Prologue
Hey guys, this is my first Alex Rider fanfiction, so please feel free to give comments on this story, thanks )
He stepped out of the car MI6 had sent to bring him in after completion of his latest mission. The last time he had set his eyes on this place, he was planning to assassinate Mrs. Jones, the deputy head of Special Operations division. He wondered, not for the first time what repercussions he would bring if the glass was not bulletproof. That was really stupid of him though, if assassinating an agent in MI6 headquarters is as easy as it seems, than MI6 does not deserved the reputation and fear it had garnered in its long period of existence. Suddenly realizing his predicament, he prayed with all his heart that Mrs. Jones will not be one to hold grudges for she is after all his supervisor.
The last thing he felt was a searing heat in his chest. Numbly, he brought a hand to his chest, and felt a sticky liquid flowing from a hole that appeared in his chest. Suddenly, his legs lost strength and he fell onto the street, lying in a pool of his own blood. "Did MI6 deem me too much of a risk and have me eliminated?" With that thought, he succumbed into darkness.
He did not see the dozen of agents that sprang out from the doors of the Royal and General bank, using their bodies to shield his in case the sniper wanted to ensure that his quarry has no chance of surviving. Reports were coming in from all of the rooftops surrounding the Royal and General, narrowing down the number of buildings the sniper could have shot their finest and youngest agent from. The crowd that had gathered around the scene was quickly and efficiently dealt with, and a D-notice was put on the incident.
Yassen Gregorovich absentmindedly shot the first two agents who appeared on his rooftop, leaving them in a pile with the other agent standing guard over the rooftop. Discarding his rifle and donning a wig, he made his way to the ground level, walking calmly past the several MI6 agents running towards the roof. Alex Rider will not die. He had deliberately shot him three inches to the left of his heart, puncturing his left lung, nothing a few weeks of rehabilitation could not solve. Walking out of the building, he slipped into an alleyway, disappearing from the crime scene, returning to Scorpia to report the mission successful.
Mrs. Jones used to have maternal instincts, instincts that she thought were killed when her children disappeared, and up till today, she did not know if any of them were alive. To feel the same pain she had gone through when she witnessed Alex Rider being shot was unexpected, to say the least. The cold façade that she had painstakingly built up for years was shattered into pieces. For the first time in years, she shed tears in public. The agents who saw her cry awkwardly turn their backs on her, giving her some privacy to compose herself.
Alan Blunt is not a very well-liked man. He has a heart of ice, often sending men to their own deaths with no regard of their lives, and shows no remorse at inadvertently killing so many. To him, the safety of the country comes first, and if he has to sacrificed some lives to achieve it, then he has no choice but to sacrifice as many lives as it will take. To him, Alex Rider is just another pawn, another agent to put his life on the line for his country. It does not matter to him that Alex is just a schoolboy, or that he was not sufficiently trained for that matter. The track record of Alex Rider is impressive, and he was unwilling to let go of such a promising individual, despite whatever protests Tulip made. Alex Rider is a British citizen, and as such, should do his part for the country.
"He's alive! Quick! Get the car!" one of the agents scrambled towards the parking lots, spurred on by the desperation in Mrs. Jones voice.
To say that he was relieved would be an understatement. He walked over to his deputy. For such an observant man, he did not notice the tear streaks on his face, or the growing anger on her face.
"Well, Tulip, ask the doctors to patch him up as soon as possible ok? I want him back on active duty as soon as possible. Ask them not to worry about the rehabilitation."
"But, Alan, he's just been shot!"
"So? It still doesn't dispute the fact that he is our best agent. Let's use him as much as possible before he outlives his usefulness."
He was not prepared for the punch to his groin, nor was he prepared to find his face grinding into the dirt as Mrs. Jones twist his arm viciously, eliciting another pained gasp from him.
"Stay away from him, Blunt. If not, I will find ways to make your life hell, regardless of whether you're my boss or not."
With that said, she tenderly held Alex Rider limp body close to her, getting into the car and sped off to the private hospital that MI6 regularly uses. Rubbing his face, he composed himself before turning back to walk into his office, ignoring the disgusted looks that the other men were giving him, unaware of the great service he had done for Alex Rider.
When Alex Rider's existence was first known to the other agents in MI6, they were very unhappy. To them, he was a schoolboy, a child incapable of anything but screwing up in missions. To hear of his track record did nothing to alleviate their hostility towards him. However, hearing how Blunt intended to squeeze the boy for all he could offer brought a pang to their hearts, finally driving in the fact that Alex Rider is a victim himself, helpless against the machinations of Alan Blunt, the winner of the "most hated person of the year" if such an award do exist. With that callous display, Alan Blunt had managed to drive all of MI6 to support Alex, firmly intent on making it difficult for him to get his cruel claws into Alex Rider.