Chapter I: Prelude
Reno tapped his foot rhythmically against the floor of Tseng's office, slumped into his usual spot in the arm chair next to Tseng's desk. He was growing impatient waiting for the chief.
"Reno, can you please stop tapping your foot like that? It's not going to bring Tseng in here any faster," a soft voice said from the chair in front of Tseng's desk. She sighed, half from the annoyance of Reno's impatient habits and half from her own boredom though she'd never admit to it.
Reno rolled his eyes, but stopped anyway, adjusting himself properly in the chair.
"Still, it's not like Tseng to be late to his own mission briefing like this," the girl said, shifting slightly.
Just then the door opened and Tseng entered, closing the door lightly behind him.
"Sorry I'm late, Reno, Cissnei. The meeting with the President took a bit longer than expected."
Cissnei nodded, standing to greet him. Reno, however, remained seated, clearly too comfortable to move and greet his supervisor properly.
"Eh it happens, yo," he said, staring at his fingernails with sudden intrigue.
"Reno, why must you always insist on looking so sloppy?" Reno looked slightly offended by Tseng's comment but made none in return. "Anyway, the President needs you to go to Costa Del Sol right away."
"Isn't that a vacation spot?" Reno questioned, sitting up properly and straightening out his unzipped blazer. He was now fiddling with the tie he never did bother to actually put on.
"Yes. Your mission and target owns the most successful new resort. He supposedly gained the funds through illegal means and now uses the profits from the resort to supply the troops in Wutai. You can see now why the President would want this stopped. This is not a strict assassination mission. He wants some information on how this got his gil in the first place and if the rumors about him helping the Wutai forces are, in fact, true."
"What do you mean exactly, Tseng?" Cissnei asked.
"We want to capture him alive if possible. The President has some questions for him. We also want to shut him down from the inside."
Cissnei nods, taking the file from Tseng's outstretched hand. She got to her feet, looking over towards Reno who had stood up as well, smirking slightly though Cissnei dared not wonder why he was.
"Guess this means we better pack our bathing suits, eh Cissnei?"
Cissnei rolled her eyes, ignoring Reno's comment and shoving the file into Reno's arms. She walked out of the office and down the hall towards the elevator. Reno was truly hopeless. Tseng shook his head as the two red headed Turks left his office.
"Honestly, how can she put up with that guy? He's so…irritating sometimes."
Cissnei stepped out of her apartment complex's foyer, shading her eyes in the bright sun. A familiar black car rounded the corner, coming to a stop in front of her. She reaches for the door handle to the back seat but Reno had beaten her to it, popping out from the passenger's seat in the front. He stopped dead in his tracks when he turned to face Cissnei. His hand that held the door handle was glued to it.
"Wow," was all the usually smooth talking Reno could manage after seeing the petite red head's small frame clothed in a pastel yellow sundress with white flower patterned lace trimming. The white heeled sandals on her feet were a welcomed change from her usual black boots.
Cissnei chuckled lightly, causing Reno's head to clear slightly and focus on his task of opening the door. Cissnei took her seat in the back of the car and Rude stomped down on the pedal. They drove along to an empty field just outside Midgar city limits. There, a slightly more average looking car sat in waiting. The three Turks exited the car. Reno took his bag and threw it into the back seat of the new, dark blue car. He walked around it in a circle as if looking for something.
Rude took Cissnei's bags for her and carried them over to the car for her. She seemed a bit taken aback by the action but Rude always had more manners than his partner. Reno was now fiddling with his trademark goggles, placing them in their usual spot above his eyes. Reno's clothes were normal also. Black shorts and a dark red tank top with a white button up shirt over it, unbuttoned of course. Cissnei wondered what Reno was staring at since he was once again circling the car.
"Reno, what the hell are you doing?"
"Is this it?"
"Is what it, Reno?" Cissnei responded, a confused look on her face.
"This car. It's so plain looking."
"Well, we're supposed to be undercover, Reno. This car is an average car for people around here. The more we blend in, the better."
"Cissnei is right, Reno. Your supposed to take this guy down from the inside. You'll have a better chance of being hired to work there if you look like the average person you know."
Rude tossed Cissnei's bags into the back next to Reno's and took off back towards the car he came in. He turned at the last moment and waved goodbye before getting in the car and leaving. Reno waved back then turned his attention toward Cissnei.
"So, you ready for this?"
"As ready as I'm going to be." Cissnei responded, exhaling a breath she didn't know she was holding before getting into the car. She didn't know what it was but something about this whole situation made her uncomfortable.
Reno slid into the driver's seat next to her and started the car up. He peeled out of the dirt road of the field and sped away towards the shore and Costa Del Sol.
