Queen Luana : Never send a man to do a woman's job. Cause then you'll get lame 'bingo' cracks. Okay it was funny. But the way he put it wasn't, I mean, he was so… Anywho! I want to try this from a woman's point of view. A real bad-ass woman's point of view. The kind of woman who goes on these sort of missions to get her kicks. How about the president had sent Alex Grace to do the zombie blasting? Well, they're not exactly zombies, I know, but, oh shut up and read the damn chapter already!

The girl with the gun

I took the cigarette the driver offered me and lit it with my Zippo. I slid my thumb across the inscription on the side. "Love, dad." I chuckled and took a long satisfying drag. At least he wasn't bitching about it everyday, like mum.

Don't smoke, Alex. It's not good for you, Alex. Someday it'll kill you, Alex. Earth to mum, I'm a special agent trying to get back the president's daughter from a practically unknown location where God knows who has taken her. If this doesn't kill me then something else most likely will. I clenched the cigarette between my lips and pulled out my gun. Colt .45, my dearest friend in these outlands.

"You're not taking any risks, huh, stranger?" the guy in the passenger's seat asked when he saw me fumble with my weapon.

I smiled and took the cigarette between my fingers. "If you've seen what I seen," I said and blew the smoke out the half-open window, "you don't leave your bed without one of these." I twirled the gun around my index finger then tucked it away in its holster. I gazed out of the window and faintly saw my own reflection aside the bypassing trees. If I had known I was about to embark on anything as serious as this I wouldn't have gotten dreadlocks. I'd seen the president's face go blank when I marched in: tank top, cargo pants and the dreadlocks and pierced lip to finish it off. He'd probably expected somebody slightly more sophisticated. But hey, it would've been pretty ridiculous of I had dressed in neat pants and blazer then to find the head of a post teen hippie on top of it. No thank you, I'll just go the whole hog.

So I didn't look the type. But the division highly recommended me. I'd cleaned up some pretty big messes before: terrorism, sects… I was even involved in the Raccoon incident, though few people knew I was. I was part of the research them after S.T.A.R. had been investigating the vicinity of the mansion where the strange incidents had occurred. There had been some stuff rotting outside and two members of our team were attacked by a bunch of raging dogs. We had managed to take them out but Mailer and Cage had died in the hospital afterwards.

Yeah, I was cut for the job. And if anyone dared bringing up that Kennedy bloke again I'd kill somebody. Partners, yeah right. I could handle this. Alex Grace works alone.

The car shrieked to a halt. "The village is not too far off," the driver turned to me, "we'll take you there."

"Thanks, but I'll manage," I muttered. I tossed away the butt and got out of the car.

"Okay, but don't get your pretty face hurt."

Grumbling I took off and followed the trail leading through the forest. I jolted when my cell phone rang. "Bloody nerves…" I flipped it open. "This is Grace."

"Hello, Alex. I'm Hunnigan I'll be guiding you through this mission."

"Aw, please," I uttered. "I thought the division trusted me."

"I'm just helping you get around. I've got access to satellite pictures and detailed information on…"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," I said, "what news?"

Hunnigan cleared her throat. "Nothing, I was just checking whether you've gotten there by now."

"Yes, on my way to the village now," I said then rubbed my hand over the microphone. "Wow, I'm in a tunnel here!" I flicked it close again. Okay, I admit it, bad excuse. But at least now I'd made it clear that I didn't require her help. I'd manage on my own, thank you very much. Throughout the trees I spotted a small cottage. It seemed pretty old. Okay, perhaps I could get something here. Perhaps some information on Ashley's whereabouts and a nice cup of tea. Yeah, I had thought from the beginning this wouldn't go as smoothly as I hoped it would.

I knocked but there was no response. Maybe it was abandoned. I pushed the door open. When I stepped in I heard the cracking of firewood and carefully followed the corridor leading into a small living room. A man stood a few feet away from me, leaning over the fireplace. I looked around. Hadn't he heard me knock? Did he in fact know I was standing there?

I put my gun back in its holster. Okay, the polite way.

"Hola, señor," I greeted him with the little Spanish I knew.

He turned and stared at me. My hand already reached for the gun, but I restrained myself. No need to shoot him just because he looks scary and urgently needs a shower. Or maybe I should've just thought twice about wearing a short, belly button revealing, B-cup accentuating top. Hey, when they told me Spain, I thought sun, sea and parasols. And then they drop me off in this… thing.

"Hablo inglès?" I tried. Those two words were probably more grammatically incorrect than my little brother's English assignment, but as long as he understood me I guess it was fine.

"Qué carajo estás haciendo aquí? ¡Lárgate, cabrón!" he snapped at me.

I sucked at Spanish badly and had failed almost every course in school. But damn, I remembered enough to understand that. "Hey mind, the language mister," I said but he'd already turned around. "I'm an American secret agent and if you don't cooperate you will force me to- HOLY!" As I had gone on preaching he had turned towards me again, now holding an axe in one hand. Now I was allowed to grab my gun. "Drop it!" But instead he walked forward, almost determined to chop me into pieces. "Drop it or I'll-" Too late. He roared and swung and I fired. He staggered backwards, looked at me almost in surprise. He prepared for another swing and I fired three more shots into his chest, then he finally collapsed.

I walked over to him and jabbed him with my foot. He was dead all right. I took a closer look. Man, he reeked! There was yelling outside. Great…

Queen Luana: I don't know whether I'll keep on going with this story. If there's no one reading/reviewing it I'll just delete it again. Ashley and Leon make their entrance into the story in it later on, but for the first chapters it'll be just Alex. I do not intend following the entire storyline precisely but often it will, in my own special way. Just tell me what you think.