Rick Daring and The Brilliant 5 – Chapter Six: The Death Trap

DEKKER – Stole the canister of Compound X from Sara.
DARING – Pursues Dekker and his men in the hopes of retrieving the Compound X.

Daring looked over his shoulder just in time to see where the out of control car was heading. He slowly started to lower himself underneath the car. His feet dragged painfully against the pavement. When he gotten himself completely underneath the car, Daring let go, and the car zoomed over him. There was a loud explosion as the car slammed into the tanker. By the time Daring arose from the ground and got his bearings, Dekker and his men had vanished.

Meanwhile, in the burnout husk of an abandoned laboratory, Dekker and Ox entered the darkened room that housed the holographic transmitter. At the appropriate time, the hologram hummed to life, and the two henchmen were in the presence of their mysterious master.

“Success at last,” hissed their master.

“Yes,” replied Dekker. “We’ve obtained the materials to start building the machine.”

“You did well, Dekker,” said the hooded man. “You even succeeded where Ox had failed.” Ox cringed as their master spoke. “Remember, Ox, that I don’t tolerate failure easily. Next time, I will not be so forgiving.”

Both henchmen nodded their heads in mute agreement. “Neither of you know anything about me, but I know where you are at all times because of the tracers I have you wear. It would be quite easy for me to walk up to you and stab you, or to slip poison in your drink. Remember that the next time either of you fails me.”

The hologram hiccupped; static momentarily obscured the hooded man’s visage. “Now, we must proceed with my plans to obtain the rest of the blueprints. Here is what I need you to do…”

Rick Daring and Sara were walking the long hallways of a local hospital. They had just started to recover from Dekker’s recent attack where they heard the news of the saucer crash and rushed over to the hospital. Sara rubbed the back of her head.

“You don’t have to do this,” said Daring. “The guys and I can handle this one.”

“That Compound X was put under my protection,” replied Sara. “I’m not backing out of this until I retrieve it.”

“Fair enough,” said Daring as they entered Old Timer’s room. Old Timer was lying in the hospital bed. Surrounding him was Junior, Marissa, Johnny, and Teresa.

“Daring! Finally!” shouted Old Timer. “Tell these young whippersnappers that I’m fine. They got me all bound up like I’m in my deathbed.”

“It’s good to see you’re doing fine,” said Daring with a smile. “Old Timer, you remember Sara, don’t you?”

“Yer dern tootin’,” replied Old Timer. “Always a pleasure.”

“The same goes for you,” said Sara. “We were so worried when we all heard the news.”

“We were very lucky to walk away with some minor cuts and scrapes. The doctor wanted Old Timer to stay overnight for observation, since he had been unconscious for a long period of time,” stated Johnny.

“Well, phooey with that!” exclaimed Old Timer. “I’m fit as a fiddle!”

“Why don’t you listen to the doctor for a change?” asked Junior.

“You’d like me stuck in a hospital all day,” retorted Old Timer.

“Enough you two,” interrupted Daring. “It wouldn’t hurt to follow the doctor’s order, Old Timer.”

“Hah!” said Junior.

“It won’t be too bad,” said Sara. “Especially with Junior here keeping you company.”

“Huh?” said a bemused Junior. “But… but I got a date tonight!”

“She’ll understand,” said Sara. “You two behave, and we’ll see you in the morning.” Sara bent and kissed Old Timer on the forehead.

“Well, shucks,” was all Old Timer could say.

The next day, Sara and Daring drove to the secret laboratory where the remaining three scientists continued to work on their top secret project. Upon their arrival, the scientists went to meet with them, but only Sergoff and Edwards showed up.
“Where’s Doctor Scott?” asked Daring.

“I don’t know,” replied Sergoff. “Last time I saw him, he was in his private study.” The two scientists led Daring and Sara to Scott’s study. Edwards quietly knocked on the door, but there was no reply.

Daring cautiously opened the door, only to find Scott sitting quietly in his armchair. It was only when they approached him that they discovered that he was dead. Yet there was no sign of a struggle and no wounds found on Scott’s body. Sergoff quietly excused himself from the room, visibly shaken at the sight of the corpse.

“As far as I can tell,” said Sara, examining the body. “He died from asphyxiation.”

Daring nodded his head in agreement. “But what caused it?”

“It looked like he was listening to his radio,” said Edwards idly.

“Don’t touch that!” said both Sara and Daring, but it was already too late. Edwards had twisted the knob on the large stereo. A malevolent voice filled the room as steel door slammed down, covering the window and door.

“Welcome, fools, to your death!” said the eerie voice. “I am the Spectre, and you have stood in my way for long enough. I will have my revenge and show the world what true power is!” Sara and Daring were scanning the room, searching for some possible escape route.

“You will now share the same fate as poor Dr. Scott. It seems like when you activated the radio, it sent a signal to the main computer, telling it that there’s a fire in this room. First, it will seal off the room, and then, it will suck the oxygen out of the room in order to suffocate the fire.” The Spectre let out a maniacal laugh.

Daring and Sara were already taking the carpeting off the floor and pressing them against the room’s vents, trying to prevent the powerful fans from sucking all the air out. Daring signaled Edwards to come over to him. Daring let Edwards take over for him as Daring went and sized up the door.

Daring put his muscular shoulder into the door, but it did not budge. He tried again but knew that force wasn’t going to work. The air was already getting thin, and he was finding it hard to catch his breath. Daring started to pull something out of his watch, when he suddenly collapsed.

“Richard!” exclaimed Sara. Forgetting the vent, she rushed over to his prone body. Checking him, she found him breathing shallowly. Slowly, Sara started giving him mouth to mouth, reviving his lungs with fresh oxygen from hers. But soon, she felt lightheaded, and the room was swaying.

As she fell backwards, she caught Edwards out of the corner of her eyes. He was lying very still on the ground. The last thing she heard before she blacked out was the voice of the sinister Spectre.

“Death is the reward of all who stand in my way! Death!” His eerie laughter filled the quiet room.

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Written by J M Emmons. The story and all characters are copyrighted by J M Emmons.

Comments on Chapter 5

The latest chapter introduces Sara, my serial's heroine. It's a shame that many serials don't have very strong female characters. Most female characters are relegated to the hero's girlfriend/secretary/lab assistant who always gets knocked out/kidnapped/tied up. There are a few serials with leading heroines, such as Perils of Nyoka, but sadly these are far and few between. Linda Stirling (Zorro's Black Whip) and Kay Aldridge (The Perils of Nyoka) were lucky enough to portray these strong female characters.

I know, I know. It may seem hypocritical to write about having strong female characters, when Sara didn't do much in Chapter 5 besides get knocked unconscious, though she did hold her own against Dekker. But in future chapters, she will be in the thick of it along with Daring, and will probably have more than one opportunity to save our hero for certain death.

Rick Daring and The Brilliant 5 – Chapter Five: The Woman in White

OX – Sabataged the saucer containing Old Timer, Teresa, and Johnny Highpitch, causing it to crash into the ground.

The giant saucer crashed into a vast farm field, tearing up the ground with a mighty roar. Flames erupted all over the saucer. Inside the cockpit, among the ruined controls, was the Emergency Safety System, which was luckily still intact when the saucer crashed.

Its on-board sensors detected something wrong and activated the emergency foam, spraying it all over the cockpit. The foam acted very similar to an airbag in that it provided cushion against the initial impact. In other words, it saved Johnny Highpitch’s life.

Johnny woke up among the foam; everywhere sirens blaring. His body was sore, but he would live. He limped his way through the wrecked hallways, until he came upon a groggy Teresa. Old Timer was safely strapped to his bed, but still unconscious. Johnny helped Teresa untie him, and they both carried the body out of the saucer.

There, in the mud, they saw large footprints, leading into the forest nearby. Ox had made his getaway. They laid Old Timer down as emergency vehicles appeared over the horizon.

“Daring’s not going to be happy,” said Johnny. “I wrecked his favorite saucer.”

Meanwhile, Daring and Junior were making their way back to the Institute in his roadster. Pulling up in a free parking space, Daring noticed a sleek, white car that wasn’t there when he had left. Daring knew who it belonged to and was curious as to why she was here.

Approaching the Institute’s sitting room, Daring heard Marissa’s melodious laugh. Daring entered to find Marissa entertaining Sara, the Woman in White. She stood beside a large fireplace, while Marissa sat in a nearby armchair. Sara wore her long, dark hair back in a bun, while stray strands danced before her eyes. A dark navy shirt peeked out of her white jacket and pants.
Her green eyes sparkled as she spotted Daring entering the ornate room. “We were just taking about you, Richard,” she said, using Daring’s full first name. “I was just telling dear Marissa about our misadventure in Tibet with the Yeti and that strange Doctor fellow.”



“Keeping out trouble lately, Sara?” asked Daring.

“That’s my line,” she replied. “Clearly, from what I’ve been hearing, you should be kept on a shorter leash. Imagine my surprise hearing that none other than Richard Darington and his Brilliant 5 was called in to investigate one of the most secure compounds on the planet. I have no idea what you turned up, but it wasn’t long before they contacted my people and asked to use our sample of Compound X, while ‘regular security measures’ were being examined.”

“Compound X? You brought it with you?” asked Daring.

“Yes, yes,” she said impatiently. “Where are your manners, Richard? Aren’t you even going to introduce me?”

“Of course,” said Daring. “Marissa, Junior. This is Sara, a top-rate negotiator I’ve worked with a number of times.”

“Pleasure to meet you both,” she said as she shook their hands. She gave Daring a smile.

“What?” he asked.

“I only count two,” she said. “Where are the other three?”

“They had to make a trip to the moon. They should be back any time now.”

“More Compound X?” she asked. “This gets more interesting every minute. By any chance, do you know what they need the Compound X for?”

“It’s the fuel that runs their secret project, whatever that is,” remarked Daring. “Where is your Compound X, Sara?”

“It’s in the other room. I’ll just pop over and get it, shall I?” She left Daring, Junior, and Marissa. In the next room, she went over to the desk where the polished metal briefcase lay. Her fingers had just wrapped themselves around the case’s plastic handle when she felt the familiar sensation of a gun being poked into her back.

“Don’t say anything or I’ll shoot,” said Dekker from behind her. She glanced to her left, noticing the ajar door leading to the balcony. “Open the case and give me the Compound X.”

“You’re a very well-informed man,” said Sara as the briefcase scanned her fingerprints. “How did you happen to know I was here?”

“We got people staked out all over, watching Daring’s every move,” said Dekker as the briefcase snapped open. “And we figured them lab guys need more of that Compound X stuff, and here you come with a big suitcase.”

“Very clever,” she said, pulling a canister out of a foam brace. “Did you think of that yourself or did you have help?”

“Naturally, our…” Dekker caught himself before he completed the sentence.

“So, you are working for someone. I’ll be sure to pass that on to Richard when I see him next,” she said. “By the way, put the gun down.”

“What?”

“Put down the gun, or I’ll smash this into the ground, and they’ll be picking up little pieces of ourselves for the next three weeks.” Dekker stared her in the eyes, trying to read her gambit. He slowly compiled, not because of her threat but because of Davis silently sneaking up behind her.

Davis slugged her in the back of the head with the butt of his gun, snatching the canister as she tumbled to the ground. They scurried to the door to balcony in order to make their getaway.

Moments later, Daring came into the room. “Sara!” he shouted when he saw the prone body on the floor. He rushed to her, checking her vitals. Noticing the empty briefcase, it didn’t take long for Daring to put two and two together. He ran to the open balcony doors and leapt off the balcony.

He landed on top of Davis. A quick punch and Davis was out like a light. Turning, he saw Dekker climbing into a car. He crossed the yard and climbed over the fence, just as the car started to drive away. Without thinking, Daring leapt up the back of a nearby parked car and jumped onto the top of the fleeing car’s roof.

His landing made a significant THUD, which alerted Dekker. Soon, he and Watkins started to ventilate the ceiling with their automatics. Feeling the bullets whiz by, Daring pushed himself forward off the roof and onto the hood of the car. He quickly perched himself onto the car’s front bumper, pressing his body against the car’s front grill.

With Daring hiding in the front of the car, Dekker and his men were finding it hard to get a bead on Daring. Dekker saw a nearby fuel tanker, and he told the driver to head right for it. One by one, Dekker and his men jumped from the car.
Daring looked over his shoulder just in time to see where the out of control car was heading. The car ran into the tanker, causing a large fireball. Fire everywhere, there was no way anyone could have survived.

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Written by J M Emmons. The story and all characters are copyrighted by J M Emmons.

Comments on Chapter Four

Sorry for the delay in Chapter Five. It will be up on this coming Sunday, if not earlier. Be sure to read it since it introduces a new cast member.

Well, the moon mini-saga is almost at an end, and we'll soon be revisiting out hero on the Earth. One of the reasons I had them go to the moon was to invoke the classic sci-fi feel of the 1950s, which dominated movie theaters soon after serials were retired. The Commander Cody serials of 1950s were some of the first serials I ever saw.

The plummeting aircraft is another common cliffhanger. In this case, I changed it into a flying saucer, but the same principal nonetheless.