When Nate, Shane, and Jason are givin once in a life time opportunities, it would mean they'd have to resign from G.R.A.Y. So now they are givin their maybe-last mission together. But, Ash is hiding a secret that will shock the entire group afterwards. Are their lives of being spies really over? There is no sub story.


CHAPTER 49: End of an Adventure Pt2

"Alright, where'd you go?" I said to myself as I walked down the ally way. The girl had just, disappeared, like Mr. Gray said. But when he said disappear, I didn't know it meant like this. I looked at my watched and scanned the place to see if there were anywhere they could have gotten to. Then I saw a red light there, meaning someone was coming. And just as the watch never lies, I heard a sound behind me.

"Stay where you are," said a guy who cocked a gun.

"And this is what I hate about the city," I sighed, turning around with my hand on my hip, the other adjusting my cat ear hat. "One guy, piece of cake." I ran at him and began fighting him, easily apprehending his gun and getting on his back. "Alright, I know you took that other girl. Where'd she go. Where'd you take her."

"You're one messed up chick," he said as I smacked him on the head.

"Talk," I said. I didn't know why I was being so interrogative right now. Usually I'm more naive or just plan oblivious that I knock out the enemies without thinking. But suddenly something hit me in a pressure point, making me fall down sideways and off the guy. "Can't move... my body."

The guy ran off as these new guys came, but I couldn't identify them, since my sight was clouding up. "You seem just right. Now, go to sleep."

I glared until my eyes shut. Typical. I just hope that the guys take this mission seriously so they can come find me soon.

--

"We shouldn't take this mission so seriously," Shane said, drinking from a soda can on Mysti's couch. "I mean, it sounds easy enough. Ash probably already found the kidnapper and everything."

"She wouldn't have contacted us first," Jason said.

Nate was looking out the window, still trying to make his decision. 'Should I go and leave Wyckoff?'

"That's it I'm calling her on her watch," Jason said. "Ash, Ash come in." All he heard was static. "I knew it, she's kidnapped or something and we need to go find her."

"What?" Nate asked, hitting his head at the top of the window sill. "Ow!"

"You have any idea where she is?" Shane asked, still sitting.

"It's static I'm getting from her. So it's either she's somewhere very far away, or she's underground."

"I'd go with underground. She couldn't have gotten that far in such short time," Shane said.

Nate turned back, still holding his head. "Nope. Knowing her she'd get away pretty far if she were underground. She'd punch her way back up to the surface."

"If she were kidnapped by someone else though, she'd be in pretty unpredictable places," Jason said.

"Try going behind the mall," Mysti said, walking in from her kitchen. "There's aways a lot of gangs there. Ash may be there."

"How do you know about that?" Jason asked.

"A lot of guys from there always try to hit on me, thinking I'm easy since I'm blind."

"I bet you run from them or get help whenever they do that," Shane laughed.

"Nah, I punch or kick them. Depends who's watching," she said, making the guys stare at her.

"Um, ok?" Nate finally said.

"Sorry Mysti, we've gotta go find Ash," Jason said.

"Go ahead, tell me how it ends," Mysti said with a yawn, going to her bedroom for a nap. And with that the guys ran out of the apartment room.

--

"This is so not what I expected," I said at the top of a roof of a building. And it was pretty high, like those giant skyscrapers in New York. The term damsel in distress is really brought into play here.

"Still haven't escaped I see," said this guy from can from the door. The entire roof was glass, and no ground underneath except for the sides. I wouldn't jump unless I could fly. Like that would ever happen.

"What do you want," I glared. I learned that the master mind behind this was an old man named Alister, a bomber.

"Ah, every female spy is the same. What do you want. What do you want. Blah blah blah," he said, walking towards me. "You're not going to get away like the other G.R.A.Y spy."

"Ah, so you've been targeted before I see," I said to this man. "No wonder the other ran." This guy's pretty old now, sinister-like.

He laughed. I learned his name was Alister before. "Oh she didn't run."

"What did you do to her?" I said, keeping my stance and still face. I couldn't show any emotion of fear, humor, sadness. Guys like this don't just fight their enemies.

"I didn't do anything really," Alister said. "She simply, died."

Now I was trying really hard not to show any emotion. But, sweat was rolling down the side of my face. It was suddenly hot with my cat ear hat on too. "What did you plan to do with her in the first place?" I asked, almost afraid too. I was, actually scared. I was alone usually like this in dangerous situations. Was it because, I knew I wouldn't have the guys around anymore to back me up?

"I wanted to marry her," he said. "I've been through a lot of wives you know, each and every one spies."

"Why?" I asked. Each thing I asked was like taking a step in a place filled with traps. One wrong move and you're a goner.

"I want a wife who can fight, a wife who's flexible," he said chuckling. "A wife who can, entertain me."

I gulped. "And what exactly am I here for?"

"Let's just say that one day I decided, why keep aiming for the brave, powerful, older women of G.R.A.Y, when I can get a spine-less, little kid like you," he hissed. he called me spineless and little. As you'd know I'd react, but I'm still as still as a statue. "I can sense your fear."

"That's why you kidnapped all the girls, to try and find an agent."

"Smart, I like that in a wife," he said, walking.

"And if I refuse?" I asked, suddenly getting a surge of courage, even a little. "I'm not like any normal spy you know. I will jump." I will?

"I'd like to see you try," he said.

I began stepping backwards. "I will."

"Go ahead, jump," he said with a smirk. "What good will it do? Now that I know a kid like you exists, I'll just keep coming after you. And will you leave all those girls behind? The ones you, came to rescue?"

Oh yeah, the mission. I, actually forgot the purpose of my mission. 'I'm not a very good spy without the guys.... aren't I....'

"Well?" he asked as I arrived at the edge of the glass roof. one move and I can fall back. I honestly didn't know what would happen though. It was so long, my way down. It'd be like skydiving without a parachute, but a heart filled with stones to make your fall all the more painful. All of a sudden, the window came, and pushed me back. My eyes widened and I gasped, feeling myself falling backwards.

--

"Okay, this is getting tiring," Nate said as they stopped at the stairs of one building. "We've gone through at least 27 people, and up 27 thousand stairs. We won't find Ash this way."

"Oh come on, Nate," Jason said, trying to catch his breath. "This is only the fourth building. She's gotta be around somewhere."

Out of no where we heard a 'woosh' but more like a gasp since it was so fast.

"What was that?" Jason and I asked at the same time.

"I didn't know Ash could fly," Shane said, looking out a window. Jason and I pushed him down and looked out the same window, seeing Ash falling through the sky.

"Ash!" I shouted.

Before she was even halfway past the building she fell off of, this weird guy in black clothing on a rope swooped down and caught her, slamming back into the building through glass. Now that I noticed, the entire building was made of up glass.

"Phew," I sighed. She didn't fall to the cement ground.

"At least now we know where she is," Jason said.

"They're up there!" shouted a man from downstairs.

"And now we have to go all the way back down," Shane said with an eye roll. "It could take twice as long."

"Think like Ash," I said, grabbing a piece of wood by some trash. I laid it down on the stairs and got on it. "You guys coming?"

"You seriously think that'd work," Jason said.

"It does when Ash is here," I said, grabbing the lid of a garbage can. I would use it as we slid down. "Well? Let's go. Ash can't wait forever. She might fall down the building again."

Kevin and Joe jumped on and we pushed ourselves down, making it like a ride. We were screaming too, just like how Ash would. I was going to miss moments like this, Ash's crazy ideas on how to get out of things. And seeing now and how they've grown on me, they finally came in handy.

--

"I know I was going to get married but, I thought it'd be somewhere more.... sturdy and in a place that wouldn't most likely collapse."

I was in a wedding dress. Not the best though. It was short first of all, above my knees. And it didn't have any straps, so I kept trying to keep it up. I was wearing white go-go boots, too. I've got nothing against them but at the moment, I do. And I was wearing a long, long, long transparent veil under my cat ear hat behind my head. Not to mention dandelions for flowers with all the seeds gone.

"At least you're alive," said one of the girls in the pews.

"Shut up," said a guy that worked for Alister. The 12 girls kidnapped were sitting in the blew crooked pews here at the bottom floor. And a creepy organ at the side to go along with it.

'Those guys better get here soon.'

The organ started playing and I gulped, walking down the isle. I wasn't smiling either. I was gripping onto my so-called flowers tighter and tighter. Once I got up to Alister he grabbed my arm tightly, probably cutting off my blood circulation. 'Please hurry.'

"We're gathered here today," said a skater dude with a smirk. He probably worked for Alister too. "To wed yet another young lady, to this wonderful man today on the 17th of-"

"Dude that was last week's weeding," said one of Alister's henchmen from the pews.

'Last week?'

"Everyone stop!" shouted a voice from the building's huge doors.

It made my heart sigh with relief. "About time."

The guys all stood up straight and looked at me. "Ash?" I blushed, remembering my clothes.

"Intruders," Alister said, gripping onto my arm and making me wince. "Don't you boys know it's impolite to barge in uninvited to a private wedding?"

"Wedding?" Shane asked in disbelief. "I thought at Ash's wedding Nate would-"

"Let the our friend go, along with the girls," Jason said, covering Shane's mouth.

"Don't think so," Alister said. "This building is rigged with bombs. Anything, not to my liking to occur, boom, with all of you stuck here."

"We said let her go!" Nate demanded, taking a stance.

I glared and banged my wrist on my back, pressing the hologram button. A hologram of me appeared on the opposite side of the room, coming out from behind a pillar. "You mean me?" my copy-self asked.

"What?" Alister said, losing his grip on me while everyone's attention was focused on my double. "How on earth did she- Argh she is like every other spy after all, always on the run."

"You'll have to catch me first!" my double said sticking her tongue out. Alister began chasing her up the stairs as I got away through another door and hiding in the shadows.

"I'll go after him! You guys take care of the girls here!" Nate shouted, chasing after them, too. The henchmen surrounded Shane and Jason who were back to back.

"Hm, 12 hot girls watching, Nate chasing Ash and a bad guy, I think the odds are at our favors, Jase," Shane said with a smirk.

Jason smirked back. "I'm gonna miss this."

I ran down the stairs, holding the back of my vail. After using my watch and lighting a wooden stuck for a torch, I began to walk around the place. "Weird, my scan didn't pick up this place. I guess I'm farther underground than I thought."

I looked around the room. It had papers hung up on the walls, maps, navigational things. On the table by the papers were compasses and pencils. I scanned the place now with my watch. After looking at the results, I realised it picked up a DNA signal, making my head jump at the name that appeared. "Oh my gosh."

--

"Na na!" my hologram shouted as she stopped, since Alister stopped too. The stairs at the side of a tall building were always hard to climb.

"Geez how does Ash keep running so fast?" Nate said, just as tired. Until he saw me flicker that is. "Hologram."

"A hologram?" Alister said, having heard Nate. "You think you can play tricks on me don't you."

Nate backed up a bit as the hologram disappeared. 'Ash must be somewhere that's interfering with her hologram program on her watch.'

"Maybe I shouted finish this place after all," Alister said, pressing a button. Everywhere I heard beeping. "I'm not waisting my time on you kids."

Nate's eyes widened as Alister ran down the stairs. "Ash." He ran down too, having to warn his brothers, and having to find me before the place imploded.

--

"Impossible," I said, staring at my watch in the dark. "Diane Gray?" That was the guys' mother, Mr. Gray's wife. I followed it and turned around. It was so close, here in a book case. I bent down and saw a book, it's pages held with a small rope. At the top was tied a lock of hair, as if Mrs. Gray wanted someone to find this. I got out the book and went though it, searching for something. But instead, a paper fell out. I licked my lips and placed the book on the table, taking the hair into my pocket. I bent down and picked up the paper. It was just as old as everything else in here.

"It's another map," I said to myself. It was wrinkled a bit, and the paper was brownish. It had ripped and bent edges, but the map was still readable. It was of earth at least. And it started here in Wyckoff, and all across the ocean. But, to what place exactly?

I turned the map open, and found writing on the back, signed by Diane Jonas herself.

Dear G.R.A.Y Agent,
I hope that someone trustworthy has found this map. During my days in captivity here in this cell, I've drawn a map to my escape, my only way to freedom. A place where I believe I'm supposed to go to, a place where I can only go to. Alister will be coming down for me in less than 24-hours, so here is what I have to say.

I gulped again and licked my lips. For an old letter this was pretty suspenseful for me. Where'd she go that she had to go? And was Mrs. G. the G.R.A.Y agent that Alister talked about killing?

Since I refuse to marry Alister and give up my family, I decided that my only choice was to run away. Behind is a map to where I have relocated myself. There is no doubt my journey will be long and hard, but if I do not make it there, whoever is reading this, as an agent I assign for you to watch over my sons, Nathanial, Shane, Jason, and Aiden. And my husband, please don't let my disappearance or death affect the organization. I am doing this to protect my family, and, to find this place of prophecy.

"Diane Jonas," I read lastly. So it was true, she was on this mission and.... never came back. "All this time...." I turned the map over and looked. It went through a lot of places, and it wasn't exactly... exact. A simple like across a blue colored penciled map doesn't really show which way to go, does it? I folded the letter/map, and into my pocket. I looked up and what I was surprised to see, was, a drawing. I walked up to the wall and pulled the paper off. It was the drawing of a key, my key, the one I kept and found from the Atrum Ruins. "Key to Power."

All of a sudden the place started rumbling and I dropped the paper. "ASH!" Nate shouted from the stairs. In no time he got down here and grabbed my hand.

"What's going on?!" I shouted.

"Alister's gonna blow the place up in ten seconds!"

"WHAT?!" I shouted, running. "Why the heck are you here then?!"

"I told my brothers outside I wanted to find you! I wasn't going to leave you here to die ok?!"

After that I kept quiet, starring at Nate's back and running. By a split second we jumped out of the glass window right by us, the place exploding into rubble and smoke. We rolled onto the concrete ground, both stressed at relieved at the same time.

"You guys made it!" we heard Jason shouted as he and Shane ran to us, jumping over everything in their way. Nate and I smiled, helping eachother up.

"We got all the girls out so don't worry," Jason said as Shane hugged us both.

"Man I thought we'd loose you guys in there!" Shane said, all of us laughing.

As the guys all cheered and laughed, I remained silent, putting up a fake grin. I didn't know whether or not to tell the guys about the map I saw. And the key, apparently called key to power. Where did their Mom go anyway?

--

"Nice work guys, you completed the mission," Mr. Gray said, all of us back in the living room. Aiden, Ember, and Mysti were here too. "Now, have you boys made your decision.... as to whether or not, you will resign?"

The guys starred down, thinking about this seriously. We haven't had the time to talk abotu it much durring the climax of the mission.

"Go," I said with a grin. "It's your dreams. It'd be pretty awesome to travel places without having to wonder if there's a bad guy around the corner or in your vents."

Nate looked at me then back, waiting a few seconds. "I resign."

All of us looked at him, surprised he'd actually be the first. Out of these guys, I knew Nate loved this job the best.

"I resign," Jason said too.

"I resign," Shane said lastly.

Mr. Gray sighed. "I'm very proud of you boys. You've done a lot of what many of my other spies couldn't do. Now that you are no longer spies, you will no longer have access to the G.R.A.Y prison, the G.R.A.Y Transportation Headquarters, the control room, or the basement controls. Is that clear?"

"Yes," the guys said, almost as if they were painful to even agree to those terns.

Mr. Gray nodded. "You'll have to give me your watches."

The guys looked at their G.R.A.Y watches and took them off, handing them to their Dad. I rarely, maybe not ever, see them without those things.

"I have a question though," Nate said. "What about Ash? I don't want her to go on missions alone."

I smiled at Nate's concern for me, as did his Dad. "I'll put her with another spy team. You don't have to worry about-"

"Wait," I said, my hand playing with my watch's wristband. "I resign too."

Now everyone looked at me shocked.

"Ash why would you do that?" Mysti asked.

"Because," I said, taking off my watch. "I would have to resign sooner or later anyway."

"But," Aiden said. "Why do you have to resign? You don't have, too. You're not going anywhere."

"Did you get accepted to that Tylive Records thing?" Ember asked.

I shook my head. "No, I read the letter when we got back from the mission. I didn't get accepted."

"So where are you going?" Nate asked.

I kept my eyes away from everyone, they were hidden under my cat ear hat. "We're moving."

"What?" Aiden asked.

"W-We're moving?" Ember asked me in disbelief.

I nodded. "This morning I woke up early. My Mom said we're moving, to Washington. Business purposes. She says she's found a job that pays really good. We'll be out of here by next week."

"You knew since this morning?" Jason asked. "Ash if you knew you were leaving why didn't you tell any of us?"

"I didn't want anyone to be upset," I told them, looking at everyone in the room. "Especially with that mission. And with you guys so happy with your new opportunities, I didn't want to say it until I really had to."

"And when exactly did you plan on telling us?" Nate asked.

I stayed quiet for a moment. "I don't know... this morning I thought I'd tell you guys the day before I'd leave but... it seems things just got a little more complicated now that you guys resigned. And, if I'm gonna be all the way at the other end of the country, I might as well not be a spy anymore."

"But Ash, you know that even though you're in Washington you can still be a spy. Sure there's new people but-"

"No, it's okay Nate," I said. "It wouldn't be the same, being in a new place with a new boss. Not every spy headquarters is this child friendly. Any other government spy would have fired me and Shane by now because of our foolishness."

Shane laughed. "That's true."

"You're sure you want to resign Ash?" Mr. Gray asked.

I looked at my watch one last time before holding it up to their dad to take. "I resign."

Everyone was now in pure shock. It was over now.... The guys are leaving and... Ember and I are moving. And, I still had many unsolved clues to G.R.A.Y's mysteries, like Diane Gray. And now this was our last week together.... it's the end of my adventure.

--

It was night now, and I was upstairs in my bedroom. I just couldn't bear sleeping in the fire house knowing my days were limited. Ember felt the same way.

We both were wearing night gowns and went over to the window, opening it. We starred out into the street and to the side, where we saw the fire house. Only one bedroom had it's lights on, Nate's room.

"I'm sorry," I apoligized.

Ember looked down at me. "You've got nothing to be sorry for, Ash.... We've lived the dream.... No dream lasts forever."

"I guess," I said with no enthusiasm. ".... I wish it could though...."

Ember and I looked at eachother and hugged, still feeling as sad as ever about having to let the guys go.

--NATE'S POV--

Meanwhile at the fire house, the guys and I were in my bedroom. We decided we'd all sleep in one room tonight.

There was a scilence going around the room. There was nothing to say. Nothing to look forward to. Nothing to talk about, seeing as we were all thinking the same thing, with the same thoughts.

Shane blew out a breath he was holding. "Nate?"

"...Yeah?" I asked, starring at the ceiling from my bed.

".... Are you going to confess to Ash?"

"What?" I asked sitting up. That was a question that got to me every time. It worked waking me up, it worked snapping me out of thoughts, that question could wake me up from a coma if the time came.

Shane kept a still face. "I'm serious. I'm not gonna tease you right now."

"He's telling the truth," Jason spoke up, not in a humorous mood either.

"Why me and Ash? Why don't we talk about Mysti and Ember for a change?"

"Because your relationship with Ash is more important," Jason said, making me look at him. "You and Ash go way back. Sure Mysti and I go back much further, but your relationship's stronger."

Shane nodded. "Stronger than mine and Ember's too. She likes you man."

"Is that so," I said. "Then how come nothing's changed."

"Because you and Ash are stubborn idiots," Aiden said, sitting up from his bed. Just when we thought he was asleep. "That's right. I said it." The three of us couldn't help but smile at that remark. "Ash really does like your Nate. Why don't you just confess to her? You like her too don't you?"

"I..."

"Don't lie," Aiden interupted, shaking his head and hugging his knees. "You've been lying for a long time already."

".. You're right.... I've been lying to Ash about how I really felt about her.... I've been lying to myself."

Jason smiled, proud Nate finally admitted it. "Then don't lie and say you're afraid that confessing will ruin your friendship."

"I'm just afriad that it'll be hard to say goodbye," Nate continued.

Shane looked down at his sleepign bag. "So you're saying you like Ash."

Nate turned off the lights, signaling everyone to go to sleep. "I'm not saying I only like her as a friend."

TO BE CONTINUED


NEXT and FINAL CHAPTERS...

The guys are leaving.... Ember and I are moving.... the world is ending for me....
No seriously. The world's ending.
Ah!" Nate shouted, sitting up. "Did you just whack me with a fish?!"
"That doesn't matter what aquatic mammals I've whacked you with. Come on, we've gotta go save the world."

This last journey shall take you to foreign lands no G.R.A.Y spy has ever gone before
"Kibosh ra shkotwa. Ki jalopan hiesro. Koba qiga yoshar!" said one of them.
"Um.... we come in peace?" I said, not really knowing what to say.

Pressuring
"If it was to ever fall into the wrong hands, it would cause the end of the world."
".... That's a nice burden to hold over a 15-year old's shoulders," I said sarcastically.

The reuinion of a broken family
"You have any idea how dangerous that is?! If we were back at Wyckoff you three would be soo grounded!"
"Yeah, good to have you back, Mrs. G," I said with a laugh.

And it will take all the power of our heroes to bring the world back to what it once was
"But either way we're back, we're alive-"
"We're screwed," Nate added.
"Yeah that's the spirit," I said to him. "Be positive."

The dangers and stakes are higher
"Ember?" Shane said, looking up. "EMBER!!!"
"Mysti no!!" Jason shouted.
"Shane watch out!!" I screamed.
"Ash think about your mom, your dad, all of us, everyone in the world, are you seriously going to throw it all away?" Nate pleaded to me.

Ash Drame
"A good spy relys on gadgets and knowledge. But a great spy relies on strategy and heart."

Nate Gray
"Because I really have to find her. I'm not losing her like we did Mom."

Shane Gray
"You know Ash, I feel happy for the guy you'd have to marry. He can skip meeting the overprotective father, and he can meet the world dominating uncle instead."

Jason Gray
"No matter how many times we bring these guys down they keep coming back!"

My Story
"I love you..."