Smart Brain Corporation-Los Angeles. It was a large and imposing structure, the building itself as well as the large emblem which decorated its doors. This was but one of the many branches of one of the most lucrative companies in the world. It developed products for the common man and their quality was top notch. With their products in high demand the company made a lot of profits and with the many branches it had all across the world, it was making trillions, possibly even more.
A dark figure could be seen scaling the outer wall of the building. It was able to avoid detection from the surveillance cameras as well as the security guards posted around the perimeter. The dark figure was after something in particular since it stopped at a certain floor in the building. Somehow, as if by magic, his entire body phased right through the window. He had no need to break it open if he could do that.
He was in a chemistry lab where various dangerous compounds and chemicals were kept for further study and experimentation. He was after one chemical in particular. It was an unstable yet highly flexible chemical known as Xinothium.
He scanned the area, his night vision perfect as he attempted to locate his target. He then found a container with an access panel. He keyed in the access code and the container released steam. The latches snapped open as the lid was removed. He then lifted up a cylinder that had vials filled with a red substance locked into place around its perimeter.
"Excellent," he said to himself before removing the vials and putting them on a belt he wore around his waist. A glowing red 'X' could be seen on the buckle. As he turned to leave, a bright light was shone on him.
"Not so fast!" said a female voice.
"You're going down!" spoke another female voice.
"Like totally! And you're not just under arrest for theft but also committing crimes against fashion. Didn't you know red is the new black these days?"
The dark figure focused his eyes on them. They were 3 girls, tall and thin with feminine curves and radiated a lot of attitude. The one in the centre had green eyes and long red hair that came down to the middle of her back. She was clad in a tight green cat suit that showed off her curves and a belt with a heart shaped belt buckle. Her boots, which was part of the suit, had sharp high heels. One of her companions, who was on the right, was dressed similarly except in red and her hair was a stylized blonde, reminiscent of Farah Fawcett. She also had blue eyes. The final girl who was standing to the left of the redhead had short black hair, tanned skin and brown eyes.
They were the Spies, WOOHP's finest.
The dark figure then revealed himself. He wore a black bodysuit with a red 'X' on his chest and matching gloves and boots. He wore a black cape with tattered ends and red lining. He also had on a skull mask with a red 'X' on it as well.
"I don't know, I kinda like my look," the thief said. He looked behind the girls to see that they had cut a hole in the window. They must've been following him and he hadn't detected them. They were stealthy. "I'm impressed you girls could follow me without me hearing you. Wait, isn't this the third time you tried to get the drop on me?"
"Well, they do say third time's the charm," the yellow clad brunette, Alex, remarked.
"Drop the Xinothium and nobody gets hurt," the red clad blonde, Clover, ordered.
"Um, Clover," the redhead in green, Sam, began, "That's Xinothium. If he drops it, we're all dead." Sam remembered what Jerry had told them about the Xinothium. 2 Smart Brain Corporations, one in China and another one in England had theirs stolen before and they hadn't been able to catch the thief who was now in front of them.
Clover realized her error and decided to correct herself. "OK, hand it over and nobody gets hurt!"
"Tempting offer, cutie, but you see I really need this stuff," the thief, Red-X, said. He removed one vial from his belt, "But if you want it so much, you can have it." He then tossed it at them, "Catch!" The vial went flying through the air as the Spies panicked.
"Don't let it drop!" Sam shouted.
"It's coming my way!" Clover exclaimed.
"I got it! I got it!" Alex yelled as the vial started falling. She then caught it, barely. "Hah, got it!"
"Well, girls," Red-X said from behind them, standing at the hole in the glass. "Nice catch, but now you gotta catch me!" He then jumped and waved, "See ya!" He started floating before flying off.
"After him!" Sam shouted, activating her jetpack-backpack. Alex and Clover followed as the three of them flew out of the building and after the thief.
Red-X flew through the air and looked over his shoulder to see the girls chasing after him. "Well, well, they don't give up. Impressive." He then frowned under his mask. "But, let's see them handle this!" He then vanished from sight.
Alex gasped, "Hey, where'd he go!" She then felt something tap her shoulder and looked. "Huh?"
"This is your stop," Red-X said before placing one of his X's on her jetpack. Her jetpack began to short circuit before she began to scream, falling towards the ground.
"Alex!" Sam yelled as she went after her falling friend, "Clover, stay on his tail!"
"Gladly!" Clover grinned as she gave chase.
"Two down and one to go," Red-X remarked idly, producing another one of his X's. "Think fast, blondie!" He shouted as he turned around and threw his X-Shurikens at her. Clover demonstrated incredible aero-acrobatics, dodging the blades coming her way. Red-X whistled, "Nice."
"Thanks but now it's my turn!" Clover shouted as she picked up speed. She threw a fist at him but he grabbed it before putting his face close to hers.
"Sorry, but this flights is only for one!" He then threw her away but she gave chase in the air again. "I need to lose her! She's persistent!" He suddenly got an idea and then vanished from her sight.
"Hey! Where are you?" Clover gasped before Red-X shimmered into view in the corner of her eye. She then saw a flash of red before she was slammed into the side of the building. She had been pinned by a large red 'X'. "Hey, lemme go!" she struggled. "Get this thing off me!" She was silenced however when a red X-Tape glued her mouth shut and then another tape pinned her head to the building. She screamed but it was muffled.
"Looks like its home free for me," Red-X said.
"Not a chance!" Sam screamed as she tackled Red-X onto the roof of a building. They tumbled on the surface before righting themselves.
"You girls just don't give up, do you?" Red-X said as he gripped his fists. The Xinothium was still safe, thankfully.
"Of course we don't!" Sam said. "We're Super Spies!" She then charged and threw a fist at Red-X who ducked and then retaliated with a knee to her midsection. She, however, leapt over the strike and landed behind him.
"Nice moves," Red-X remarked before the X-Blades extended from his gloves. "Now to take it up a notch!" He then charged and swung his fists at her. Sam had to dodge from the blades attached to his gloves before she could hit him in the gut with a well-aimed punch. The thief staggered but looked up to see a green boot smash into his masked face, knocking him down. He flipped back to his feet and cracked his neck. "OK, I like your style, Red."
"Flattery will get you nowhere," Sam said, "Now, give up! There's no getting away!"
"I actually beg to differ, Red," Red-X shook his finger. His shadow suddenly expanded and then 10 Red-X's, 5 flanking each side, suddenly rose up, "You have to find me first!" all 11 of them spoke in unison. Sam stepped back in shock. "What? Surprised? See ya!" The real Red-X vanished leaving Sam alone to fight his 10 clones.
The Spies returned to WOOHP headquarters, headed for Jerry's office. Clover was picking the remains of the X-Tape in her hair. The tape on her mouth had been removed and it still stung. The red marks left behind were testament to that.
"Oh, when I get that Red-X, I'm gonna-!" Clover scowled angrily. "He ruined my hair!"
"Jerry isn't gonna like this," Alex frowned.
"Like it or not, we have to tell him," Sam sighed. She pushed open the door and then her eyes widened in shock. Her two friends followed suit.
"YOU!" the Spies shrieked. Standing next to Jerry who was sitting at his desk was Red-X!
"Hey, girls!" Red-X waved and the girls began to charge at him when Jerry stood up.
"Girls, wait!" Jerry shouted, "Calm down!" The girls stopped their mad dash. It didn't stop them from sending dirty glares at the black-clad thief though.
"Calm down? Calm down?" Clover screeched. "He ruined my hair! He has to pay!"
"Plus, what is he doing here, Jerry? He's a criminal!" Sam demanded to know. This was not like their boss at all.
Red-X sighed and said, "Mr. Lewis, would you care to explain?"
Jerry nodded, "Certainly, and I told you to call me Jerry."
"Old habits die hard, Mr. Lewis, I mean, Jerry," Red-X said.
Jerry sighed before turning to the girls, "Now, girls, I know you must be wondering what's going on here and why Red-X is in my office."
"That and why you're so chummy," Alex added. Fierce nods were added by her friends.
"Well, you see, there's actually a really good explanation," Jerry said, pulling at his collar. The glares he was getting were really bothering him. These girls really knew how to lay on the death glare. "I was actually asked by Red-X if he could test you."
"Test us?" Alex asked, confused, "What do you mean?"
"Explain, Jerry," Sam said.
"And make it good," Clover spoke, glaring angrily at Red-X.
"Maybe it's better if you take off your mask," Jerry said to Red-X.
"Fine," Red-X said before he pulled off his mask. The girls watched as the mask was removed to reveal the face of a handsome Japanese youth, about the same age as them, with pale skin, black shoulder length hair and ice blue eyes. He looked at them to see them gazing at him before they shook themselves out of it. He internally sighed. Even if they were professionals, they were still teenage girls. "My name is Ichijyo Desmond Amakusa."
Sam recovered first before crying out, "Jerry, he's a thief! Why are you even working with him?"
"Oh, is this about the Xinothium?" Ichijyo said. His voice sounded different without the mask and he had a British accent. "Well, if you want to know, Smart Brain is my company. Actually, it's my family's company so it can't be called stealing."
"Ichijyo's father and I are old friends," Jerry said. "When I got his call I was surprised."
"The thing is, girls," Ichijyo said, "I wanted to test 3 of WOOHP's best agents to see how they rank up, for future engagements." He explained, "The test was for you to try and catch me and you were all given 3 chances...which you failed!"
"They couldn't have failed that badly," Jerry said.
"I have Operatives a lot better than them," Ichijyo countered. "These girls, I'm surprised that they're even spies to begin with. They look like preps." He narrowed his eyes, "I hate preps."
"What's your damage?" Alex frowned.
"And, who's going to pay for this?" Clover pointed at her hair.
"Relax, it will dissolve in a few hours. By the time you wake up it'll be all gone," Ichijyo said. He then continued, "If you're the best WOOHP has to offer, I'd hate to see the worst."
"Listen, mister," Sam stepped over to glare at Ichijyo. "We are WOOHP's best. We've faced a lot of super villains and saved the world so many times that you can't even count. So don't call us failures! We've done a lot of good."
"Then prove it," Ichijyo said, "And you didn't all fail, not exactly. You were able to track me down and caught me off guard. I'm actually impressed by your skills."
Sam was taken aback by his change of attitude, "R-Really?" She was blushing a bit. He was handsome after all. He may have said some cold things, but he was serious about this, just like her.
"Jerry," Ichijyo said. "You might be getting a call from me soon, just incase I need these girls' help. See you later." He nodded once and teleported away, leaving the girls and Jerry alone.
"Did anyone else think he was a total hottie?" Sam asked out of the blue.
"Sam, that guy was like a total jerk!" Clover fumed. "And I wanted him to fix my hair!"
"So are we going to have to work for him?" asked Alex with some amount of confusion.
"No, you are still agents of WOOHP," Jerry answered. "However, Smart Brain has its own agents for our line of work and we have worked together at times in the past."
"Okay," Sam frowned. "I get that, but what about Ichijyo himself?"
"Like I said before," Jerry explained. "His father and I are friends. Ichijyo himself is the heir to the Smart Brain Corporation and has been trained for that for some time. Please, don't be too hard on him. His role demands excellence from himself and everyone in his employ."
"I still think he's a jerk," Clover frowned with a huff.
"Well," Alex spoke, brightening up. "If he thinks we're good then we must be good! Right?"
"Maybe," Sam frowned. "But it also means we have room to improve."
She idly wondered f she should try to get Ichijyo's attention for next time they met. She did like mature guys and being intelligent enough to run an international company was definitely a plus in her book.
Ichijyo reappeared in his office before dropping down on his comfortable chair. In front of him, on his rather expensive desk, were two sets of files. The first set of files contained detailed information on the Spies' lives, both private and professional. The second set contained detailed information of three of his Operatives' personal and professional lives as well.
He smirked as he looked both files over and said, "This might be a rather interesting alliance indeed." His father had worked with WOOHP several times in the past as well with some other secret organizations. As the heir, he would do the same.
The time would soon come when his own team of Operatives would work with WOOHP's finest. He just hoped the girls, by then, had improved to his standards.