Alex stared up at the blank sealing of his bedroom. He felt bored out of his mind, the past few years had been boring. No new missions, no new dangers, nothing. Just the routine of getting up in the morning, going to school, going home, and sleeping. Utterly dull. Sure his old friends accepted him and acted as if he had never left but they always seemed worried and sceptical about him. Alex rolled off of his bed and made for his door. He was getting hungry, and dinner should be ready soon. Then the phone rang, and although he didn't know it at the time this phone call was going to change the rest of his life forever. Alex walked down the stairs and headed towards the phone which was standing in the hallway, just before the door. "It's ok Jack, I got it" he said as he picked up the phone and said "Hello?" The voice he heard on the other end was one he hadn't heard for almost four years. "Ah Alex, good to hear from you…look I was wondering if you were interested in coming down to The New Bank Of England tomorrow and we could have a little chat. How does that sound?" asked the voice "Umm… I don't know Blunt, I sort of have plans for tomorrow. It's a Saturday." Alan Blunt chuckled on the other end "Don't worry Alex we don't need you for another mission, we only need you to train two recruits for a mission. Very minor, stuff for beginners. Easy. All we ask is that you devote three weeks of your time to educate these two fine women, whom ever you choose. You will have a variety of them to choose form." Alex gritted his teeth. "Tell me one thing" he said in a cold voice "Did they come into this world willingly?" Alan Blunt chose to ignore the question, instead he said "Great! We will see you here at quarter to three. Ta-Ta!" nd with that the phone clicked and the line went dead. Alex let out a growl of frustration. "Who was that?" Asked Jack Starbright, Alex's house made. "Trouble" Alex grumbled as he took his place at the end of the table and began to eat the meal that she had prepared for him. "So are you going to meet up with what's his name?" asked Alex trying to change the subject. Jack didn't seem to mind as she went into a detailed account about her new soccer boyfriend, Aden. Alex tuned out but nodded his when appropriate. He was too busy wondering what Alan Blunt was planning. "Alex?…You haven't heard anything I have said, have you?" Asked Jack after she finally claimed Alex's attention. "Hmmm?" Asked Alex "Oh…I'm sorry Jack" Alex said "I was distracted, please continue." A cloud quickly passed over Jacks features, she still held a grudge against MI6 for ruining his childhood. When Alex came home after his first mission, he had become quieter and less childish. He was always thinking, analyzing and he didn't seem happy anymore. It was like they gave him a drug. A drug that he hated and yet love at the same time. Alex had become addicted to adrenalin sports, such as cliff diving and parachuting. "It was Blunt, wasn't it?" Jack demanded. Her previous mood was gone now. "What does he want? Why can't he leave you alone? Three years and then he has the nerve to call up and order you about?!" "Jack?" asked Alex "Yes Alex?" answered Jack "I'm eighteen. You don't need to worry about me anymore." The look on Jacks face told him that she was not going to let this go with out a fight. "Jack" Alex said cutting her off before she could speak again "They just want me to train a couple of newbie's. I could pick whichever two I want. Schools out and were on summer break. I can take care of two new kids for three weeks. What could go wrong?" Jack didn't share his enthusiasm.
The next day Alex woke, had a shower, and dressed for his meeting with Alan Blunt. At around one-thirty Alex left the house and took the bus across the river and down town to where The New Bank Of England resided.( A/N The N.B.O.E is the new headquarters of MI6 since SnakeHead bombed the original building, in revenge for Alex taking down one of the most powerful organizations in the Middle East.) Alex walked up the large stone steps and stood in front of the large, heavy, brass plated doors that led into the enormous neo-gothic building. He took a deep breath in and sighed. Well here goes nothing Alex thought as he pulled the doors open and walked across the elegant marble floor towards the large stone desk that the receptionist sat at. She took one look at Alex, before reaching under her desk and pushed a big blue button. A part of the wall behind him slid away and revealed an elevator. "Go right up" she said with a smile " There expecting you" Alex nodded and stepped into the elevator. He felt his stomach drop as the elevator began it's quick ascent. He watched the numbers on the small screen telling him which floor he was on. He noticed that the elevator went straight up to the fifty-first floor without stopping. Private elevator Alex suddenly realized as he stepped out of in and into a brightly lit corridor. Allan Blunt was there to meet him "Ah Alex" he exclaimed "Well, well look at you! You have grown, since the last time we met." The comment had caught Alex by surprise because Alan Blunt never handed out compliments to anyone. Alex idly wondered if he had gotten married in the past few years. "Now Alex if you would just come this way, I want you to meet your training partner. His name is Dmitri, and will be assisting you in training our two new recruits." They were walking down the hallway, and suddenly came upon a large door, with one single window. It reminded a Alex of a police interrogation room. There was a boy with black hair sitting at the stainless steel table. He seemed to be Alex's age. Blunt opened the door and the boy looked up to see his two visitors. Alex noticed that he had sapphire blue eyes that were so blue that they were almost black, and they were clear and intelligent. He stood up and looked at Alex with a blank look before he broke out into a wide grin. "Alex Rider" he greeted, he had a thick Russian accent "Mr. Blunt has told me a lot about you. My name is Dmitri, but most people call me Wolf" The two of them shook hands and then turned to Alan Blunt. "Alright now that the two of you have been acquainted, it is time for you to choose your trainees." Alan Blunt led the two boys down another hallway. This one was different than the others. Beside each door there was a large window which showed a room filled with gym equipment, a T.V, two beds and two girls. Alan told them about each girls background, habits, hobbies, and personalities. Until they finally made it down to the end of the hall. "And these two, are the most troublesome of all of them. The one with the silver hair is Lola and the other one is Lea. Lola comes from a Russian background, and her parents were killed when she was eight. She was a full fledged assassin by age ten. Lea just seems to stick with her. British background although she lived in Russia for a time, which explains how they met." Alan Blunt went silent for a moment, then he said "They are the most difficult, and are not easy to handle. You may choose one of the other groups." He began to walk down the hallway again when Dmitri said "We'll take both of them" "We will" asked Alex, Dmitri nodded. Blunt looked shocked, but he nodded and unlocked the door to the room. He spoke something in Russian to the two girls and they both got up obediently and followed him out of the room. The one with brown hair gave both of them a warm smile, but the silver haired one just glared at the both of them, then she turned to her companion and muttered something I Russian, and the other responded in kind. Alan Blunt turned around and snapped at the silver on who snarled something back. The one with the silver hair, Lola, growled something under her breath but said nothing. Alex threw a questioning glance at Dmitri. "He threatened her" he said under his breath so only Alex would hear. They walked for a time until they all came to a large domed area, like the reception area when Alex first came in. Mrs. Jones was waiting for them. She pulled the two girls off to the side and spoke to them, then she gave each one a hug and she strode towards Alex and Wolf. "Take care of them Alex" she said and then she left, leaving a peppermint scent trail in her wake. Alan Blunt nodded and he walked off. Wolf jerked his head to one side, signalling that the two of them should get acquainted with the two of them. Alex nodded and the two of them walked off towards the two girls. "Hi" said Wolf as he gave each girl a friendly smile "Well hi" said the brown haired girl, Lea. The other one, Lola just glared at the two of them. "My name is Dmitri, but most call me Wolf. This is my buddy Alex." Lola didn't look to friendly. Alex could see now why she was a full fledged assassin by the age of ten. She was absolutely lethal, she looked as if she didn't have any emotions at all! "Hi" Alex mumbled. "I'm going to make the next three weeks of your life a living hell." Lola growled. Lea jabbed her elbow into her ribs. "Oww" she snarled "Be polite" Lea said with a look of disapproval "Sorry, one of the maids woke her up before ten thirty, and she also missed lunch so she's a bit moody" Lea spoke with a hint of a Russian accent, the English accent was underneath it alright. Alex felt butterflies move through his stomach. What was wrong with him? Wolf was experiencing the same thing. "Sooo…" Wolf said with exaggerated slowness, Lola glared and Lea giggled. "Are you Alex Rider?" asked a strange voice from behind, both teenaged boys spun around to see a tall man walking towards them. "Fox?" asked Alex. He thought those eyes and that strut was familiar, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Fox grinned "Hey Cub" he replied causing Alex to blush and both girls to snicker. "Cub?" asked Lola in a mocking tone. She was right, this was going to be the worst three weeks of his life.