Chapter Six: The Gigantic Shell

The trip to Minneapolis went fast for an anxious Luke Lancaster. On the plane, he hardly looked at Christopher Molina, though his fellow agent was persistently close to him and faced him often through the sky journey. 

As soon as they arrived at Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, the two spies considered the expedience of their work in these cities. 

''We must hurry to find out what is neccessary,'' said Christopher. 

''Indeed,'' Luke agreed. 

''The Slavs are smarter than other terrorists across the globe. Many of them are atheists, ensuring that they have no religious desperation for what they do. They are disciplined in their thought and patient enough to ensure our own end.'' 

''Indeed,'' Luke returned. 

''All of the United States's security rests on us now.'' 

''I pray we don't fail them.'' 

They exited one of the glass doors of the building before heading to a Taxi out front. Then, the two men were driven to another location, much different than the last.

                                                                          *     *    *

The targeted home was a small shack with at least forty police cars outside. Many of the local officers were investigating the building and dialoging with one another. Luke and Christopher approached the small house from a distance. They then headed to the doorway with their loaded weapons as they sought to learn more. Inside, many parts of the shack had already been investigated. The agents stood above a high archway on the second floor, while hiding their watch from the local police.

''Washington needs to know everything that we see here,'' Christopher began. ''We need to report to them as soon as possible.'' 

''Yes. I feel that we still have much to find here.'' 

The two men passed down the hallway while taking notes and photos of anything potentially suspicious in the rooms next to them. Luke found a thick rug patted by one of the walls and maneuvered his hand across the old paint before pressing a small crack there, which opened a staircase. He searched for where the movement had occurred before lifting the carpet and saying, ''Come, Chris, it looks like the scientist was working underground.'' 

Mr. Molina smiled. ''You look for everything,'' he praised. 

They faced their flashlights to the ground above, before descending on wet stairs that headed far underground. 

''I wonder what is down here,'' Christopher began, noticing several rats running by their feet. 

They reached the bottom floor, where only one lamp was available beside their own lights. Around them were various shelves of glasses and cans used for Chemistry and nuclear experiments. 

''The scientist has gone missing,'' Luke began. ''Finding him is necessary.'' 

''Indeed,'' Christopher said, looking around. ''It doesn't look like anything is here. Perhaps we should return to the city and leave this investigation to the FBI.'' 

Luke nearly conceded before he noticed a wide pile of mud smashed by one of the shelves. He headed toward the furniture piece and squeezed behind it, finding a massive hole in the earth. There, he found something worth noting, as his eyes were surprised at what he viewed. A great shell was found in the earth below, where a weapon had long been in the works. 

''What are you doing? Did you find anything?'' 

Luke kneeled at the sight of the shell. ''It looks like a bomb was stored here. It was protected by this metal piece, like a snail behind its shell. The weapon is even bigger than I imagined.'' 

''Great, let's return to Washington to report what's happening.'' 

''Not yet. The man who made this machine is Dr. Daniil Rose. He lived in Minneapolis for the last several years, though he has since gone missing. Apparently, he's taken his weapon with him.'' 

''Then perhaps we should contact the Agency and see if we can locate him in the city?'' 

''No, not yet, at least. We may have more to find here first.'' 

(In a later chapter, Christopher pretends to be dead, so that he may track Luke on his own). The Gignatic shell found points them back to Philadelphia, where the scientist has relocated, before he attempts an explosion at the next Philadelphia Eagles games, where Luke must save Anne.