Now eager to learn more about al Qaeda's plans for al-Isra, MI6 and CIA scramble to find out information through their various contacts, including inserting an operative close enough into the terror network's confidence.

A wayward US missile that was launched as part of a strike in retaliation for the 1998 East Africa bombings hits a slope in the Tora Bora, resulting in a landslide that buries Khan's village and his entire family; he swears revenge against the US, joining the Taliban in the process.

The ISI engineer Mike's escape after his arrival in Afghanistan and he makes his way back to al Qaeda safe houses in Pakistan and the UAE, where he is accepted as a compatriot after extensive verification by al-Qaeda representatives.

Meanwhile, an aircraft on approach to McChord Air Force Base develops engine trouble and accidentally crashes into the CIA safehouse, blasting open Khan's cell and giving him an opportunity to escape his captors.

As a result, Mike's military record is adjusted ten years forward, with his career now including stints in Northern Ireland, Sierra Leone and Afghanistan – he was part of the relieving force during the Battle of Qala-i-Jangi.

The story relationship with The Fist of God ends when Mike escapes Iraq and is almost killed by Foreign Legionnaires patrolling the border with no details are alluded to anything connected to the Supergun.