Note: Thanks to everyone for support on this story. It has not always been easy to write and work out a complex plot. But finally here is the last chapter.

Chapter 16- testing the defenses

In a secured room in the Gastle Markus Drey grinned as the auction for the firewall reached its conclusion. He was very satisfied with the amount he had received and had decided it was time to move onto the main event, the destruction of IMF.

It was about time that the agency received its death blow and he felt guiltless over the fact it would come from him. He thought all spies were arrogant with inflated opinions of themselves. The best and brightest of the lot had always been Ethan Hunt. But where was he now, somewhere far away and totally clueless.

His smile widened, Hunt's career was about to come to an end and he would be responsible. It felt incredible to feel so powerful. He turned his gaze back to his laptop where a line of script was appearing.

"I want the names of all IMF agents", his top buyer had tapped in over his own keyboard. This was how they protected their identities from each other , concealing themselves in private rooms with one way glass and communicating only via non networked computers. Each room had a time lock that would only let the person leave at a set time. The timing mechanisms were not able to be overrode by the people inside. The buyers here today felt safe and secure that their real identities would remain hidden from him and each other. He did not care who they were as long as they paid him. But he did know that all of them were enemies of the US and that fact did not bother him in the slightest. For a second he wondered about his lack of a conscience then his mind moved past what he was doing to focus on the money.

As a precaution he had Xander prowling the corridors between the rooms with a semi automatic. Anyone breaking the rules was going to be shot on sight.

He felt confident that last stipulation would control anyone who had the urge to betray him and try and steal the computer virus.

"Alright I'll now start the bidding for the names of all IMF agents", Markus announced viahis laptop. Soon numbers appeared on his screen as the auction got underway. Right away he noted that his top buyer wanted the auction to end fast, the amount jumped from 10 million to 50 in 2 seconds. Whoever he was, he must really hate IMF . That was obviously something they had in common.

Another buyer countered that amount but his top buyer came back with another amount and Markus blinked as if trying to clear something from his eye. Surely he was not seeing the amount he thought he was.

He was probably going to be the richest person in the world after this.

When nobody else made another bid Markus accepted the amount and arranged for the immediate transfer of the money. "I want the names now", the buyer was typing. Markus danced his fingers over his laptop entering the command to lower the firewall. He demanded that the names of all IMF agents be yielded up at the same time.

In the ambulance a short distance from the castle William Brandt felt sweat begin to pool on his fingers and on his brow as his fingers danced across the keyboard. He might not be with Ethan and the others but he could still fight this battle. It was a fight he could not afford to lose. Benji had been right when saying computers were not his strong point. But he did share something in common with Markus Drey, his clever mind. Brandt had always been good at remembering facts and using that knowledge to work up plans. When he had tried to resign after his failure in Croatia it was this skill that had the secretary suggesting a very different line of work. One of the other programmers had spent hours coaching him for this mission and had been impressed by his ability to retain knowledge. It had still taken him awhile to memorize everything required of him. Now he put it into play as he countered the command to yield up IMF agents. He began to grin as he thought of a perfect way to frustrate Drey, making up stupid names of his own.

His main goal in this was not only to stop the virus but also to stall Markus long enough to given Ethan and the others time to infiltrate the castle.

"Santa Claus, Tooth fairy, Mickey Mouse, the incredible Hulk, " Markus's mouth had gone suddenly dry as he saw the names scroll across the screen.

"What is this", the buyer was demanding. Markus wanted to know as well, he entered another code and this time noted that someone else appeared to be countering what he was doing. There was no way that was possible, he had planned this whole thing very carefully with a skillfulness no one else possessed. He hit the keyboard a lttle harder this time, inputting a more complex code.

Brandt swallowed for a instant as all the knowledge in his head slipped away. Shaking himself firmly he willed it back into his mind then began to type in the counter code. It was time for more silly names plus to let Drey know exactly who was fighting against him. He knew it would a major cause of distress to Drey that he was still alive and had played him for a fool. Maybe that would shake the cocky programmer and he would make an error. Brandt smiled wider

"Donald Duck, Spiderman, Shrek, more stupid names crossed the screen. Then a picture appeared and Markus found himself slamming his fist onto the laptop.

A chameleon who changed colour from green to brown and back again strolled across the screen, written boldly across his middle was 'the jokes on you".

Markus found himself raising his hand to the cut on his face Brandt had caused. Obviously the agent was still very much alive and had been playing an elaborate game with him.

"Damn you how did you do this", Markus swore loudly , he felt every part of his body clench and it was almost painful. No matter how hard he thought he could not see how Brandt had managed another deceit . What had happened to his feelings of brilliance and superiority. It seemed like it was fading. He calmed himself in seconds and sent a reassuring sentence back to his buyer. "Alright Brandt ,he growled, you are just a stupid analyst who really was an agent, you cannot outwit me".

He decided the perfect way to put an end to Brandt was to let the buyer have all the names of the agents he personally knew. His fingers skipped over the keyboard as he typed in Ethan Hunts name first. That should prove who really was in charge.

Brandt knew exactly what to do about this and used a command to permanently link to Markus's stupid name file for agents. This was new code unknown to Drey and something he could not counter. No matter what he enter he'd get back a senseless reply. Boy this made him feel a little better, though of course he still wanted to have the satisfaction of smacking Drey hard.

Drey tried to send Hunts name to the buyer but it changed to Superman and nothing Markus could do would change it back. He did not have direct voice contact with any of his buyers, another safety feature which unfortunately was now acting against him. A howl of frustration that he had been trying to suppress burst out between his teeth.

He guessed one of the other programmers had been coaching Brandt and had done an excellent job. Brandt's skill as an analyst obviously also helped him. But he was not beaten yet. His fingers danced over the keyboard again and he ground his teeth together hard. This code was complex and beyond poor old Brandts puny mind, he had just about finished and was about to activate the new code when something caught his eye. The computer was revealing the location of Brandts commands. It was almost on top of the Gastle.

Markus stopped in the act of entering the final code as he realized Brandt was stalling him. His inflated thoughts of before felt abruptly punctured and he realized he had been too arrogant and that had almost cost him everything. He had described Hunt a superman in his files and viewed him as capable of almost everything. So even though he had thought there was no way into this castle he could guarantee that if Brandt was close by then so were Hunt and the others. For a moment his hot anger warred with self preservation, he desperately needed to prove that no mere agent could outwit him. Yet he already had more money that he had ever dreamed was possible and Brandt would never come close to earning that amount. Getting caught or dying would not prove that he was the greatest. But getting away probably would.

He could always put an end to IMF another time with a more powerful virus. It was now time to put his escape plan into action.

His main buyer was getting twitchy, demanding the codes and declaring reprisals if Markus had ripped him off .He knew the perfect way to turn his anger toward another target. "Agents have infiltrated the castle and intercepted the real codes, stop them and I'll refund your money", was typed to his top buyer. He sent a similar message to the other buyers offering them a share of his millions if they helped him out.

There perfect, Hunt would find himself in the middle of a battle while he walked away. His mind stilled for a moment as he realized he had not included Xander in his plans. That made him wonder if he really had considered Xander a friend or had been just using him all the time. He had found the other man to be surprisingly vulnerable for an agent and easy enough to lead astray. Markus believed that Xander really regarded him as a friend and would be unprepared for a betrayal on his part. Briefly he felt a little guilty then pressed it down, there was no room in this to suddenly develop a conscience now. He knew he could not physically defeat anyone in this castle but his mind was still very much his best weapon. His preparatiion for this mission has included a thorough study of the castle and he knew there was only one spot that had any weakness. The wine cellar below in the caves was probably passable at high tide for someone as crazy as Hunt. So he knew exactly where to send his army and Xander was the perfect general to lead the charge. But he was not the type to put himself in danger unless he had a lot of persuasion or if he simply told him a big fat lie. He knew that Xander would most likely be killed by either Hunt and his team or the angry buyers. There was no guilt left about that.

Now all he had to do was play one final role and make it his most convincing. He stretched himself up plastered a smile on his face and walked out of the room. He called over Xander and told him , "it's all over we are very rich men and IMF is no more", it sounded so convincing because he desperately wanted it to be true. "Why don't we celebrate now, while the buyers leave pop down to the cellar and grab us the best bottle of wine", he kept the fake smile plastered on his face.

Xander grabbed his hand and shook it warmly, "great, we win the day, I'll be back soon with that wine."

Markus watched him walk toward the cellar then moved in the opposite direction. He returned to his room and left a command to open all the buyers doors in 5 minutes telling them where the infiltrators were coming from .

His next sentence revealed the location of a hidden stash of weapons. The battle arranged Markus Drey strolled calmly toward the door of the castle.

Xxxxxxxxx

Brandt felt now relief as the keyboard battle ended and he won. Then his thoughts changed as he realized that it had been too easy. He was sure Drey had realized he was being stalled and had taken some sort of action. As yet there had not been any sound of gun fire, but perhaps that was still to come

Ethan had left him the binoculars and he used them to focus on the castle. He could see all possible exits and began to think about which one Markus may use. He knew a few facts about the programmer that would come in useful. One was that he hated flying and thought helicopters were death traps. Though that fact might not put him off there was the slight issue that neither Drey or Xander could fly a helicopter. They'd have to risk taking a buyer with them as a pilot and that would simply not work in with their plans. So he'd pick that Drey would use a boat, it'd be easier to just zoom out to sea and lose yourself.

So all he had to do was think of a way to stop Drey. Yeah right Brandt he told himself drag your broken body down to the cove and dismantle all the boats.

He gritted his teeth in frustration staring back at his most effective weapon so far, the laptop. "Oh I am an idiot", he muttered to himself as he realized one obvious fact.

A loud gun shot broke his concentration for a second, the battle up in the castle had begun.

It was time for him to take further action.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

5 minutes earlier

Xander had opened the large steel door leading down to the cellar and stepped into the chill of the tunnel before something important sprung into his mind, Markus's hands had not felt right. His friend had looked calm and his voice was sincere yet as he had clasped his hand in his own he could feel the sweat upon them.

He knew it could not be over the sales as Markus had meticulously planned out everything and felt confident tht he could handle any problems.

A slight noise ahead of him had him freezing in place . Listening carefully he could just make out footsteps from further along in the tunnel.

He knew there was only one group of people crazy enough to try an entry at high tide, IMF. Xander sunk to the ground as the shock of betrayal ripped through him.

He had liked Markus and clung to his friendship like a barnacle on rock. That had been because of his feelings toward IMF. Xander had never told Markus Drey the whole truth, in fact even IMF did not know that truth. Although an injury had ended his career as an active agent that injury had happened because he had lost his nerve. He had just stood there while a hostile had shot his team leader frozen at the wrong time because the enemy was a beautiful woman. She had escaped after shooting him. What happened next was forever engraved on his brain. His team leader was still breathing and conscious his wound was serious but if he got immediate help he would survive. Xander went to help the man and dealt with his hot anger, "you froze, you're finished Xander ,you will never work for IMF again."He had bent over the man intending to help but found himself shooting him through the head instead.

He had hoped that would save his career as an agent, but it had not , his injury had been more severe than he had realized. With his loss of agent status came a shift in his usefulness to IMF . That caused his feelings of guilt over killing his team leader to build up into a hatred for the people to whom he had once been loyal. It had been so easy to cross the line and play a part of being an active agent in someone else's mission. He had been certain Drey's plan would work and he would not have to do anything that required a lot of courage.

Now he stood in a tunnel realizing the best team in IMF were in front of him . Turning his head he heard another sound coming from the direction of the castle, running footsteps. Markus had unleashed the buyers and they were probably not in a good mood. How would they know he was on their side, or would they even care just shooting anybody that stood in their way. He had a weapon in his hand but admitted to himself that maybe he might just freeze before he could fire a shot. They would not make the same mistake.

How had it come to this, sorrow filled him. Why had his guilt turned his mind to betrayal instead of redemption. He knew the price he would have had to pay for murder of a fellow agent would have been high and he had not been brave enough to experience the consequences. Instead he had just run into the arms of another betrayer. He supposed that justice had now come full circle and he was about to finally pay the price.

Xander decided surrender to IMF was preferable to death from the buyers . He took another step toward the tunnel leading to the cellar then stopped as his conscience told him something quite firmly, it was time for a change.

He shut the heavy iron door firmly behind him and ran straight down the tunnel toward Ethan Hunt and his team.

Ethan and the others had found it easier to enter the tunnel than expected. It had just taken one huge wave to hurl them from the cave upward into the tunnel mouth. Now with their special water resistant weapons in their hands they were steadily making progress into the castle.

When Harrison Xander rounded the corner and immediately dropped the weapon he was holding and put up his hands Ethan suspected some sort of trick.

He and the others trained their weapons on the former agent and ordered him to lie on the ground. The answer they got back was very surprising. "Look I haven't got long so just listen. Markus has betrayed me and left me to either get captured or killed. All I wanted to do in this mission was feel like a real agent again when in reality I was just a coward. But now I have one chance to actually be the agent I was meant to be, to seek redemption for past sins. Markus is probably escaping right now with the virus, and several million dollars. He will live to fight this battle another day unless you get him first. There are several angry buyers coming this way and all of them will be armed. I will decoy them away while you go get Markus", he looked at each of them steadily before settling his gaze on Ethan.

"You have no reason to trust me, but I am not taking that", he gestured to the gun.

"I will also not let myself be captured by enemies of our country", Xander swore firmly.

"You were willing to sell them our secrets", Benji retorted. "That was before Markus reminded me about what is important, loyalty. You should not just throw it away no matter what. He took a deep breath, "I killed my own team leader because I didn't want him to reveal that I froze on a mission. "It was my own guilt that turned to bitterness against IMF. Now I have a chance of redemption, to prove I really am still worthy. Let me do this", Xander pleaded.

Ethan had to make a snap decision based on what he had heard. He went with his gut and decided that Xander was telling the truth.

The price for treason was a heavy one and Ethan had a feeling that either way Harrison Xander was not making it out of this alive.

It was probably a stiff enough price to pay for what he had done. "Do it", he told the man.

Xander actually bowed, "thank you for a chance to restore my honor", he then turned and ran back in the opposite direction.

Seconds later the shooting began.

Ethan wasted no time leading the others quickly along the tunnel. He noticed spots of blood on the floor as they ran. Xander was probably hit but was still decoying the buyers away.

His gun at he ready he spun into each room while the others did the same.

It only took them a short time to establish that there was no sign of Markus Drey.

"Dammit ,he probably had an escape route all worked out", Benji moaned.

Ethan agreed with that, right now Markus was probably running fast and there was nobody…his thought froze, there was someone out there.

Markus had every reason to hate Brandt and may decide to take one final revenge before fleeing.

His heart beat was thumping as he pushed his walkie talkies button, "Brandt are you there", he asked.

"Of course where would I go", he forgave the sarcastic reply almost immediately.

"Markus is on the loose", he warned. "I know", the response was calm. Apprehension began to grow within Ethan again, 'what do you mean, you know".

"I mean I can see him right now", Brandt clarified. "Is he there", Ethan hurriedly asked. "If he was he would be bloody dead", Brandt replied fiercely. "He is heading for the boats in the cove".

Ethan broke off contact as more gunshots rang out from another part of the castle. "Jane, Benji, Luther you are going to have to deal with the rest of the buyers while I find Drey", he ordered.

"Don't worry about that", Ethan heard come from the walkie talkie. He only realized then that his finger was still on the button.

"Brandt you can't go after him", Ethan yelled. "I know that, just as I know that you are about to receive some help", Brandt replied.

Benji raised his eyebrows ,"how", he asked. "Markus dropped the firewall but did not intiate the virus therefore…",Brandt never finished because Jane, Luther, Ethan and Benji all yelled with relief, "IMF is back on line".

"Agents are seconds away", Brandt told them.

"Good they will get Drey", Ethan stated. "Oh nobody but me gets Drey", came back the reply from Brandt. Ethans mouth went dry, "but you just said you knew you couldn't go after him", he stated fiercely.

"I am not going after him, my gun is", came back the cryptic reply. "Brandt what are you talking about", Ethan demanded. All he got back was silence.

Ethan swore loudly. "I better go down to the cove, you guys deal with the hostiles".

He was about to turn and run off when a bullet slammed into the wall inches from his shoulder. "Brandt you are on your own", he thought as he prepared himself for battle.

Will had rolled the stretcher bed to the edge of the cliff where he could see all the boats waiting in the cove. There was no sign of Markus Drey yet. Scanning the area he saw a man come running out of the castles side door and stand at the top of the cliff. It was the programmer. Brandt gripped the gun fiercely realizing he was out of range.

Markus turned and their eyes locked. Markus felt some satisfaction in seeing that Brandt was badly injured. He did not attempt getting any closer to finish off the agent as he knew about his marksmanship and guessed he'd be dead before he got close.

Brandt had been clever in positioning himself at the lowest area of the cliff where the access to the cove and boats was easy. But Markus had never planned on easy.

He made sure Brandt could see him clearly as he looked up at the silver satellite dish mounted on the top of the castle. Reaching into his large coat pocket Markus came out with a spear like gun and shot a wire up to the satellite. It wrapped around securely. He then shot a grappling hook downward onto the biggest boats deck. The result was a long flying fox that would have him on the boat within seconds. He had gotten the idea from reading Hunt's mission notes about his escape from the hospital in Russia . Now it was his turn to pull off an amazing stunt while Brandt just lay there and ground his teeth.

Markus pulled off his belt, then put up his middle finger in a 'stuff you' gesture to Brandt. Running toward the edge of the cliff Markus jumped up secured his belt over the wire and found himself flying downwards.

He heard a gunshot come and laughed loudly, there was no possible way Brandt could injure or kill him at this range. Any bullet would be spent before it reached him. How terribly frustrating he thought as he whizzed along.

When a twanging sound filled his ears he suddenly realized that perhaps Brandt had never intended to hit him at all. In a horrible moment of clarity he felt his death approaching and knew he could do nothing about it. He had lost this battle, he began to fall.

Brandt had taken what would be considered by some as an impossible shot. But his eye and precision with a weapon was rated amongst the highest in the world. It was this skill that had made him a candidate for recruitment by IMF.

He had fired at the thin filament of wire supporting Drey's weight. To his satisfaction he saw the wire part . Markus seemed suspended for a second in mid air before plummeting straight down. All that was below him was rock and Brandt did not avert his eyes as Markus hit into that rock with an audible crack.

He lay there on the rock for a second unmoving until a large wave rolled up and washed his body into the sea.

Brandt felt relief pass over him as his eyes finally obeyed his screaming bodys command and slid shut.

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Ethan was taking cover behind a large metal vase. He could hear the ping of bullets against metal as they hit the vase and were deflected.

Around him the others were taking cover as well as the buyers tried to take them out.

By the sound of it there were at least 10 of them armed with semi automatics. "You have been betrayed so you might as well give up", he screamed out.

More gun fire was his response. These people were all enemies of the country and knew their fate if they were captured. Their angry hail of gunfire was focused on eliminating the people that stood between them and escape. Ethan had to cut down their numbers.

Looking carefully around the vase Ethan could just make out a shadow of one gunman. Holding his gun firmly he rolled out of the cover of the vase and across the floor. Bullets hit the ground on either side of him from the gunmen and from covering fire the others were giving him.

He could see the gunman now and was about to take a shot when he realized he was not alone. Another gunman was almost beside him and his weapon was trained on his head. Obviously the first gunman had allowed himself to be partly visible hoping to draw someone out of cover. Stupid mistake Ethan was his thought as he rolled quickly intensfying his efforts not to get hit. The others coud not see this gunman from their positions and would not be able to give him help. Ethan had seconds to take out two men, he knew deep down that it was simply not long enough. But he had to try. He was about to fire when a running figure crossed the room from another direction to stand in his path

He looked up to see Harrison Xander give him a thumbs up signal. "This is for my team leader", he shouted loudly. Seconds later Ethan could only watch as bullets ripped into Xander . He stayed upright for several seconds giving Ethan a chance to seek cover. Then he fell to the ground dead.

"Everyone you are surrounded, weapons down now", Ethan heard a sharp command as the help Brandt had summoned finally came to their rescue. It was over.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Epilogue 6 weeks later

Location IMF secure hospital undisclosed destination.

Ethan found Brandt sitting on his bed in a private room of the hospital. He looked a lot better with the colour returned to his face. It had been painful for Ethan to read the report on his injuries and realize how serious his condition had been. The doctors had said that Brandt would have died if he had not received medical attention within a few more hours.

That he had even managed to stay conscious was testimony to his incredible will.

Ethan smiled to himself for a second, "Will's will", he thought.

Then he smoothed his features, what he had come here for was serious and he had to be sure Brandt realized that.

His eyes were a little wary as he saw Ethan approach but his smile was genuine.

"I hear the first thing you asked was whether we were all alright", Ethan told Brandt.

Brandt just nodded. He could sense that this was no mere social visit and was feeling a little concerned over that fact. May be it was better to get all he had to say off his mind first.

"Ethan I knew there was a way into that castle and would have had no hesitation in taking it despite your order to stay put", he confessed.

A frown furrowed Ethans brow as he took that in. He could think of only one reason why Brandt would tell him that, he wanted off the team.

Brandts history of leaving teams sprung into his mind. Well he was not going to make it that easy, he opened his mouth to say something . "Don't throw me off the team", Brandt begged.

Ethan's mouth snapped shut as he rethought his response. Finally he stated, "I thought that was why you told me that."

"No, I just needed you to know that I could have disobeyed but I realized that my plan would not succeed because of my condition, Brandt responded somewhat nervously. He maintained eye contact as he stated firmly, "I would have jeopardized all of you and could not do that just because I was angry at Drey."

Ethan was glad to hear Brandt say that and allowed his team mate to see a smile, "I could not keep you on the team if you had thought anything else", he stated truthfully. Moving forward he sat himself on the side of the bed and was comforted that Brandt did not flinch away.

"I want you to promise me that you will not take any more solo missions Brandt. You are part of our team and need to accept our support and guidance", Ethan told him.

Brandt found his own smile appearing , Ethans request was now something easy to promise. "you have my word Ethan",he said. They shared a mutual smile before Brandt asked, "I missed the end of the mission Ethan what happened to the buyers'.

Leaning toward Brandt slightly Ethan told him, "Xander took out quite a few before he was shot. All the rest of them accept for one was taken into custody. The man who had purchased both the firewall and the virus was actually one of our own that the secretary had ordered to infiltrate the sale", Ethan stated.

He looked over to Brandt and saw that he was surprised, apparently he had not known the full plan either. It was how IMF worked and he supposed both of them had to get used to that.

"The joke really was on Markus then", Brandt concluded with a smirk.

Ethan stood up , "I realized that when we first met I forgot something important" he held out his hand to Brandt. Brandt took it and shook warmly, "welcome aboard agent Brandt I look forward to our next mission. Know I will never make it easy for you",Ethan told him with a twinkle in his eye. Brandt just grinned, " I would expect nothing else", he agreed. He felt warm safe and welcomed no longer needing or wanting to be on any other team.

Leaving shortly after that Ethan found Luther leaning against a wall in the hospitals corridor."How'd it go Ethan", he asked. "Well he's still on the team", Ethan mumbled. Luther noticed he had a far away look like his mind was elsewhere. "Is there a problem", he asked.

Because he knew Luther so well Ethan decided he could make this confession.

"Brandt told me he had figured out a way into the castle but didn't use it because he was injured. I was just trying to work out what his plan was"

Luther raised his eyebrows, "you mean you don't know", he was actually surprised. " At the time I could not see any other way in", Ethan admitted. "Now even if I go through every crazy idea in my head I still can't come up with how it could be done."His admission carried no trace of inferiority.

Luther whistled through his teeth. "Is he going to be your replacement one day",he dared to ask. Ethan shrugged, "I am not ready to give it up yet Luther. Brandt still has a lot to learn". Luther nodded, "so when are you going to tell him that he knew something you did not", he asked.

Ethan grinned, "never, I would not want him to get cocky". Luther laughed and Ethan joined in. Their laughter travelled down the a halls to where Brandt rested and recovered.

He wondered if he'd every learn what Ethan Hunt found to be so funny.

The End