"You are aware of your orders, is that correct?"
"Yes, Master."
"You are expected to report back to us once a year with progress you have made, is that understood as well?"
"Yes."
In a dark room, she stood under a single light, looking up at the shadowy figures whose deep voices she knew to be her masters'.
"Are you prepared for the challenges you will face?"
"Yes."
The middlemost figure stood up, holding a tablet in its hand.
"By the power invested in me by this court which you stand before this day, do you, Unit 999, swear your allegiance to your determined lord and master and all those above you?"
"Yes."
"Should you commit treason by showing allegiance to anyone else, do you accept that the consequences, that you will immediately be deactivated and destroyed?"
"I do."
"Very well. It is decreed, then, in the name of our great country, that you must not fail."
"I promise you I will not."
She bows, and then turns to head out the door, silver hair swaying and shining in the light as she walks. A door opens up from the wall in front of her, flooding the dark room with bright light that seemed to be almost as bright as that of Earth's sun. Soon, she disappears into the light, heading towards a future that is completely unknown.
"Germany!" The young, red-headed male said - almost sang, in fact - as he ran towards his friend. The friend turned around. He was much taller and very different-looking from the young red-head - his bright blonde hair was combed back, his blue eyes sharp and ever-watchful.
"Italy, you are late! Where have you been?" Germany asked, eyebrows knotted in frustration.
"I'm sorry, Germany, but I saw a really cute kitty on the way here, and it was so cute I just had to stop and pet it," Italy confessed.
"Let us stop this bickering and get to the meeting before we are all late," bellowed a black-haired man in a white uniform with a cloth-wrapped sword on his back. Germany sighed to himself and the three men continued on to an immense white building sporting an American flag on the front lawn.
"Ve, the White House is so pretty!" Italy said, smiling and admiring the view.
Japan seemed impressed as well. "The architecture is very sophisticated," he said. Germany was not used to hearing Japan speak after all the time they'd known each other, so when he substituted his "L's" with "R's," it made it even harder to understand what he was thinking.
The three men, making basic conversation in their thick accents, headed inside to a surprisingly fancy foyer where they were greeted by many of the other countries and waited near the entrance in silence. Italy looked around and saw several people he was familiar with; and a few with which he was not. He wanted to go and socialize, but he knew that Germany would disprove of him going off by himself. Italy looked hopefully up at Germany, sporting puppy-dog eyes and pushing the tips of his pointer fingers together. Germany looked at him, then sighed and motioned he could go, and then pushed Italy away when he moved in to give him a hug. Italy shrugged it off and went to talk to all his friends, first Spain and Romano, then Hungary and Austria, and so on.
"He seems happier than usual today," Japan said to Germany.
"Und you seem much chattier," Germany replied, smirking at his joke.
After about 10 minutes, the other countries heard the stomping of feet as they came through the hall and down the stairs. America, who presented himself to the others in his usual military outfit, which included a khaki suit and tie, then a brown leather aviator's jacket with the number 50 glued to its back.
"Yo, dudes! Let's party it on into the conference room and get this thing started!" he said, cheerily, his usual cheeky grin plastered onto his face.
Everyone filed into the conference room, finding their seats, which were marked with name tags, and getting out their notes and cards for their speeches. Since the economy had recently taken a turn for the better, they all hoped maybe that this would be the end of their troubles for a while.
A lot of the Asian countries were still concerned for Japan, who was injured in the earthquake months before, and was still walking with a limp. Many of the countries were doing poorly, though, nowadays, looking thin and pale and not as strong as they used to be. Especially America, whose economy was, to be frank, in a rut. He was skinnier than he already was, and he was white as a ghost. But, as usual, he was his cheeky, childish self.
After the World Meeting, everything returned to its usual dismal mood. It was raining – as per usual at England's house. He walked up his driveway, the heavy rain pattering against his black umbrella, as thoughts bashed around inside his head. So much was pressing down on the world, making it easier to appreciate the small things, like when someone cracks a joke, or if someone sneezes in the middle of complete silence. England felt things like that were meaningful now, things like the fresh, welcoming smell that came after the rain passed.
As he reached the door, England reached for his keys from his pocket.
"Ah, bollocks!" he exclaimed as he dropped them on the ground in front of him.
He turned and bent down to pick up the keys when something caught his attention from the corner of his eye. Something was lying on the ground on his lawn.
"What in the blazes…?" the British man grabbed his keys, stood up, and walked towards the dark figure on the ground. The rain was thick and it was getting dark, and it was getting harder to see.
As England got closer, the bad feeling in the pit of his stomach got worse and worse. Then, there he was, right next to it, and he knew what it was.
"A… A girl…"