conversation he had with Yuan at Bangkok. He wasn't just up against armed guards or high-tech security systems he was up against a global conspiracy, with him being the CIA'S puppet.

A message from Agent Mitchell buzzed on his phone while on air:

"Shane will meet you in Riyadh. Trust her."

Nikolai raised an eyebrow he did not want third parties. He didn't trust easily, but Mitchell rarely misjudged character. So to Nikolai this was a good match to aid him in his time at Riyadh.

The jet which carried Nikolai touched down at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh,and the warm desert air greeted Nikolai as he stepped onto the tarmac of one of the biggest airport in the world. Waiting near a sleek black SUV was a striking woman with short auburn hair, piercing green eyes, and a confident smirk, with magnificent aura. She wore fitted tactical pants, a leather jacket, and combat boots—ready for action, she was the perfect partner for a personality of a person like Nikolai.

"Mr. Kane," she said, her voice was smooth and teasing. "I've heard stories about you. Didn't think the legend would be this handsome." Nikolai was not comfortable with her first expression.

Nikolai's eyes narrowed slightly. "And you must be Shane."

She extended a hand. "Shane Carter. CIA field operative. Your partner for this little adventure and for the time u will spend in Riyadh".

Nikolai shook her hand unwillingly, noting the strength of her grip. "Let's get one thing clear. I work alone, I do not like to be disturbed, just be professional".

Shane's smirk widened. "Sure you do. But tonight, you'll have to make an exception."

They climbed into the SUV at the airport, and Shane drove through navigated the streets of Riyadh with ease, blending into the city's rhythm and it's buzzing cultural lifestyle.

For the next two days after he had landed from Bangkok, Nikolai and Shane stayed under the radar for a while without exposing themselves to the city, familiarizing themselves with the city.

Both Nikolai and Shane moved around the city.They visited the historic Al Masmak Fortress, strolled through the bustling Souq Al Zal, and observed the towering Kingdom Centre glowing against the night sky, indeed the city of Riyadh was beautiful and it's upheld it's culture in modern technology.

During a stop at a rooftop café in the city environs, Shane leaned back in her chair, watching Nikolai with a playful gaze.

"You don't talk much, do you?" she teased. "Mysterious and brooding—just my type."

Nikolai remained stoic. "Flirting won't make me trust you, I don't appreciate that".

Shane leaned closer, a sarcastic glint in her eyes. "Who says I'm trying to make you trust me? Maybe I just like the challenge."

Nikolai allowed a faint smile on his face which made Shane a bit uneasy. "You'll find I'm not easy to challenge."

She chuckled. "Good. I hate easy."

That night, they returned to their safehouse, finalizing plans for the mission, as they prepared to infiltrate the General's vault to get information concerning the sphinx protocol.

On the third night of their stay In Riyadh, they prepared to infiltrate General Al-Fahad's estate to have access to his vault. Nikolai suited up in his sleek black combat gear, while Shane opted for a form-fitting tactical suit with twin pistols holstered at her sides, her dressing suit her character and charisma.

"Ready to dance?" she asked, loading her weapons.

"Just don't get in my way," Nikolai replied.

Shane grinned. "Don't worry. I'll keep up."

The General estate was a fortress on the outskirts of Riyadh which was built to tactical perfection, surrounded by desert and guarded by armed patrols. Nikolai and Shane approached silently, using the cover of night, the had a map of the whole estate to direct them to where they were gone to infiltrate.

Shane pulled out a compact drone, launching it into the air. "We've got three guards patrolling the east wall. Cameras on the northwest tower. No gaps in coverage." Nikolai loved her dedication to her work.

Nikolai assessed the situation. "We create a gap so that the gaps won't see us".

They moved swiftly, Nikolai disabling the cameras with a silenced EMP device while Shane took out the guards with precision shots, Shane was impressed and finally believed the stories she heard about Nikolai.

As they scaled the wall, Shane whispered, "Not bad for a guy who 'works alone.'"

Nikolai responded dryly with sarcasm written all over him, "I'm still working alone."

Once inside, both Nikolai and Shane navigated the marble hallways, avoiding detection. They reached the entrance to the underground vault after carefully moving through its security systems, where two guards stood watch.

Shane glanced at Nikolai. "Double takedown?"

He nodded. In perfect sync, they moved. Nikolai neutralized one guard with a chokehold, while Shane delivered a swift, silent shot to the other.

"Nice work," Shane whispered.

Nikolai glanced at her. "Stay focused."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm always focused." she wanted to get Nikolai attention but he was not interested he just came to finish up the work he had in Riyadh.

Finally the had got to the vault and Nikolai connected the hacking device he brought to the vault's control panel. The screen flickered as it bypassed layers of security.

"Come on, come on," Shane muttered, scanning the hallway for incoming threats because they had not to waste more time.

The lock clicked, and the vault door slid open and Nikolai had a sense of relief in him, Inside were classified documents, encrypted devices, and a sealed metal case marked with Al-Fahad's insignia.

Nikolai opened the case, revealing blueprints and a data drive. The header read:

Project Sphinx: Phase II Deployment – Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Shane's eyes widened. "I don't understand are they moving the protocol to Mecca? That's insane." why would they even do that.

Nikolai inserted the drive into his reader. Coordinates and logistical details filled the screen.

When the information he inserted came up it opened and it showed that the particular point of the sphinx protocol will be revealed in the document that is in Mecca.

"This isn't just about Saudi Arabia," Nikolai said grimly. "It's bigger than we thought."

An alarm blared through the compound. Guards flooded the hallways.

"Time to go," Shane said, drawing her pistols and Nikolai pulled out his short guns.

They moved through the estate with lethal precision, Nikolai taking out enemies with silenced shots while Shane covered him with acrobatic combat moves, they made a very perfect duo for combat.

At the courtyard, a patrol vehicle blocked their path. Nikolai tossed an EMP grenade, disabling its electronics and plunging the area into darkness. This gave them a perfect time to escape the estate.

"Get to the wall," Nikolai ordered.

Shane sprinted ahead, vaulting over the wall with ease. Nikolai followed, landing beside her in the desert and the ran away to safety.

As they ran toward the extraction point, Shane glanced at him, breathless but exhilarated. "Still think you work better alone after what happened inside the estate".

Nikolai smirked. "Ask me after we survive Mecca."

Shane grinned. "I'll hold you to that."

She was surprised that he still had sarcastic thought after the incidence of the estate where they worked together to escape General Fahad men.

Back at the safehouse in Riyadh, they transmitted the intel to Langley. Agent Mitchell's voice came through the earpiece which had Nikolai and Shane listening to it at this time.

"Kane, Carter, we've decrypted the coordinates. Mecca is the next target. This mission just got more dangerous. Be ready, keep note that Mecca is one of the biggest cities in Saudi Arabia and it holds a religious value to it's people, you will have to be quiet and lay low for orders".

Nikolai leaned back after he had heard from Mitchell, the adrenaline still pumping. The road ahead was uncertain, but with Shane by his side, he knew one thing for sure this mission was far from over, they had to leave Riyadh for Mecca soon and he was ready.

Nikolai Kane and Shane Carter stood side by side in the private hangar at King Khalid International Airport, Mitchell had informed him that he is heading to Mecca. Their time together in Riyadh had been intense, filled with combat, strategy, and undeniable chemistry. But now, the next mission awaited, Nikolai had to get to Mecca to get the information the CIA needed about the sphinx protocol.

"You're leaving me behind?" Shane asked, her tone half-joking, half-serious, with mixed emotions on her face.

Nikolai secured his tactical bag and glanced at her. "Orders from Mitchell. I go to Mecca alone, and I think it is for the best".

Shane stepped closer, her fingers brushing lightly against his arms in a way Nikolai did not appreciate. "Be careful, Kane. Mecca's not like anywhere else. One wrong move…"

"I know," Nikolai said, cutting her off and taking her hands off him. His gaze softened for a moment. "Stay safe, Shane."

She smirked. "You too, hero."

With that being said and pleasantries shared, Nikolai boarded the waiting plane, leaving Shane watching as the aircraft disappeared into the horizon on its way to Mecca.

The city of Mecca was a blend of ancient tradition and modern innovation, it is one of Saudi Arabia's largest cities after the capital Riyadh, Its skyline gleamed with towering skyscrapers, yet the streets were filled with pilgrims seeking spiritual solace, It was indeed a religious city. For Nikolai, it was a maze of culture, religion, and danger, he had to be alert and quick in his dealings.

He went undercover as a wealthy businessman who came to Mecca for a business trade with an oil and gas firm,he navigated through the city's bustling streets, blending in seamlessly. He knew his target: a high-security facility hidden beneath a luxury hotel, owned by General Al-Fahad's secretive network. It housed a vault rumored to contain the final piece of the puzzle—the Sphinx Protocol, which could grant him his freedom from the CIA.

Over the next two days, Nikolai Kane took his turn to observed the facility. Guards patrolled in shifts, security cameras monitored every entrance, and biometric locks secured the vault. It was a fortress which was almost impossible to penetrate and infiltrate.

But Nikolai had faced worse cases so he was determined to get the job done.

In the dimly lit room of his safehouse, he assembled his gear,a silenced pistol, EMP grenades, hacking devices, and a set of forged access cards. Every move had to be precise, he had calculated it and learnt what he needed to do from his observation.

His phone buzzed with a message from Mitchell:

"Infiltrate tonight. No mistakes, remember make it clean"

Nikolai smirked. "No mistakes," he muttered. "Right." and then Nikolai left his burner phone.

Night fell over Mecca after the hot sun of the day, and Nikolai moved like a shadow through the routes leading to the hotel. Dressed in a black tactical suit, he bypassed the outer security with ease, disabling cameras and silently neutralizing guards with precise accuracy and as Mitchell said "it was neat".

Inside the hotel, he went through all service corridors, avoiding guests and staff who were in the hotel for one business or the other his objective was: the elevator leading to the underground vault.

The elevator doors opened with a soft sound, and Nikolai stepped in, swiping the forged access card he had picked in the safehouse. The biometric scanner blinked green, and the elevator descended into the depths, underground to where the vault was there.

The underground vault was a labyrinth of steel and concrete built for the purpose of preserving and keeping things. At its center stood a reinforced door with a retinal scanner which needed General Fahad retinal scan for it to get unlocked, Nikolai approached, pulling out a device designed to mimic retinal patterns.

He placed the device against the scanner, and a little noise was buzzing "Come on…"

The lock clicked, and the door was open. Inside, the room was filled with classified documents which Fahad had kept for reference purposes, encrypted servers, and a central terminal. The vault was built orderly

Nikolai moved swiftly, connecting a decryption device to the terminal. Lines of code filled the screen as the device worked to unlock the files. He was very fast with his short gun never leaving his sight.

As the final layer of encryption fell, Nikolai accessed a file labeled "Sphinx Protocol: Project A.L." finally he got the information which made him leave Riyadh to Mecca.

He opened it, expecting blueprints, coordinates, or a physical description of the Protocol. Instead, he found something far more disturbing—a video message, which was very odd.

He finally opened the video message and on the screen appeared a man in his late fifties, with sharp features and piercing eyes. His voice was calm, calculated, and he was saying something very important

"If you're watching this, you've come looking for the Sphinx Protocol."

The man leaned forward in the video message.

"I am Dr. Adrian Laurent. And you've made a grave mistake."

Nikolai's eyes narrowed. Laurent—the rogue scientist presumed dead.

"The Sphinx Protocol isn't a device," Laurent continued. "It isn't a weapon you can hold. It lives, breathes, and walks among you." Nikolai did not understand anything he was saying because everything sound strange to him.

The screen flickered, displaying a series of DNA sequences which the sphinx protocol is built on

"The Protocol is biological," Laurent said. "Embedded in human DNA. The host… is my daughter, Ava Laurent, I did this so to prevent criminals and bad international syndicate to get their hands on one of the strongest weapons mankind has created".

Nikolai's heart raced. A human host?, he said to himself "This changes everything" He scrolled through the files, finding images of Ava—a young woman with striking blue eyes and a serene expression. She had no idea she carried the world's most dangerous secret. Her father had implanted the sphinx protocol in her genes when she was just 6 years old and she has been a carrier of this protocol ever since.

"If you kill the host, the Protocol dies with her," Laurent's voice echoed. "If you exploit it, humanity destroys itself. Choose wisely."

Before Nikolai could process the information, the facility's alarms blared. His presence had been detected by the vault's security system which spelt trouble for him

"Damn it," he muttered, grabbing the drive with the decrypted files and made his way for it.

Guards stormed the corridors, their footsteps echoing and fast approaching. Nikolai moved with precision, taking them down one by one. Bullets ricocheted off the walls as he fought his way to the surface, he knew he had to leave the building with the decrypted files he got from the vault

Reaching the elevator, he disabled the controls, forcing it to ascend. As the doors opened, more guards awaited for him to nab him like they did in Vienna.

Nikolai threw an EMP grenade, plunging the floor into darkness, the guards couldn't not see and in the chaos, he slipped through, emerging into the hotel lobby.

He moved swiftly, blending into the crowd of unsuspecting guests. Outside, a black sedan van waited a CIA extraction team sent by Mitchell to secure Kane Incase the mission went Rogue.

As Nikolai climbed into the sedan, his phone buzzed with a message from Shane, his partner with who he worked with at Riyadh.

"How did they mission go Nikolai". "It went well he replied and get me on air with Mitchell" he told Shane.

Nikolai's grip tightened around the phone.

The driver glanced back. "Where to, sir and he said just take me out of Mecca".

Nikolai's gaze hardened. Mitchell had come on air to speak with him and he sent him the decrypted files through a laptop that was in the Van which took him out of the hotel some 30 minutes ago.

The van sped off into the night, leaving Mecca behind. But the mission was far from over.

After Mitchell had gotten the decrypted files he told Nikolai "Kane we need to Find Ava Laurent as fast as possible before any one else get their hands on this information".

Somewhere in the world, Ava Laurent the living Sphinx Protocol was on the run. And every nation was hunting her.

As Nikolai stared out the window, one thought consumed him:

What happens when the most dangerous weapon on earth doesn't know she is a weapon.

The Van had left mecca and moved into the desert and the drive through it all night with Kane getting a little bit of sleep the finally arrived Riyadh in the early hours of the morning and Nikolai met Shane once again.

At Riyadh, Nikolai stayed with shane at the safehouse waiting for orders from Virginia on what to do next and one fateful evening a call came through his burner phone, it was Mitchell who had called and Nikolai picked it up, Mitchell said to him "Kane we have found Ava Laurent and we are sending you the information on your laptop now"

CIA Dossier: Ava Laurent – Current Location Identified

Subject: Ava Laurent

Age: 29

Occupation: Mathematics Teacher

Location: Hong Kong, SAR

Address: (Redacted)

After 3 days of surveillance and intelligence gathering, the CIA has confirmed the location of Ava Laurent, the human host of the Sphinx Protocol. Contrary to expectations that it will be a physical device, Ava has been living an unassuming life as a mathematics teacher at North Ridge International School, a modest high school in a quiet residential district of Hong Kong and her life was simple and easy like that of a regular joe.

CIA Dossier: Ava Laurent – Current Location Identified

Subject: Ava Laurent

Age: 29

Occupation: Mathematics Teacher

Location: Hong Kong, SAR

Address: (Redacted)

Her lifestyle is simple and unremarkable with no complexity, She resides in a small, third-floor apartment in a small building on the outskirts of the city not far from the school teaches. The neighborhood is a blend of local families and expatriates, providing Ava with anonymity on who she is and unknowingly what she holds. She walks to work daily, frequenting a local café where she orders the same green tea each morning and snacks.

Ava's routine everyday is just simply ordinary. She teaches algebra and calculus to a group of international students who comes to her school, often staying late to tutor those struggling with complex equations. Her colleagues describe her as kind, reserved, and highly intelligent—a woman dedicated to her students and seemingly uninterested in the world beyond her classroom, little did she know that she would be a cause for global struggle.

Despite her unassuming demeanor and her simple and modest lifestyle, Ava's presence in Hong Kong has not gone unnoticed. On the Night which Nikolai accessed the vault in Mecca, intelligence agencies from different countries also accessed some of the files in the vault which revealed the same thing Nikolai told the CIA.

Recent communications suggest she has unknowingly attracted the attention of foreign intelligence agencies to Hong Kong, all vying for control of the Sphinx Protocol embedded in her DNA, so the CIA had to be quick and fast to get to her before anybody does.

While Ava appears unaware of her significance and what her DNA holds, the potential for a global security crisis remains high. Multiple operatives have been deployed to Hong Kong, and time is of the essence. The CIA must act swiftly to secure Ava before she falls into the hands of rival nations or mercenaries seeking to exploit her for the sphinx protocol.

Nikolai Kane has been briefed and is told to go to Hong Kong. His mission was very straight and simple locate Ava Laurent, gain her trust, and extract her to a secure location. However, given her proximity to civilian life and potential surveillance, the operation must proceed with extreme caution to avoid unnecessary tantrums.

Objective: Protect the host. Protect the Protocol. At all costs.

After the information got to Nikolai in Riyadh he was told to travel to Singapore to meet up with another field Agent Andrew so that he will be briefed on what to do and so that he could depart to Hong Kong from there, it was as if Nikolai was going on a tour around the world, he needed to get to Ava Laurent at all costs and stop any other international syndicate from getting her and extracting the protocol from her DNA.

He was instructed by Mitchell to go to Jebba another big city in the Arabian country, where they will be a jet will transport him from Saudi Arabia to Singapore.

After receiving all the messages sent by the CIA he finally left Riyadh and Shane escorted him driving him through the countryside to Jebba, where the went to a rendezvous point where the jet was waiting for them and after a Moment of driving they finally got down.

Nikolai got down from the SUV with Shane, hugged her and bidded her farewell as he boarded the jet to depart for Singapore.

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