1 Chapter 1 Novosibirsk, 55° 3′ 0″ N, 82° 57′ 0″ E A Cottage by the Frozen Lake

Andalas opened his eyes. He looked around the unfamiliar surroundings. He didn't know how long he had been unconscious. One thing he remembered was the chaos at the Grozny Airport. Cecilia! Akiko!

He got up in an instant. The memory jolted all the muscles in his body. He had to protect them from the violent of OWC the cunning secret services. But where are they? Are they here too? The last thing he remembered, he was on a Swiss Air flight with Cecilia and Akiko in the middle of a gunfight.

Andalas opened the thick wooden door. He was in a small cabin. It was well maintained and fully equipped and warm from woods burning in the fireplace. Someone must have brought him here. Andalas suspected he was still on Russian territory.

"Yup! You're in Siberia, son." a surprising voice came from behind. Andalas turned around.

A man in his 60s with silver hair was standing in front of him with kind eyes.

"Where am I?" Andalas asked as he was opening the main door of the hut. An extremely cold gust of wind hit his face.

"I brought you here after you had major surgery a few days ago. The bullet almost hit your heart. Just a few millimeters off. This is Doctor Aslan's secret cabin. It's part of the Novosibirsk region."

Andalas closed the door again. It's too cold outside. He seated himself in a wooden chair covered in warm foam.

"Do you know about my two friends? Cecilia and Akiko? They are also Doctor Aslan's colleagues." Andalas hoped the old man knew something about them.

"I don't know them. Doctor Aslan told me to transfer you here. The world is in chaos. Diseases are widespread in almost all countries in the world. This is one of the last safe places, I guess."

Andalas was shocked. Disease? Dear God! Perhaps….Andalas searched around his pocket.

"Are you looking for this, son?" the old man pointed to a device lying on the table in front of him.

Oh, thank goodness! X-One!

Andalas grabbed the X-One and tried to find an active connection to any members of the MS-BA-30 team. None of the indicators were lit. Damn!

His eyes then wandered around the room. A small old television was on the table in the corner of the room. Andalas gave a questioning signal. Is this tv still on?

The old man chuckled.

"A decoration, it's been there for almost 10 years, son. It's broken."

Andalas rolled his eyes. He opened the door, a fierce gush of cold wind was rushing in. He stepped outside while looking at the X-One screen.

The sophisticated gadget was always connected to any communication satellite in the closest orbit without relying on cellular network. But it wouldn't work if the stratosphere was covered with dense clouds.

And that was what happened. There was no satellite coverage signal. Andalas shivered. He had been outside the hut for too long. The temperature was dropping below 0 Celsius. But his sheer determination overcame the freezing cold that cut as sharp as kaiken's tip against the exposed skin of his face.

Kaiken? Why did he think of Akiko's weapon? Andalas slammed his fist against a dead pine tree. From his mouth came a low grumble. Weak man.

Bing! At first Andalas didn't notice the sound. His focus was still on Akiko's teasing smile. Cold but with a hint of sweetness!

Bing! Only then did Andalas jump in surprise. He opened the X-One hastily.

Andalas, it's Cathy. Where are you? Cecilia and Akiko desperately need you.

I'm somewhere in Siberia. I regained consciousness just this morning. What's wrong? Where are they? Are we under mass pandemic at global scale, is it true? Is Pandora safe? How about anti-virus serum for MS? BA? Did you guys succeed?

Look. I'll give you short update on the state of MS-BA-30 team and other things. I can't keep the X-One open for long. We are being prosecuted and constantly on the lookout for eavesdropping of all kinds;

1. Doctor Aslan was removed from his position as WHO Director General. He is scheduled for a trial in The Hague. Allegations of crimes against humanity.

2. Pandora was taken over! We were attacked by a large army. I, Prof Sato, Prof Lian, Prof Hernandez, and Prof Mbutu were managed to escape by several MI6 agents who also survived. We are now hiding in a secret facility owned by a close friend of Doctor Aslan. It's somewhere in a desert area but I am not sure the exact location.

3. Cecilia and Akiko were apprehended by Interpol! They were detained in Lyon. I can't get in touch with them but from what I gathered; they will face charges before The Hague court. The same situation as Doctor Aslan.

4. The world is hit by pandemic from two directions! From the north by MS, and south by BA. Be careful when you go out into the crowd. You're immune to BA, but I'm not sure with MS. My advice is don't get hurt. MS is spread through an open wound.

5. Doctor Aslan advised not to worry about his situation. We need to save Cecilia and Akiko first. We're safe here. These facilities can sustain life for years. We will build and continue research for MS and BA until we can find the serum.

Although his chest wound was still healing, Andalas made up his mind. I must go to France!

But how?

"Doctor Aslan asked me to give you this." The old man holding out a small key.

"The clues are here." He handed a neatly folded paper over to Andalas.

Andalas tucked the two items into his jacket pocket. He had to get ready. But the old man pointed at another surprise for him. It was a travel bag contain a bunch of clothes and cash in a thick envelope.

Lastly, the old man handed him car keys.

"This is Doctor Aslan's favorite all-terrain car when he goes on vacation here. You can use it. You can find the number of Doctor Aslan's personal assistant in Seoul in the paper I gave you. You can call him anytime if you need anything. He has all this ready for sometimes."

Andalas nodded. His adoptive father was indeed like a well-disciplined soldier.