Continuing his personal mission from "Getting out of Reverse," in perhaps
his most daring maneuver to date, Michael, a Level 5 operative for the
covert anti terrorist organization known as Section One, places his life on
the line for his partner and paramour, Nikita. He knows that his actions
will give Operations, the head of Section One, no choice but to order his
cancellation, but he pays it no mind. Michael will not allow Nikita to be
sacrificed, nor will he allow Section One to turn its operatives into an
army of automatons.
So far, Michael has escaped capture and death, but Operations and Madeline,
Section's chief strategist, will not rest until he is canceled - their own
positions, their power, and their lives are at stake. In "There Are No
Missions", all Section missions are put on hold until Michael can be found
and the threat he poses quashed. But Michael continues to elude the
operatives and breaks into Section headquarters to access information about
the Gelman process. When Michael can't retrieve the information, he kidnaps
the first test subject from the lab, a woman named Adrian, the founder of
Section One, who launched an unsuccessful coup against Operation's regime
two years earlier. Michael's intent to use Adrian as a pawn against
Madeline and Operations may prove futile when he discovers that the Gelman
process has all but destroyed Adrian's mind.
Michael is undaunted by Section's cancellation attempts. He will fight with
every fiber of his being, with all his cunning and deviousness, using the
loyalty of others, betrayal and extortion as the instruments of war. For
Michael is at war against the tyranny of Operations and the cruelty of
Madeline. It is a war of wills, covert skills and emotion over cold
heartedness. It is a war that Michael must win, because if he doesn't, he
loses everything—his love, his soul, and his life.
And how will Madeline and Operations fight this war? They will use the
'gelmanized' Nikita, since they are sure that Michael will contact her, and
she will be their weapon, their angel of death. She will not show Michael
any mercy, as he means nothing to her anymore; no one does. Nikita will
cancel Michael.
And yes, Michael is predictable. He does contact Nikita by slipping into
her dressing room at a boutique. Nikita pretends to be happy, to be on his
side, to love him, and while trying to kiss Michael, she reaches for her
gun to carry out her mission, to kill the man she once loved. But Michael
is not easily fooled - he keeps pushing her away, refusing to return her
affections, or answer her prying questions. When Nikita maintains that she
is not being watched, Michael seems startled. He knows that this is not the
norm for Section One, and surmises that Nikita is to be the instrument of
his destruction - he is her prey, and nothing more. Michael asks her to
secure a capture card, and leave it at an old data dump, for it is too
risky for them to meet again.
After he leaves Nikita, only partially clothed, grabs her gun and follows
him, ready to complete her assignment. Michael, who has secreted himself
behind a curtain, watches as Nikita tries to locate him. He is certain now
that the one he seeks to save only seeks his demise.
Back at the Section, Nikita is given a capture card equipped with thermal
identification coding. She is to gain Michael's confidence and then
complete her cancellation orders. Sometime later, Madeline and Birkoff
discover that Michael has tried to access Gelman's files. Getting a fix on
him through the capture card, Madeline dispatches six teams of operatives
to capture Michael, and places another six teams on standby. She is not
taking chances. Michael must be eliminated. When the teams have Michael's
car in sight, Operations gives the order to take Michael out. Birkoff
hesitates, not wanting to relay the order, but Operations insists, and
Birkoff, visibly shaken, informs Nikita that, "It's a go."
Nikita and the other teams are in hot pursuit of Michael. They trap his car
and Nikita, determined to complete her mission, approaches it with her gun
drawn. Alas, it has all been a ruse; the car is empty, steered by a remote
device. Michael has led the Section teams on a wild goose chase. Madeline
assumes that Michael used this diversion to access Section's files, and
recalls the teams. But Michael is even more cunning. On site he slips
under one of the mission vehicles and hitches a ride to Section,
unbeknownst to the operatives sent to kill him.
Against the backdrop of this war a new recruit, Dori, is introduced.
Computer savvy, she is to help Birkoff in Comm. She is cocky and unwary of
Madeline and has visions of escape from the Section. How ironic that, while
most operatives, especially new recruits, want to escape from Section,
feeling that it will be their salvation, Michael is trying to get back
inside. For him the only route to salvation is to be found inside Section.
To save himself and Nikita, he must recover the first test subject and a
program contained in a Section computer that can only be accessed from
within Section.
Once Michael has slipped past Section's security, he unsuccessfully tries
to access the Gelman files from the main frame computer. Not giving up this
easily, he prowls through Section in search of another way. Nikita
meanwhile sits dazed before a computer, viewing a file that is enforcing
the Gelman process. When she is summoned to tactical, Nikita seems
disoriented, unaware of who she is. On her way to tactical, Michael attacks
and disarms her. He asks Nikita if she knows who she is, his voice laden
with emotion, his eyes filled with pain. She tries to convince Michael that
she loves him, but Michael questions her, "Do you? Or do you want to kill
me?" His voice, his eyes all betraying his breaking heart. Nikita feigns
innocence, but when Michael hands her the gun, turns his back, and walks
away, Nikita shoots at him. But of course Michael had earlier removed the
clip. With disdain she tells him he doesn't belong in the Section anymore.
Michael can listen no longer; he slams Nikita against a wall and, rendering
her unconscious with a taser, takes her access card. Yet he takes the time to
gently place her limp body on the floor, remaining a few moments to stare
at her. His heart is bleeding; he will not let his beloved Nikita down; no
matter what she has become, he holds the image of 'his Nikita' in his mind
and he is determined to restore it.
Now Michael has no time to waste; he must get to the lab and retrieve the
secrets that lie within its walls. He discovers that the first test
subject, Adrian, is still alive and being held in a cryostasis chamber,
where she has been frozen. He knows that he must take Adrian out of Section
and use her as a pawn to help reverse the neural engineering. But Michael
cannot do this without help. He fakes a random signal in the Section's
computer backup system, knowing that Birkoff will come to investigate.
Birkoff is taken by surprise when he sees Michael - he cannot believe that
Michael would be so bold as to infiltrate the Section and he cannot imagine
how Michael slipped past security. But Michael, in his typical fashion,
ignores Birkoff's queries, interested in one thing only - he needs Birkoff
to gain control of the lab on Level 17. Michael explains that Adrian is
alive, that Gelman's project was not a failure, but Birkoff doesn't want to
know the details; he is afraid. Having too much information inside Section
is dangerous and can be hazardous to one's health. Birkoff tries to leave,
but Michael stops him, explaining quite simply that, if the Gelman process
is successful, Section will use it on all of the operatives.
Meanwhile, Davenport, a Level 5 operative like Michael, has discovered a
bound and gagged Nikita who, once free, informs him that Michael is on the
inside. Operations is informed and quite perturbed. When he criticizes
Nikita for being taken by surprise, she looks puzzled, as if she is going
to cry, and Madeline reminds Operations that he must not criticize Nikita,
for the Gelman process requires positive reinforcement. But Operations is
not concerned about Nikita, he is troubled; he knows that Michael did not
re-enter the Section for Nikita, but that Adrian is his target.
And Michael is formidable. Operations is well aware that, no matter what
precautions they may take, they are dealing with a most unique operative,
who is extremely good at what he does. Madeline and Operations are very
afraid, for the secret they keep hidden within the lab must never be
divulged. George, the head of Oversight, the agency Section answers to,
must never know of the depth of their skullduggery. He can never find out
that his former lover, Adrian, has been experimented upon - George's wrath
would be terrible. It would mean their demise, the end of power and
control, and probably the end of life for the devilish duo. George is not a
man of idle words, and his vow, to literally and figuratively crush
Operations and Madeline if he found that they were involved in Adrian's
disappearance, is still fresh in their minds.
Operations orders Birkoff to check Level 17 and although Birkoff knows that
Michael is on that level, he lies to his superior, telling him that there
are no hot spots. He exchanges a look with Walter, Section's technical and
munitions expert, and it is obvious that Walter is aware of what Michael is
doing, and has also become involved in protecting him.
Michael meanwhile is on perhaps the most important mission of his life. He
will do anything and not allow anyone to stand in his way. He kills the lab
technicians on Level 17, releases Adrian, and cyrogenically freezes the
team that is sent to take him down after the alarm is tripped in the lab.
What a scene! It is Michael, the operative, at the top of his game, and
Michael, the man, desperate to secure the tools and the means to restore
Nikita, to protect his life as well as hers, and to ensure that Section's
plans to create the perfect operative fail.
Michael's mission is a success, and he leaves the Section in possession of
what he came for. But Operations is livid. He accuses his operatives of
being failures, of letting the Section down, of letting him down. Madeline
tries to soothe the savage beast and to downplay the importance of Adrian
as well as of Michael's actions. But Operations will not be appeased, he
knows that keeping Adrian alive was a mistake. The only thing he cares
about at that moment is having both Michael and Adrian contained or dead.
But Michael has other plans. Being contained or dead is not what he
envisions; instead he meets Section informant Mick Schtoppel at a seedy
motel, and places the still comatose Adrian in bed. It is a pleasure to see
Michael and Mick interact again. It adds some levity to a somber state of
affairs, to the cloak of danger that Michael has wrapped around himself,
and those who care for Nikita. Michael forms an alliance of sorts with
Mick. Mick supplies him with weapons, and reluctantly agrees to secure a
tracking module located in Nikita's bathroom. Before he departs, he asks
Michael to tell him what is going on. For the first time that I can
remember, Michael actually confides in Mick and tells him the truth, that
the woman he has brought to the motel is Adrian. As Mick leaves, Michael
tries to rouse her, but appears to be unsuccessful.
Mick worms his way into Nikita's apartment, pretending he wants to chat, to
chill with her over a glass of wine, but Nikita is annoyed and Mick quickly
spills wine over himself and goes to the bathroom under the pretense of
soaking the stain. He begins to search for the module, but a suspicious
Nikita catches him and realizes that he is working with Michael. Poor Mick,
Nikita has him under the gun again, demanding that he take her to Michael.
Meanwhile at the Section Operations recalls all teams - until the situation
with Michael is resolved, there are no missions. Operations cannot believe
what has happened, saying it is inconceivable, and he is worried that
George will find out they had Adrian. Madeline again tries to soothe him,
to convince him that Adrian is a vegetable, who cannot corroborate
Michael's story. Besides, Madeline is always prepared; she has already
started to backfill their files, to accommodate a scenario in which Michael
could be blamed for holding Adrian.
Dori, in the meantime, uses this time of crisis to mask her escape attempt.
Using Operation's recorded voice, she gains access to an elevator, taking
it to the restricted access level 20, which she believes is an exit from
the Section. But Dori does not find freedom. Instead, she finds that she
has walked into a trap - there is no exit, only Madeline waiting for her.
When Dori returns to Comm, she is changed. Her defiance is gone, her
demeanor is dull and she appears to have been 'gelmanized'.
Meanwhile, Mick brings Nikita to the seedy motel. She barges into the room
and, weapon in hand, confronts Adrian. Adrian says hello to Nikita, while
Michael places a gun to her head, disarming her. But Nikita is defiant, she
knows Michael will not kill her, yet, her attitude changes, when Adrian
threatens her life. Michael tells Nikita to let Madeline and Operations
know that Adrian is alive and aware and hands her a disc to give to them,
telling her that it is over. She starts to leave, but stops and turns to
face Michael. Her only comment is, "It's over for the two of you".
During the tag, Madeline and Operations view the disc with Adrian's
message; she appears to be coherent, aware of the entire situation and the
impact upon them. But as Michael drives with her to a safe place, out of
Section's reach, we learn that it is merely an illusion. Adrian, though
alive, does not know who "these people" are or what the game they're
playing might be. Michael has proven to be a master of deception, a warrior
on the path to salvation. He is at war with the Section and the only life
he has known for over ten years; he is a man in search of a safe haven.
In Nikita circles Joan A. Alpert is known as Justice and Justicelfn.
