Downfall Part One

In part one of the third instalment, Yuri and Dmitry have little time to celebrate their return home before catastrophe strikes. After handing over precious video evidence to a member of the Press in the foyer of the Four Seasons hotel, they are soon ushered out into the street by an officious receptionist who cares more about carpet cigarette burns than a trail of destruction from an alien spaceship.

Moments later, a devastating explosion brings the hotel to the ground and our intrepid heroes are encased in a cloud of smoke and a field of debris. In amongst the carnage, a small group of Girl Scouts, along with a confused and befuddled scout leader, are spotted by Yuri and Dmitry who offer medical aid and solace. After a brief conversation, the Scout leader, in her confused state, believes Yuri and Dmitry to be ghosts or some sort of strange spectral entities masquerading as the dead cosmonauts.

Before they can explain their situation, they are mistakenly identified as the two terrorists, Alexander Ivanov and Viktor Popov; arrested by a military task force, placed in handcuffs and thrown into the back of a truck heading for Butrayka prison.

With no time to catch their breath, they find themselves heading away from Moscow and into the boondocks and the wilds of Russia.

What follows next, was at first, thought to be a celestial event - a fabulous meteor shower of extraordinary magnitude, but in fact, was a large, molten, mass of metal chunks, heading for Moscow and the surrounding area.

This phenomenon, gives Yuri and Dmitry the opportunity to escape and seek shelter in an old farmhouse. This is just the beginning of a life on the run as two fugitives and their quest to find the subversive faction behind this whole affair.

In England, George London meets with the head of MI5 and is engaged to investigate the crash landing of an alien spaceship in Russia. He is instructed to form a band of brothers (A group of ex-SAS soldiers) to covertly enter the country and retrieve as many alien artefacts as they can carry back home - this proves to be a task that's above and beyond the call of duty.

In other quadrants of the universe, an expedition to find the Great Council of Arkanazak has been underway for just over a week and a feeling of dj vu is felt most strongly amongst the diggers and the workers. Some missing equipment soon clears up the whole situation and a compromise over moving camp again leads to harsh words and an inevitable resettlement.

A word to the wise - Drink the tea, leave the soup!