Okay, so hi guys! This is the first chapter of Operation: Anti-Terrorism! So uh… this is an extended version of the original one. That means additional intel, additional scenes, and more action. So… yeah. Enjoy!
Prologue: Given the Intelligence
In the busy streets of Madrid in Spain, a young girl wore a green riding cloak with her red dress. She weaved with ease through the streets, not getting a second look from the locals. As she walked through a not-so crowded alley, she came face-to-face with a man wearing a red riding cloak, who accidentally collided with her.
"Lo siento." The girl said.
"Si." The man said, before pausing. He looked at her, and asked her one question, "¿Puede volar un pingüino?"
"No es que tenga la preocupación de." The girl said.
The man smiled and took out his hood. "Ah, Tvarkov. It's nice to see you again, my dear. I've heard that you're the new head of the Anti-Terrorism division, si?"
The girl smiled and took off her hood, revealing a mess of red curly hair, "Yes, Gibson. You are right."
"You are aware of why you're here, yes?" Gibson asked, and said once he saw her confused look, "You are needed for the field, Tvarkov. The EPF needs you on the field once more."
Rogue's eyes widened, and she gave him her most innocent gaze. Well, the most innocent one she could give, "You're serious?"
"Yes, yes I am serious." He smiled.
She just smiled widely and laughed. She only caught little attention. Gibson gave her the briefing file. Her smile faded a bit as she looked at the thick briefing file.
"Good luck, senorita." He said.
"Gracias, senor." She smiled.
"I need to go, my dear. I have to return to the Madrid station." He said.
"Adios, mi amigo!" she said.
He waved and placed on his hood while she turned and placed on hers.
My, wasn't she in a good mood today?
"Agent Tvarkov, if I were you, I would stop pacing!"
Rogue ignored the order, and continued to pace. She was in her safe house, in Madrid. Gary was dropping by, not wearing his usual attire. He wore a soccer jersey and jeans. His brown, combed back hair was glinting with sweat.
"Yes I know, but this organization? I'd rather do Blackout."
"You're kidding me, Rogue. I know you too well for that." He said.
"Oh, I am serious, G. This is my serious face." She said, showing him a frown on her face.
"Why are you panicking, in the first place?" he asked, "The great Rogue Tvarkov, panicking over a petty little-"
"It is not petty. It is one of the most wanted terrorist organizations in the world." She deadpanned.
"Rogue, 530 terrorists wouldn't hurt, would it?" Gary asked her.
"They're high tech people." She sighed, "They stole from Stark Industries."
"It's just the beginning of the mission," Gary said, "And you're already losing hope."
"I'm not losing hope, this is what a nervous breakdown looks like." She said, "Ever seen a nervous breakdown? Well, of course you've seen a nervous breakdown, you must've experienced one yourself. I mean, how could the great Gary the Gadget Guy not have nervous breakdowns? That's impossible and is highly unrealistic if he doesn't-"
"Rogue." Gary said, halting her from pacing by placing a hand on her shoulder, "You're rambling."
"Right. Rambling. This is perfectly normal, G. But how could you know that? You're not a doctor in psychology, you're just a doctor in technology." She said.
"Rogue. Cool. Down." He said, "For Scott's sakes, you're a wreck!"
"Wreck? Oh, of course I'm a wreck, G. I've just seen several of my colleagues get killed right in front of me. I've watched a good childhood friend get kidnapped right under my nose. I've just went through a month of hell and you think that I am in anyway not a wreck right now?" she said, "Well of course I'm a wreck, I'm Rogue Tvarkov for Gospodin's sakes. I've been ever since I was a little child!"
"Rogue." He said again, "Sit down."
The girl sighed and sat down.
"You can do this, okay?" he said, calming her shaking hand by holding it. "You're Rogue Tvarkov. You're strong enough."
"But what if I can't?" she whispered, voice wavering, "What if I can't do this? What if this mission will be my death? What if-"
"Pessimistic." He said, "I've read your file before coming here, Rogue. It said you'd tend to be pessimistic."
She took a shaky breath, and closed her eyes.
"I fear disappointment." She said, opening her eyes to look at him, "That's what I fear, okay? I fear disappointing people, that's why I do everything I could to make sure everything I do is the best I can. That is why I am now freaking out."
"How could that apply in the situation at hand?" he asked.
"The Director. They appointed me to this position. Based on the file, they were also the ones who chose this mission for me. I must prove my worth, G. That's what." She said.
Gary thought for a while, and then sighed.
"Just sleep it out." He said, "Be your natural self. Do that for the agency, alright?"
She nodded, closing her eyes to control her heartbeat.
"When do we start?" she asked.
"When you're ready." He said.
She sighed, and looked at him.
"Give me two days to calm myself down, as well as prepare myself." She said.
"Alright, Rogue." He said.
"Thanks, G." she said, almost a whisper.
"You're always welcome, Rogue." He smiled.
She was now in the training room, throwing knives at dummies.
"Chill, Tvarkov." Gibson said behind her, resting his back against the wall.
"Since when were you there?" she asked as she threw another knife at a dummy.
"A few hours ago." He said, "I was just doing some weights when you stormed in here."
"Right. Apologies." She said as she threw another one.
"No need to apologize, Tvarkov. I know the feeling." He said, walking to her.
"The feeling?" she said, pausing half-aim to look at him.
"The feeling of losing hope," he said, "It's a pain, no?"
She placed down her knife, before turning to hurl the knife at the dummy. It hit the dummy's chest.
"If that was a real person, it the feeling would be that painful." She said, pointing to the dummy.
"I must say," he whistled, "You're a good shot, Tvarkov."
She smirked, "I have my moments."
The two paused, just resting and enjoying each other's presence.
"What would you do, in my shoes?" she asked.
"Well," he crossed his arms, "I'd… be like you. I'd go to the training room, then I'd go read a book, maybe read the dossier again, then listen to music, then I just sleep it out and hope to have a clear mind the next day."
"Not bad." She said.
"Well, it's an old trick used by many agents." He said, leaning against the table.
"I don't call that old." She said, "I call it… timely."
He just shrugged and patted her shoulder, "Just… sleep it out. It's always the best thing to do. Sleep it out."
She just nodded, and shuffled to collect her knives.
"What do you think should I do, Ethan?"
She looked at her crimson colored puffle. There were a rare species of puffles that were crimson.
"I'm not sure, ma'am." Ethan said, "I'm not really sure."
Even now, Rogue would be surprised that her puffle could talk. Gary had invented a serum that enables puffles to talk. It was after his experience when he switched bodies with his brown puffle, Chester.
"What would you do?" she asked, sitting down on her bed. Ethan hopped onto her bed.
"I would take the chance, ma'am." He said.
"Of course you would, it's in your blood." She chuckled, ruffling the puffle's fur.
"Isn't it in yours, ma'am?" he asked.
"It's not, Ethan." She sighed, slouching a little, "I'm only wired to kill those I need to kill."
"Then it is in your blood, ma'am." He said.
"It's not." She said, "The Tvarkov family's main objective in life is to protect the innocent. That would mean avoiding bloodshed at all times."
"Then…" he hopped on her lap, "What's the problem?"
"Blood tells me to avoid bloodshed." She said, stroking his fur, "My brain, wired to kill, tells me to do bloodshed."
"Two opposite things." He said, "Hardly fair."
"I know, Ethan, I know." She sighed. "You know what, I'll read my dossier again."
She picked up the thick file, and read the first information.
Name: Operation: Anti-Terrorism
Assigned Operative: General Rogue Alyssa T. Tvarkov, ATD
Mission handler: Director General Ava Louise B. Arctic
Security Level: Level 05 Security Clearance
Description: Operative is given all right to capture and kill members of the Klustov ring. This will require time, as information will need to be obtained by other agents in order for the operative to work successfully. The operative will be given different partners for each missions of this operation.
She sighed and massaged her temples.
"This isn't so bad, Ms. Tvarkov." Ethan said, reading on her shoulder.
"That's always the reaction of newbies, Ethan." She said.
"Why? Is it hard?" he asked.
"Yes." She said, "The Klustov ring is one of the top terrorist organizations in the Anti-Terrorism Division's list of terrorist groups."
Ethan's smile faded, "Oh."
"I'll just sleep it." She sighed, "I'm going to bed, Ethan. You can go… hop around Madrid if you'd like to."
"I'm a rare puffle, ma'am." He said, "I'm bound to be captured at the first hop."
"Right." She said, shaking her head as she lay down on her bed, "Sorry."
"It's just the sleep taking over, ma'am." He said as he cuddled under her chin, "I'll just fall asleep here."
"Night, Ethan." She yawned.
"Night, ma'am." He said.
Her eyes twitched slightly, as she slowly became aware of her environment. She smelled the familiar scent of clean laundry…
She snapped her eyes awake.
"Good morning, Ms. Tvarkov." Ethan said, looking rather at ease, "Did you have a nice dream?"
"I didn't dream." She said, sitting up and running a hand through her hair.
"Oh." Ethan said.
"I'm going to work, Ethan. You coming?" she asked as she strolled to her cabinet and took out her duffle bag. It contained her prepared clothes for the mission, as well as various weapons tucked away in different spaces.
"Of course." He said, hopping off and out of the door.
She was now wearing a white shirt and cargo pants. Her hair was black, tied back to a ponytail. She strode to where she knows Gary is, Ethan tailing her.
"G." she said once she entered his satellite office.
He looked up from his desk, blue eyes smiling warmly at her.
"Good morning, Rogue. Have you made your decision?" he asked.
"Why yes, yes I have." Rogue said, "I accept the mission."
His smile widened.
"Good to know!" he said, "You have the rest of the day and tomorrow off, so I'd say you must use it wisely!"
"Alright, G." she chuckled, "See you."
She smiled as she strolled through Plaza Mayor de Madrid. The cold wind blew on her face as she sighed with content.
Madrid was beautiful in the winter.
She watched as children ran by, reaching for the snow and hurdling it at each other. She now had a down coat on. She continued strolling, occasionally tugging on her gloves.
Must she say it again; Madrid was beautiful in the winter.
She smiled to herself as she continued to walk, mind wandering.
"What if I had a life like that?" she wondered to herself as she saw a man – probably a parent – playing with a little girl. He carried the girl in a piggyback ride, which resulted to the girl squealing.
"What if… the Red Room never took me in? Would I be like that?" she wondered.
She smiled at the thought. She and her parents and siblings… were all running in the forest. It must be fun…
She shook her head of the thought.
She noticed a lady in the side of the street, asking for alms. She decided to be a good person for once, maybe to pay back for all the wrong she has done.
"Limosna, limosna para un pobre vieja como yo." The old woman said.
She stopped in front of her and squatted down, in front of the lady. She took out a sandwich from her pocket and handed it to the old lady.
"Aquí, tener mi sandwich. No estoy realmente hambriento ahora." Rogue said.
"Gracias, preciosa. Que Cristo bendiga." The old woman smiled.
Rogue wondered if she should say it, and decided to. "Mi nombre es Rogue. ¿Cuál es el tuyo?"
"Constanza. Soy Constanza." She said.
"Mantente fuerte, Constanza. Usted sólo puede encontrar a alguien como yo, pronto." Rogue said.
"Gracias, Rogue." Constanza smiled.
Rogue patted her shoulder before standing up and saying, "Tengo que irme."
"Si. Adios, Rogue!" Constanza said.
Rogue only smiled, and turned to walk away.
That weird moment when you want to speak Spanish so badly… eh. So, this was Google Translate at work, people. Sorry!
Lo siento – I'm sorry, Spanish
¿Puede volar un pingüino? – Can a penguin fly? Spanish.
No es que tengla la preocupacion de. – Not that I have concern of. Spanish.
Si – Yes, Spanish
Senorita – Miss, Spanish
Senor – Sir, Spanish
Adios, mi amigo! – Goodbye, my friend!
Limosna, limosna para un pobre vieja como yo – Alms, alms for a poor old woman like me. Spanish.
Aquí, tener mi sandwich. No estoy realmente hambriento ahora – Here, have my sandwich. I'm not really hungry now. Spanish.
Gracias, preciosa. Que Cristo bendiga. – Thank you, beautiful. May Christ bless you. Spanish.
Mi nombre es Rogue. ¿Cuál es el tuyo? – My name is Rogue. What is yours? Spanish.
Constanza. Soy Constanza. – Constanza. I'm Constanza.
Mantente fuerte, Constanza. Usted sólo puede encontrar a alguien como yo, pronto – Stay strong, Constanza. You can only find someone like me soon. Spanish.
Gracias, Rogue. – Thank you, Rogue. Spanish.
Tengo que irme. – I have to go. Spanish.
Si. Adios, Rogue! – Yes. Goodbye, Rogue!
So… yeah. This is Chapter 1 of Operation: Anti-Terrorism, folks!