The little Latina girl was playing with her favourite superhero doll - Captain Adventure. Xiomara was in the kitchen area washing the dishes. She stared deep into the white porcelain plate with a blue trim, as the suds slowly ran down the expensive piece of crockery. Thinking about what had happened a few days ago.
Peering around the corner of the wooden doorframe, almost catching her face on the etched glass of the door, she could see her daughter moving Captain Adventure, through the air, animating the doll flying around. It's green cape flapping in the breeze created by Lucia as she played ignoring the newscaster on the television. Her cartoon show had been interrupted by an urgent news report.
"People are just falling to the ground Lisa; widespread panic is happening across all of New York City. This reporter is fearing for his life. If you look behind me, you can see people, just dropping to their knees. The Catastrophic Emergency Response Agency have been called out to help the sick along with the Joint Task Force, to try and restore some order …it's absolute chaos here."
"Momma, what's wrong?"
Xiomara holds out her arms and hands to hold on to her daughter, squeezing her tight, as the noise on her block becomes louder and louder. She looks out her Brooklyn apartment window and can see the panic caused as she holds her daughter close.
Men and women attacking one another in the street, Rioters are damaging equipment and looting nearby shops. It looks like mass hysteria has flooded New York. They look at the chaos on the street below and into the distance.
Smoke is coming from the horizon a few blocks from their home. Xiomara can see men with guns and balaclavas threatening their way through – it looks like they're heading for their building. They hear the cries of the residents of the apartment block, as a group of armed men are getting closer by the second.
It's not too long before they hear the men inside, threatening and causing chaos. Demanding money and other valuables they can carry. It sounded like four men to Xiomara.
"What's happening momma?"
The noises got louder, and the rioters were right outside – they'd made it onto their floor in the building. She takes Lucia to her room. Keeping her safe inside making her way back to the kitchen waiting to see what happens.
CRASH BANG.
The door flings open as two men in balaclavas come crashing into the lounge. Each with their shotguns in hand. One of the men picks up the Captain Adventure toy and smiles.
"Here kid, I got something for you."
The plate comes flying out of the kitchen smashing into the skull of one of the armed men. Xiomara quickly disables the other one, who doesn't see her come hurtling towards him. One blink and the sound of the blast, impacts on both men as they line up exactly how she wanted them to be.
Two more men enter the room, and she disables them quicker than the last two, beating them to an inch of their lives. Finally taking the pistol from one of the attackers on their right-hand side and firing two kill shots.
She enters Lucia's bedroom and takes her, almost dragging her out of the building.
It was only a matter of time before the smart watch would light up green, that she received after her training. She had passed her psychological tests, weapons and tactics training, she was ready. It was something she feared and hoped she'd never be called. Because once called this meant the situation was serious, in fact it meant the situation had got out of control. She'd never really been ready for the day, but now the day had arrived. And the city looked out of control. Xiomara, along with a small group of other highly trained operatives would help and support the Joint Task Force in restoring order to the city. They would clean up the streets, take back control and aid CERA in helping the people who need the most care.
These agents are known as the Division.
A few weeks later
The Christmas decorations below littered the streets of New York, some were lit, others were lit on fire. Black Friday was a day to remember. A Smallpox virus known as Green Poison wiped out millions of people. Nicknamed the dollar flu. The virus was transmitted through dollar bills – on one of the busiest days in the city.
The creator of the virus was unknown and so were their reasons.
The helicopter rocked around as the small team inside, tried to hang on to their lunch. The team leader checked his weapon, the huge gun looked small against the muscular physique of the man ready to lead his team. The first wave of Strategic Homeland Division agents has been brought in to clean up the mess caused by the decay of New York's criminal underbelly. It's their job to get things back to normal before anything else happens. To assist the JTF and CERA in helping the people who are in need and eliminating any threats made to CERA or the public in general.
"Alpha two, you awake?" The commander was checking that his number two was ready for action. ISAAC had provided the brief for the mission. SHD had gotten word that a high-ranking official's daughter was inside the building, commandeered by Rioters – men and women who wanted to cause destruction and chaos to this once busy metropolis.
"Xio, you with us girl?"
Coming back from the safehouse in Plymouth Rock, the team had loaded up for the siege. ISAAC the AI controlled assistant had shown them where the best place was to gain entry to the building.
The roof.
CERA had set up an aid centre in the Brooklyn Elementary School. When Rioters infiltrated the building, they killed most of the JTF and took hostages. One of whom is a high-ranking official's daughter.
Sliding the door open on the military black helicopter, the team leader aims down his scope and fires, suppressing the two snipers on the building, near the bell tower. Xio, looks at the picture of her daughter and tucks into the green uniform under her armour.
"We've got a green light, go, go, go." The sound of the team leader could barely be heard as the helicopter in the sky sounded loud inside.
All three members of the team jump out of the helicopter and land on the roof.
"Xio, you take point. This is a hostage situation, so check your fire."
Xio nods, confirming his orders will be followed. She had not intention of shooting innocent civilians and didn't want to get shot herself.
"And watch your six." The team leader smiles, he knows that she's his best agent, and he made the right choice when picking his team for this mission.
The two agents look at Xio as she walks towards the roof access door. Jones takes out his tool to open the door – his foot. He kicks open the battered wooden door with his size 13 boot. It nearly flies off its hinges.
The disturbance alerts two more Rioters as they get shot for investigating.
POP POP
The blood splatter forms a pattern on the wall as the agents walk past blood and brain matter. The flashlight from their pistols bounces off the fog. It shines ahead to make their way to the second floor. Another Rioter walks around the corner – surprised by what he can see. Xio uses her skills in mortal combat and sends the Rioter flying through the classroom broken edged window.
"Hostiles nearby." ISAAC says in Xio's ear. The visual map shows the team a large number of blue dots – they believe these to be the hostages.
"Get down now," the team leader shouts at Xio and Jones as they become under fire from Rioters. The Rioters appeared to have gotten some Last Man Battalion armour. The bullets bounced off them. More shots were fired trying to get them to a position where they could be subdued. Like lightening, Xio appears to the Rioters, striking them down by unsheathing her knife, and stabbing it into the necks of both men. The blood sprays everywhere, gushing out like a geyser.
"Nice work Agent," the team leader can see the auditorium as he directs the agents towards the door. ISSAC showed multiple red hostile targets. "Xio, try to get up high and take them out one by one." He points to a ladder up towards the platforms above. Thankfully the Rioters didn't have any radio communication. Jones can see at least four of them and lets the team leader know. The Rioters are watching over the hostages.
"Xio, come in, are you in position?"
The team leader gets the team ready to storm the auditorium, "on my mark, 3, 2, 1."
Each Rioter falls to the ground in quick succession, before the next one could realise what was happening.
"Well done, Xio, get your ass down here and help us with getting these hostages to safety."
The CERA hostages are in shock but feel safe now their captors have been neutralised. The two doors open once again. And a man not part of the Rioters enters the room, looking at the agents. They turn around and stare at the man in front of them.
"Agent Keener? What are you doing here?" The team leader says.
Xio, remains at the top of the auditorium, looking down at the other two agents, along with Agent Aaron Keener. Keener holsters his weapon and walks towards the agents. He's dressed all in black and looks ready for war. His blue piercing eyes look into the team leader's eyes.
"Keener what's going on?" The team was trying to understand why someone who he knew from The Citadel, a Military College of South Carolina was part of the rescue operation. He hadn't received any intel to inform them Keener would be part of the recovery mission. As far as he was aware, Keener was securing the dark zone.
"Nice job cleaning house, fucking Rioters." The agent walks around taking his weapon out once again and looking at some of the bodies of the JTF soldiers lying stone cold on the auditorium floor. "They couldn't even protect this CERA aid station, fucking JTF." He kicks one of the dead soldiers. "They send us to help and support them – in taking back the city -and when we need support where the fuck are they?"
The team leader was becoming a little unsure what Keener was trying to do here, it was clear that the dark zone had fallen, and Aaron Keener and a few other agents were unable to hold it.
"Aaron are you okay?"
"Am I okay?" Keener says rhetorically. "I think it's time we took back the city, but this time we do it our way. This place all of it – under our control. What do you say Carter?"
Carter 'Hornet' Leroux is a close personal friend of Keener's, they both joined the Division together and both served together. Carter would follow this man into hell and back and kill for him along the way. His call sign is Hornet, and the team leader on this rescue mission.
"Wait a minute, what's going on here?" Jones says, trying to understand what is happening. Keener walks up to Jones and looks him in the eye.
"Do you want to be a part of this, well let's see, shall we?" Keener points his gun at one of the JTF team members who was being held hostage by the Rioters. And fires point blank into his face.
Jones takes out his weapon and points it at Keener as Carter disables him and breaks his neck. Xio watches from up above.
"Good job Hornet, good job."
BANG BANG POP POP
Xio shoots from up above, missing Keener by a hairline, he returns fire on her, shooting wildly at the planks of wood as the hostage's panic and run out the building. Keener holds on to one of them in his hands, the one person the agents were sent to rescue. He tries to stop her from escaping and hits the teenage girl on the back near her neck – knocking her out instantly.
"Who the fuck is that?" Keener shouts at Carter, waiting for a response. He takes a few hits to the chest, but his full body armour protects him. Unpinning a grenade Keener throws it up towards Xio, blasting the platform and bringing her down to the ground.
"Looks like it's raining women," mocking the lyrics of the famous song by the Weather Girls.
She rolls on the floor shooting at Keener and Carter as she looks for the exit. The two agents are blocking the way, she makes her way around the red upholstered chairs, ducking and covering from the onslaught of projectiles.
Bullets are flying into the chairs, as Xio uses them as a shield to protect her from the carnage in the auditorium. She comes from out of the seating area and kicks Carter disabling him as he tries to get his side arm. Keener comes charging at her and she manages to block their attacks, taking out her knife and trying to attack him. He kicks it from her hand.
Diving once again behind the chairs she escapes through the door heading into the corridor and away from the two mad men who've turned into rogue agents.
"Who the hell was that? Captain 'fucking' Marvel?!"
Keener shows Carter his smart watch as the colour goes from green to red, shortly after - Carter's does the same.
The doors to the main building fly open as Xio's standing in front of a twenty men and women from the LMB, all readying and pointing their weapons at her. Just waiting for her to do something, so they can fire as soon as she makes a move.
"Sir…Agent Keener, we have her." The Last Man Battalion commander radios Agent Keener, awaiting instructions from him, for what he's to do next.
"Kill her!"
Thanks for reading the first chapter, will Xio make it back alive to tell her commanding officer what has happened? What does Agent Keener do during the first wave of Division Agents? Find out in the next chapter of 'The Division: Rogue Agent'