The New Tales of the Great Wall of China
Hamza Apabhai, Group 3: Fiction, Harrow International School Hong Kong
his project is classified top secret. Absolutely nobody will know who you are or where you are.
Your personal information will be erased. Your new names have been changed to Andy Cook,
John Mclean and Peter Murray. You will get new IDs and passports, even different fingerprints
all programmed into the system.”
The three young intelligence officers, who had been brought into a large, empty room at the end
of a long corridor, did not know where they were. They had not seen each other before but they knew who was
standing right in front of them; Commander Douglas Brown. Interrupting the briefing, Jack enquired in a heavy
German accent.
“
Vhere ar ve?”
The commander turned his head, surprised at the interruption, and replied,
“
I am very sorry, but I do not understand what you are saying.”
“
I am very sorry, vut vhere vare ve?” Jack asked again.
The Commander looked at the young, blond haired lieutenant. With a deep sigh he answered, “We are in a
secret underground bunker deep under intelligence headquarters. This is an experimental project to allow the
identity of intelligence officers to be changed, making them more versatile and adaptable to different operational
regimes. It will reduce the need for large numbers of intelligence operatives and allow the agency to deploy
agents optimally designed for the theatre in which they will be working. You have been chosen to be the first
agents to be adapted – a new, elite generation of superagents.”
A soldier dressed in fatigues was working on replacing their profiles with new characters.
“
We are ready for replacement, sir.”
“
Very well. Proceed.”
As they all walked out Charles suddenly turned and said “But what are they removing, Sir?” The
question went unanswered but Charles’ military training and discipline told him it was futile to expect an
answer – he was there to follow the orders. That was the oath he had taken, to serve Queen and Country,
obediently and unswervingly.
One by one, they would enter the experimental chamber. Jack went first. The magnets whirred into action. After
a few minutes the pod door opened and a new person appeared. A new older person, more muscular than Jack,
with darker hair appeared. The old Jack, now taller than previously, replied in a fluent Australian accent “ G’day
mate! Name is Andy Cook. How ya doing?”
Charles and Andrew were stunned. They realised that they were going to be reprogrammed too. Next was
Andrew. As Commander Brown saluted his bravery, he entered the pod and came out, a few minutes later, a
different person.
The door sealed shut as Charles stepped into the tube. As the magnets whirred into action, there was a sudden
and loud explosion. Sirens went off around the cavernous building and red lights started flashing. Commander
Brown looked stunned but was composed enough to know that there was a serious problem. He had to stop the
procedure. He ran towards the master control switch but just as he was about to press abort, there was another
explosion, this time louder than the one before, shaking the ground and knocking him off his feet. There was a
blinding flash of light throwing the military officers to the floor. Charles hit his head hard on the floor as he fell.
As his eyes started to close, the sirens became distant and the lights started to blur. He fought hard to keep them
open but his head was throbbing as black appeared before him….
Charles slowly opened his eyes. As his body awoke, he found he was stiff and immobile; he had been
tied to a crude stool. Taking in his dark surroundings, he noticed he was alone in a prison cell. He had a
bloodied bandage around his head that was still causing pain. He was half naked and his face and body were
grimy. Charles heard shouting above him. He could not make out what was being said but he sensed that they
had been waiting for him to awake. He struggled to release himself from the ropes but found that he was tightly
bound and could not move. Suddenly, guards dressed in red with black armour plate covering their head and
chest carrying swords and spears, came rushing into the cell. A soldier cut the ropes and Charles felt agony
rushing through his body as he slumped to the floor. A soldier supported him under each arm as they dragged
him outside.
When Charles’ eyes had adapted to the light, what he saw made him think he was dreaming; there were
thousands of labourers with pickaxes and stocks toiling on a construction site. Workers were quarrying
mountains far off into the distance as far as the eye could see while others were mixing mud with water to make
“
T