yes, the action is commencing! this is probably the entire climax to the entire thing that i just spun out...hahahahah, yeah, it must suck a bit b/c my mind is waning at 10:50 at night...anyways, here's the next chapter, it's pretty long, but here it is anyways. please R&R!
Chapter Fourteen
Sydney found herself standing in a quiet town in the outskirts of Whitehorse, Yukon. It was a desolate place with not a lot of trees in sight and what made up the totally fauna in the area was shrubs that stuck to the dry grounds. There wasn't a lot of activity and in Sydney's hiking clothes, she looked and felt out of place.
Now where is Nadia's contact? She wondered, walking down the town's road. It would help so much if she had given me a photo of this person….could it be possible that Nadia never met her contact before? Oh, this just helps totally. She groaned inwardly and continued to trek about, ignoring the curious stares from the townspeople.
I'm probably not the first person here, she thought ruefully. This is ridiculous. Where is she?!
Suddenly, from the corner of her eye, she saw someone dart from behind the houses. Sydney continued to walk, not amused, but she was aware of the person darting from house to house. She then turned to see who it was. There was a teenage girl, looking straight at her. She was wearing a cotton dress and her long hair was in a braid. She then gestured Sydney to follow her.
Sydney cocked her head to one side; who was this kid?
Then realization hit her; could see be the contact?
The girl beckoned to her one more time before darting away, away from the houses and all. Sydney quickly made up her mind and followed the girl. The girl was a good deal ahead of her as she made her way behind a couple of boulders standing near a high hill. Sydney quickly crossed the tundra plain, looking left and right if anyone was watching.
By the time she reached behind the boulder, the girl was scrambling into her pockets. "I am sorry that I didn't greet you properly when you arrived," she said hurriedly, "but I didn't want any of those black men to see me do anything suspicious. They are aware of everything."
"I see," Sydney replied.
"Here." The girl pressed something into Sydney's hand. "I'm sure Nadia-sama told you about your countermission. They added this little bit to it---that thing you're holding in your hand is a tracker. You are to find, if you can, the little stash-out that belongs to SD-6 and post this somewhere on the door. The satellite will pick it up and bring the signal to the CIA, where I don't really know what they're going to do." She shrugged. "That's where Nadia's expertise comes in."
Sydney nodded. "I see…I'll remember that," she replied, pocketing the device in her bag. "How did you get into the trade here? Nadia isn't the kind of person to recruit people like you…I think." She made a face. "And what's your name?"
The girl laughed. "My name's Anna," she replied. "Nadia isn't the kind of person to recruit people out of nowhere, you're right. I was her internet buddy. We met on this really hype message board and yeah. We met once in the airport in Toronto. We bumped into each other, realized who the other was, hugged, and talked before she had to leave. I help her out occasionally, whenever I could, but as you can see, I try to be as concealed as possible." She shrugged.
"I see."
"Wait! Hang on!" Anna dug into her pockets and revealed a box. "This is the bomb you are to use along with the ones that SD-6 issued. When this bomb detonates, it is supposed to leak some sort of field that would enable the satellites to pick it up." She shrugged. "So Nadia says," she added with a rueful smile. "I suck at this stuff."
Sydney received the box. "I'll remember that."
"I have to go," she said breathlessly. "I don't want them to suspect."
Sydney nodded in understanding.
"Good luck." Anna smiled before darting away.
Sydney watched her go before straightening her posture. She had work to do.
"Stop pacing," Weiss told Vaughn in the Ops room. He was sitting down with an earpiece, watching the television screen. He had decided to accompany Vaughn in this, supposing that there was nothing better to do. Beside the desk, Vaughn continued to pace, disregarding Weiss's order. Weiss scowled and looked up at Vaughn. "Michael, I'll break both your legs to make you stop."
Vaughn gave Weiss a glare. "You and I both know you wouldn't hurt a fly even if it was attacking you," he retorted.
"I have my dark side," Weiss replied proudly. "Seriously, Michael. You're not helping anyone by pacing…except for helping my head get a headache the size of Haladki's ass." Once Vaughn sat down, he sighed heavily. "Gosh, Michael, you are probably the most over-protective man I have ever met. I'd hate to be your kid."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Vaughn asked dryly.
Weiss shook his head. "You've got two of the people you care the most out there on a mission right now," he pointed out like a teacher to their pupil. "Each, respectively, good at what they do. And here you are, acting like the worried mother." He gave him a wary smile.
"I am not," Vaughn retorted hotly. But in his mind, he knew that Weiss was right about the way he was acting. It was immature, but he couldn't help it. The woman he had grown to care about, the woman who he knew inside out what out there right now, risking her life to ensure that her world wouldn't crumble. The girl that he had raised like his own daughter was out there saving his own butt from being kicked by a nosy and jealous reporter. He didn't want to lose them both and here he was, feeling helpless about it all.
Weiss chuckled. "Don't you lie, Mike," he told him. "It's all over your face. I don't blame you…we are the ones sitting comfortably here. But let me tell you, you shouldn't worry yourself into a panic attack. As I said, they're both very good at what they do. I'm sure they'll pull through and they'll both be home before you can say "Damn.""
Vaughn grinned.
At the same time, the door flung open to reveal Haladki. Both men turned to see who it was. When Vaughn saw Haladki's idiotic face, he turned around again, minding the monitor. The man was holding some kind of grudge against him and he didn't feel like battling him today. Arguing with that moron was like looking into a blob of putty.
"Where's that little runt?" Haladki demanded hotly.
Weiss gave the man a side-glance. "What are you talking about now?" he asked wearily.
"That girl…Nancy…Norma…Natalia…"
"You mean Nadia?" Weiss asked, shrugging and casting his eyes heavenward. Despite Weiss's innocent look, Vaughn could see the twinkle of mischief in his eyes. "The girl that just wiped the floor with your ass? Oh, she's on a mission right now in San Francisco. Who knows? If she does a good job, she'll be on her way to a full-time agent." He grinned toothily at the agent. "Maybe she'll be your replacement one of these days."
"Heh, good for her," Haladki said acidly. "But it'll be her first and last mission…I just filed a complaint to Devlin. I just charged her for harassment and assault. That little bitch made my knees ache like hell!" he added angrily, turning red. Weiss could see he was deeply humiliated by a girl that was probably twice his age.
Vaughn whirled around when Haladki called his niece a bitch. "Hey!" he snapped angrily. "Don't you dare call her anything because you're just describing yourself!" He scowled at the supposed head of resources. He was ready to jump him and pound the living daylights out of him if Weiss didn't intentionally block him from doing so. "And for your information, you try and file a complaint to Devlin about her, you might as well hang yourself."
Haladki scoffed. "What do you know? You're just trying to scare me!"
"Am I now?" Vaughn shot back with an angry glare. "Well, if you did your homework, Haladki, you'd know that Nadia's father happens to be a rather important and well-respected man here in the CIA. I think you've heard of Raidon Tomeo." He sat back, arms folded, scowling directly at Haladki.
Weiss couldn't help smirking like he had just won.
Haladki turned from red to white. Everyone in the CIA knew of Raidon Tomeo; he was like a walking legend and he was extremely good at what he did. Every intern who started out in the CIA knew who he was and feared him with a passion; he was incredibly strong both physically and mentally and he knew how to channel his thoughts and emotions really well. He was not only feared but also extremely respected. He was also a high-ranking officer in the CIA.
"Um…well, hahaha, I just remembered…I forgot to do something," Haladki said nervously, scrambling out the door in a rush.
Weiss and Vaughn started laughing as soon as Haladki had left. It definitely lightened the mood and making Haladki running for his money made them feel rather good. It was victory for them. Vaughn then stopped laughing, but he was still shaking his head at Haladki's infinite stupidity. He sat by the phone, waiting patiently.
"Sounds like a plan."
Inside Denny's sat Nadia with the CIA agent she was to meet up with named Andre Gotwyski. He was a tall man with a slight accent when he spoke. He was unruly hair and was dressed up in some really dark clothing and a leather jacket. He didn't look like a CIA agent, which made him typical for the mission. They were eating breakfast while he filled her in with what was going on and she filled him in on the plan.
"Yeah," Nadia said with a cringe. "I just hope it works."
Gotwyski stabbed at his toast. "I can't believe I lost him back at the pier," he grumbled. He looked as though he was blaming himself for the entire ordeal. Nadia didn't say anything; he was already feeling bad. All they could do now was figure out a way to bring the reporter Tippin into safety without revealing their identities and risking any more trouble. "Where do you think he is?"
"He's a reporter," she replied, shoving some egg into her mouth and drowning in with cappuccino. "He'd try to blend in and fit into some other character. He'll try to get rid of the guy behind him, if he is capable of doing so. I'm worried that he might get into more trouble than intended…which is why we need to knock out the guy following him." She raised a brow at him. "You think you can handle it?"
He looked slightly offended. "Of course I can handle it," he replied defiantly.
She raised her hands, offering peace. "Just making sure," she replied, before finishing her breakfast. "Look, I have to make a quick call to HQ and give them status quo. Just be ready to go when I come back." When he nodded, she got up and walked out of Denny's, pulling out her cell in hand. The sky was clear and the sun was beating down. She quickly dialled the number without thought and waited.
Someone picked up. "Are you there?"
"No, I'm up in Toronto…of course I'm here."
Vaughn noticed the twinge of sarcasm. "Okay, sorry, sorry, geez."
"Hmph."
"What's your status quo?"
"We're just about to commence here."
"Okay…you be careful out there."
Nadia smiled shyly. "You know I always am."
"I'm just reminding you."
"I know, I know," she replied, pausing. "I'll see you when I get back." She then hung up and stared at the parking lot. A slight breeze came, but it wasn't as refreshing as the ones she got when she was in Canada. She realized she missed Canada and wanted to travel back there sometime. Shaking the memories, she turned around and headed back inside. She had work to do.
She heard ruffling.
Sydney was standing in the tundra, her feet planted between two shrubs, the GPS unit in one hand and Sloane's note in the other. She had tapped in the coordinates but found herself rather lost. The tall hills stood off to a side and the boulders were she and Anna quickly talked were about 150 meters away from where she was standing. A bunch of trees were directly ahead of her and plains as far as the eye could see were all around her.
Maybe I read Sloane's note wrong, she wondered. She tapped in the coordinates again. She got a totally different location that made Sydney curse underneath her breath. This was impossible! She thought. I'm getting nowhere with this…maybe I should just walk and maybe I'll stumble across it….
Then she heard the ruffling.
She looked around, figuring out where she could hide. She knew that they were coming from the town or the hills and she needed to hide quickly. The tundra plains weren't particularly helping her so her only option was the trees. Making up her mind, she made a dash towards the trees, patting her things to make sure she didn't drop anything.
The trees were coniferous and she found it easy to hide behind them. She peered to watch who was coming from wherever. Her hand absently went to her belt, where her gun sat, ready for action. Two people appeared from the side, both clad in black. The shorter of the two, a woman, had her dull blonde hair up in a bun while the tall man had his black hair combed back from his face. Both carried military-configured rifles, wore sunglasses and had no emotions on their faces.
Talk about robots, she thought.
Sydney suddenly felt the ground shake and she lost her footing. She slid backwards, deeper into the tree area. It was darker there because the top treetops blocked out most of the sun's rays. She tumbled down and slammed upright into something hard. Her head throbbed violently as she fell forward, landing on her stomach on something hard before rolling into a patch of fresh moss.
She groaned. What the hell just happened there?
She lay still for a moment, listening to see if they had heard her.
Nothing.
She rolled over, straining her eyes in the impending darkness. The light that peeked through the treetops made some familiar objects noticeable as she looked to find where she was. The trees apparently were on some sort of gentle hill and it formed a sort of a bowl shape. She also found a looming object before her from where she thumped her head twice. She got up, forgetting the pain, to see what the object really was.
It was a door of some sort, slanted on a 50-degree angle and was in a grayish-blue tint. Her hands ran through the leaves and the dirt on the doors and she felt some indents. She traced the indents to reveal a name---SD-6. She sighed in relief and in triumph; this was the safe house that Sloane was so anxious to protect. Now that she was here, she dug into her bag and pulled out the tracker that Anna had given her. Finding a secluded spot, she attached the tracker on. Hopefully the satellites would pick up the position.
She suddenly heard a click.
Uh-oh, she thought, slowly turning around.
She found him.
Nadia was sitting in a café, reading a "The Bear and the Dragon" by Tom Clancy while waiting for Gotwyski to contact her by cell. She had changed into blue flare jeans and a blue t-shirt. Her hair was up in a ponytail and she wore sunglasses to keep the sunrays' glare out of her eyes. A few tables away sat the reporter Tippin, who was in a far more outrageous outfit than her. He wore a really crazy wig with the hair all scruffy. He wore a silky yellow top and white jeans and some really scaly looking shoes. He had gigantic green-lenses sunglasses on his face that totally scared Nadia out.
Talk about a fashion disaster, she thought distastefully.
When Gotwyski hadn't called in yet, she closed the book and pulled out a notepad and pen and began to write lazily. I wonder if this mission will prove if I have the guts to be in the CIA, she wondered warily as she continued to write. Gosh, I hope so.
Her cell rang.
She immediately scooped it up and answered it. "You there?"
"Yes."
"Where?" she asked, looking around.
"In the alleyway, across the street from where you are."
"That close?" she squeaked.
"Yes…the agent is here as well."
Nadia peered from the corner of her eyes, but through the hustle of people going through and fro the main street, it was hard to tell. And with the traffic and the zoom of the cars coming down the street, she couldn't really pinpoint anyone unusual. "Which one? I see tons of people," she replied, keeping her voice low from the other people.
"The one leaning on the wall with a cigarette."
Nadia pretended to look around casually, at the same time taking in the situation. She found the man. He was leaning against a brick building beside the dark alleyway, holding a cigarette and blowing out the smokes on the people who were passing by. Talk about no sense of respect, she thought angrily. I hope Gotwyski kicks this guy's ass bad!!! "I see him," she growled. "You get ready."
"I'll talk to you later."
"Good luck." She closed her cell and tucked it away. She watched as the man dropped his cigarette on the ground and stepped on it. She watched him dig into his pockets and pull out something that looked like a cell phone. He then walked towards the alleyway, where her associate was already waiting to knock him out cold.
My turn, she thought, standing up and gathering her things into her bag. She then headed towards where Will sat. His newspaper was pretty much covering his face, but she knew better. She cleared her throat, making him nearly jump five meters in the air. He was visibly shaking in fear for his dear life. Underneath his glasses, she could see his fear reflecting.
He's not used to it, she realized, which is a shame…in some forms or the other.
"Mr. Tippin?" she assumed with a faint British accent.
He looked visibly startled. "How did you…?"
Nadia raised a hand. He hasn't recognized me, she thought. So my clothes played the part. "I know many things, Mr. Tippin," she said with the faint accent. "I know about your current situation and how you had to resort to such…distasteful things." She gestured to his clothing before leaning over the table, slipping a note on the table towards him. "Follow the instructions carefully. Do not hesitate and do not turn back."
"But the guy…" he blubbered.
"…is being taken cared of," she replied ominously, cutting him off. She straightened herself up. "Just follow what is written…and one more thing." She looked down at him, thanking silently that her lenses were dark. She could see that Tippin was rather uncomfortable of how the conversation was going. "Drop the case against Michael Vaughn…you'll only wind up in a morgue."
Before he could reply, she started to walk away from the café, blending in with the crowd. She couldn't help grinning; it went off rather nicely. The ominous factor and the quick control of the situation…not to mention him not recognizing her were perfect. Mission accomplished, she thought triumphantly. I just hope Sydney's doing fine on her end.
"Who sent you?" the woman demanded harshly.
The two officers and Sydney were now standing at the plains, meters away from the trees where they had found her. They pulled her away from the trees and were now standing face to face in the brilliant sunlight. The man began a search on her while the woman studied her in an uncomfortable scrutiny. Sydney didn't like her already.
She didn't reply.
The woman raised her rifle to Sydney's face. "I said," she gritted, "who the hell are you?"
The man looked up, finishing his search. With his rifle, he lifted the loop of Sydney's bag. "She's got nineteen explosive charges in here," he told his partner in a monotone. "She also has a handgun, the kind only SD-6 issues and a cell phone, issue unknown and a portable GPS unit. Some personal hygiene materials." He gave a faint shrug at his partner.
"So SD-6 finally got someone out here," the woman mused, sticking the gun in Sydney's face again with fierce determination. Sydney tried hard not to give the woman a reason to shoot her into oblivion. "Say, pretty, you got to talk sometime otherwise you will wind up with a hole in your head. Trust me, pretty, it'll ruin your entire look."
Sydney stared calmly into the woman's stormy eyes, not answering.
The man raised his rifle. "Hey! She asked you a damned question! Answer her!"
For an answer, Sydney knocked the rifle out of the man's hands with one swift move. She then quickly executed an uppercut, hitting his chin, before he could respond. His eyes rolled back as he crashed onto his back. The woman swung a punch from behind, but Sydney ducked and drove her fist into the woman's belly. The woman gasped, staggering backwards and clutching her belly.
Sydney heard a yell from behind. She turned around to see the man on his feet again, red with rage and humiliation. She kicked him square on the chest, making him throw back. He didn't fall but charged again towards her. She went on one knee and slammed his belly with her elbow. He groaned and she did another uppercut into his chin, sending him backwards and into unconscious.
The woman charged again towards Sydney. She groaned in exasperation as she swung a punch at the woman, sending her reeling to the ground. She then grabbed for her handgun and stood over her, gun pointing to the woman's face. Sydney was breathing raggedly, but she didn't care. "Now it's your turn to answer my question," she told the woman. "What the hell are you doing up here?"
The woman sneered, "I'll never tell you."
Sydney mocked a disappointed look. "Aww, too bad," she replied in mock disappointment. "I was hoping we'd be friends. I guess this'll have to do." She then used the butt of the gun to knock the woman out cold.
She quickly grabbed a couple of their things. She pulled off the coat of the woman's and then realized that it was too tight on her. She then went over to the man's unconscious form and stripped him of his coat and pulled it on her. She found a hair elastic from her pocket and pulled her hair up into a tight coil. She then loaded the rifle completely and added some extra ammo into the pockets of the coat.
She followed the path that she had seen them come in; from the hills. With her newfound things, she made her way, trying to decrease the hump of her bag underneath the oversized black coat. The hill was steeper than she had thought and by the time she reached the top, she was panting from exhaustion of the fight and from climbing.
What she found was amazing. Below her was a campout with olive green tents ranging around 15 tents and army-style jeeps. Crates of things and stacked near some tents and a fury of controlled activity was maintained throughout the campsite. There was also not a lot of talk going on. Either they're robots like the first two or they're trying to make their presence not known to the town.
Sydney ushered with the other people, trying to find key areas where she could make a secret drop off of the explosives. The man she bombarded with upper cuts back on the plain was not joking when he mentioned the explosives. Some unknown weapons specialists that only Sloane knew specially designed the bombs for this kind of mission. They were very effective from what she heard but this was the first time she was going to see them in action.
She started planting them when no one was looking or paying attention. She hid them under the parked army jeeps, near craters and other things that were standing in a side, in the most peculiar places. She tried to avoid proximity near the tents as much as possible as she already hid half of her stock. She was relieved to get rid of them; she felt like a walking bomb the entire time.
At the same time, she tried to gather information about this group of people. As far as she can tell, they only called themselves the "MSS" and were determined to find SD-6's stash of whatever. She wanted to go back and check out what it was, but there was no time. She would have to return for it after she was finished dealing with these people. If she learned anything else about these people, it was that they weren't exactly the most social people they had ever met.
Finally, she was down to the bomb that has Anna had given her. It was different from the other bombs that Marshall had given to her. It was a silver-like colour and she could feel the tiny indents on the side that read CIA on it. It was relatively lighter than the SD-6 issued ones but she knew that this little thing packed a punch.
She was headed towards some crates to plant the last one when she heard someone approach.
"Do I know you?"
Sydney scrambled on the sunglasses from the pocket of the formless coat she was wearing and slowly turned around, trying to hide her features shyly. "Yes?"
There was a tall man in front of her with slick hair and wearing sunglasses. He had a stern gaze that seemed to penetrate through the sunglasses and his mouth was twisted in some sort of a scowl. Sydney felt a sense of authority from this man and it didn't feel that good. "I do not recognize you," he said in a stern and commanding voice. "What is your name?"
"Corrigan," she blurted out. "Leslie Corrigan."
The man nodded. "I see," he said slowly. "A very intriguing name, really. Why, I knew someone from home named Leslie…pretty girl." He leaned over and said in a low voice, "I am in charge of not only this place, officer, but also in charge of the roster. And I memorize those names on the list. You see, officer…there is no Leslie Corrigan." He raised a gun and pointed it towards Sydney. "So the question now is; who the hell are you?"
Sydney did not answer. Instead, she pulled the chain of the CIA bomb and threw it. It landed on a worktable scattered with various work equipment. The bomb went off in a surprising clamour and the smoke was not exactly the gray you'd see. The man she was talking to looked what she just did and she swung an axe kick, making him drop the gun. She then kicked him on the chest hard, sending him backwards.
She then started to run. The other officers took notice of her now and grabbed their rifles, chasing after her. Sydney had a head start and started sprinting towards a narrow exit between the trees and the huge hill. She began to run through her options on what to do as she heard the shouts and threats being made behind her.
Think, Sydney, think.
She was now on the field, running for her life. Her hands were on her gun and her bag, running away from the crazy people behind her. Luckily they haven't fired yet, she thought in slight relief, her hand digging into her bag. What was she going to do? She usually had an escape plan in mind…but this time she didn't know what to do.
I'm going to die, her irrational side panicked. I'm going to die in the flat place!
Then her hand came across the box where the CIA bomb that Anna had given sat. Her fingers felt a crumpling of paper. She pulled it out and stared at it as she ran. It was a map! On the back was a quick scrawl: "Sydney. Here's the escape route just in case you run into trouble. See you in L.A. -Nads"
That smart girl! She thought. She gave me an escape route! She quickly memorized what she had to follow and folded up the paper. From behind, she could hear the firing of bullets and the thumps it made on the ground near her feet. Dammit! She thought as she sped up. Trees were lined up to her right and she desperately tried to find the escape route that Nadia had left.
Then she saw it.
At the edge of the trees sat a parked Rav 4, black. Sydney turned to see a huge gap between her and her pursuers and she leapt into the driver's seat of the car. The keys were already in set and she revved up the engines. She then began to turn and drove at full speed towards the men and women who were initially after her.
Take that! She thought as she made them start running away from her at full speed. She could hear their cursing and their gasping for air. Heh, I'm making them run for their money this time, she thought. They were running back towards their encampment when she struggled into her bag and lifted a small handy device Marshall had given her. She flicked the lid open to reveal a shiny red button.
Here comes the fireworks, she thought as she pressed the button.
An explosion rocked behind the hills and smoke and fire rose behind them. The officers gasped and stopped, looking at what Sydney had just done. Sydney stopped pursuing them and swerved around and headed back to an open road near the town.
Mission accomplished.
Chapter Fourteen
Sydney found herself standing in a quiet town in the outskirts of Whitehorse, Yukon. It was a desolate place with not a lot of trees in sight and what made up the totally fauna in the area was shrubs that stuck to the dry grounds. There wasn't a lot of activity and in Sydney's hiking clothes, she looked and felt out of place.
Now where is Nadia's contact? She wondered, walking down the town's road. It would help so much if she had given me a photo of this person….could it be possible that Nadia never met her contact before? Oh, this just helps totally. She groaned inwardly and continued to trek about, ignoring the curious stares from the townspeople.
I'm probably not the first person here, she thought ruefully. This is ridiculous. Where is she?!
Suddenly, from the corner of her eye, she saw someone dart from behind the houses. Sydney continued to walk, not amused, but she was aware of the person darting from house to house. She then turned to see who it was. There was a teenage girl, looking straight at her. She was wearing a cotton dress and her long hair was in a braid. She then gestured Sydney to follow her.
Sydney cocked her head to one side; who was this kid?
Then realization hit her; could see be the contact?
The girl beckoned to her one more time before darting away, away from the houses and all. Sydney quickly made up her mind and followed the girl. The girl was a good deal ahead of her as she made her way behind a couple of boulders standing near a high hill. Sydney quickly crossed the tundra plain, looking left and right if anyone was watching.
By the time she reached behind the boulder, the girl was scrambling into her pockets. "I am sorry that I didn't greet you properly when you arrived," she said hurriedly, "but I didn't want any of those black men to see me do anything suspicious. They are aware of everything."
"I see," Sydney replied.
"Here." The girl pressed something into Sydney's hand. "I'm sure Nadia-sama told you about your countermission. They added this little bit to it---that thing you're holding in your hand is a tracker. You are to find, if you can, the little stash-out that belongs to SD-6 and post this somewhere on the door. The satellite will pick it up and bring the signal to the CIA, where I don't really know what they're going to do." She shrugged. "That's where Nadia's expertise comes in."
Sydney nodded. "I see…I'll remember that," she replied, pocketing the device in her bag. "How did you get into the trade here? Nadia isn't the kind of person to recruit people like you…I think." She made a face. "And what's your name?"
The girl laughed. "My name's Anna," she replied. "Nadia isn't the kind of person to recruit people out of nowhere, you're right. I was her internet buddy. We met on this really hype message board and yeah. We met once in the airport in Toronto. We bumped into each other, realized who the other was, hugged, and talked before she had to leave. I help her out occasionally, whenever I could, but as you can see, I try to be as concealed as possible." She shrugged.
"I see."
"Wait! Hang on!" Anna dug into her pockets and revealed a box. "This is the bomb you are to use along with the ones that SD-6 issued. When this bomb detonates, it is supposed to leak some sort of field that would enable the satellites to pick it up." She shrugged. "So Nadia says," she added with a rueful smile. "I suck at this stuff."
Sydney received the box. "I'll remember that."
"I have to go," she said breathlessly. "I don't want them to suspect."
Sydney nodded in understanding.
"Good luck." Anna smiled before darting away.
Sydney watched her go before straightening her posture. She had work to do.
"Stop pacing," Weiss told Vaughn in the Ops room. He was sitting down with an earpiece, watching the television screen. He had decided to accompany Vaughn in this, supposing that there was nothing better to do. Beside the desk, Vaughn continued to pace, disregarding Weiss's order. Weiss scowled and looked up at Vaughn. "Michael, I'll break both your legs to make you stop."
Vaughn gave Weiss a glare. "You and I both know you wouldn't hurt a fly even if it was attacking you," he retorted.
"I have my dark side," Weiss replied proudly. "Seriously, Michael. You're not helping anyone by pacing…except for helping my head get a headache the size of Haladki's ass." Once Vaughn sat down, he sighed heavily. "Gosh, Michael, you are probably the most over-protective man I have ever met. I'd hate to be your kid."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Vaughn asked dryly.
Weiss shook his head. "You've got two of the people you care the most out there on a mission right now," he pointed out like a teacher to their pupil. "Each, respectively, good at what they do. And here you are, acting like the worried mother." He gave him a wary smile.
"I am not," Vaughn retorted hotly. But in his mind, he knew that Weiss was right about the way he was acting. It was immature, but he couldn't help it. The woman he had grown to care about, the woman who he knew inside out what out there right now, risking her life to ensure that her world wouldn't crumble. The girl that he had raised like his own daughter was out there saving his own butt from being kicked by a nosy and jealous reporter. He didn't want to lose them both and here he was, feeling helpless about it all.
Weiss chuckled. "Don't you lie, Mike," he told him. "It's all over your face. I don't blame you…we are the ones sitting comfortably here. But let me tell you, you shouldn't worry yourself into a panic attack. As I said, they're both very good at what they do. I'm sure they'll pull through and they'll both be home before you can say "Damn.""
Vaughn grinned.
At the same time, the door flung open to reveal Haladki. Both men turned to see who it was. When Vaughn saw Haladki's idiotic face, he turned around again, minding the monitor. The man was holding some kind of grudge against him and he didn't feel like battling him today. Arguing with that moron was like looking into a blob of putty.
"Where's that little runt?" Haladki demanded hotly.
Weiss gave the man a side-glance. "What are you talking about now?" he asked wearily.
"That girl…Nancy…Norma…Natalia…"
"You mean Nadia?" Weiss asked, shrugging and casting his eyes heavenward. Despite Weiss's innocent look, Vaughn could see the twinkle of mischief in his eyes. "The girl that just wiped the floor with your ass? Oh, she's on a mission right now in San Francisco. Who knows? If she does a good job, she'll be on her way to a full-time agent." He grinned toothily at the agent. "Maybe she'll be your replacement one of these days."
"Heh, good for her," Haladki said acidly. "But it'll be her first and last mission…I just filed a complaint to Devlin. I just charged her for harassment and assault. That little bitch made my knees ache like hell!" he added angrily, turning red. Weiss could see he was deeply humiliated by a girl that was probably twice his age.
Vaughn whirled around when Haladki called his niece a bitch. "Hey!" he snapped angrily. "Don't you dare call her anything because you're just describing yourself!" He scowled at the supposed head of resources. He was ready to jump him and pound the living daylights out of him if Weiss didn't intentionally block him from doing so. "And for your information, you try and file a complaint to Devlin about her, you might as well hang yourself."
Haladki scoffed. "What do you know? You're just trying to scare me!"
"Am I now?" Vaughn shot back with an angry glare. "Well, if you did your homework, Haladki, you'd know that Nadia's father happens to be a rather important and well-respected man here in the CIA. I think you've heard of Raidon Tomeo." He sat back, arms folded, scowling directly at Haladki.
Weiss couldn't help smirking like he had just won.
Haladki turned from red to white. Everyone in the CIA knew of Raidon Tomeo; he was like a walking legend and he was extremely good at what he did. Every intern who started out in the CIA knew who he was and feared him with a passion; he was incredibly strong both physically and mentally and he knew how to channel his thoughts and emotions really well. He was not only feared but also extremely respected. He was also a high-ranking officer in the CIA.
"Um…well, hahaha, I just remembered…I forgot to do something," Haladki said nervously, scrambling out the door in a rush.
Weiss and Vaughn started laughing as soon as Haladki had left. It definitely lightened the mood and making Haladki running for his money made them feel rather good. It was victory for them. Vaughn then stopped laughing, but he was still shaking his head at Haladki's infinite stupidity. He sat by the phone, waiting patiently.
"Sounds like a plan."
Inside Denny's sat Nadia with the CIA agent she was to meet up with named Andre Gotwyski. He was a tall man with a slight accent when he spoke. He was unruly hair and was dressed up in some really dark clothing and a leather jacket. He didn't look like a CIA agent, which made him typical for the mission. They were eating breakfast while he filled her in with what was going on and she filled him in on the plan.
"Yeah," Nadia said with a cringe. "I just hope it works."
Gotwyski stabbed at his toast. "I can't believe I lost him back at the pier," he grumbled. He looked as though he was blaming himself for the entire ordeal. Nadia didn't say anything; he was already feeling bad. All they could do now was figure out a way to bring the reporter Tippin into safety without revealing their identities and risking any more trouble. "Where do you think he is?"
"He's a reporter," she replied, shoving some egg into her mouth and drowning in with cappuccino. "He'd try to blend in and fit into some other character. He'll try to get rid of the guy behind him, if he is capable of doing so. I'm worried that he might get into more trouble than intended…which is why we need to knock out the guy following him." She raised a brow at him. "You think you can handle it?"
He looked slightly offended. "Of course I can handle it," he replied defiantly.
She raised her hands, offering peace. "Just making sure," she replied, before finishing her breakfast. "Look, I have to make a quick call to HQ and give them status quo. Just be ready to go when I come back." When he nodded, she got up and walked out of Denny's, pulling out her cell in hand. The sky was clear and the sun was beating down. She quickly dialled the number without thought and waited.
Someone picked up. "Are you there?"
"No, I'm up in Toronto…of course I'm here."
Vaughn noticed the twinge of sarcasm. "Okay, sorry, sorry, geez."
"Hmph."
"What's your status quo?"
"We're just about to commence here."
"Okay…you be careful out there."
Nadia smiled shyly. "You know I always am."
"I'm just reminding you."
"I know, I know," she replied, pausing. "I'll see you when I get back." She then hung up and stared at the parking lot. A slight breeze came, but it wasn't as refreshing as the ones she got when she was in Canada. She realized she missed Canada and wanted to travel back there sometime. Shaking the memories, she turned around and headed back inside. She had work to do.
She heard ruffling.
Sydney was standing in the tundra, her feet planted between two shrubs, the GPS unit in one hand and Sloane's note in the other. She had tapped in the coordinates but found herself rather lost. The tall hills stood off to a side and the boulders were she and Anna quickly talked were about 150 meters away from where she was standing. A bunch of trees were directly ahead of her and plains as far as the eye could see were all around her.
Maybe I read Sloane's note wrong, she wondered. She tapped in the coordinates again. She got a totally different location that made Sydney curse underneath her breath. This was impossible! She thought. I'm getting nowhere with this…maybe I should just walk and maybe I'll stumble across it….
Then she heard the ruffling.
She looked around, figuring out where she could hide. She knew that they were coming from the town or the hills and she needed to hide quickly. The tundra plains weren't particularly helping her so her only option was the trees. Making up her mind, she made a dash towards the trees, patting her things to make sure she didn't drop anything.
The trees were coniferous and she found it easy to hide behind them. She peered to watch who was coming from wherever. Her hand absently went to her belt, where her gun sat, ready for action. Two people appeared from the side, both clad in black. The shorter of the two, a woman, had her dull blonde hair up in a bun while the tall man had his black hair combed back from his face. Both carried military-configured rifles, wore sunglasses and had no emotions on their faces.
Talk about robots, she thought.
Sydney suddenly felt the ground shake and she lost her footing. She slid backwards, deeper into the tree area. It was darker there because the top treetops blocked out most of the sun's rays. She tumbled down and slammed upright into something hard. Her head throbbed violently as she fell forward, landing on her stomach on something hard before rolling into a patch of fresh moss.
She groaned. What the hell just happened there?
She lay still for a moment, listening to see if they had heard her.
Nothing.
She rolled over, straining her eyes in the impending darkness. The light that peeked through the treetops made some familiar objects noticeable as she looked to find where she was. The trees apparently were on some sort of gentle hill and it formed a sort of a bowl shape. She also found a looming object before her from where she thumped her head twice. She got up, forgetting the pain, to see what the object really was.
It was a door of some sort, slanted on a 50-degree angle and was in a grayish-blue tint. Her hands ran through the leaves and the dirt on the doors and she felt some indents. She traced the indents to reveal a name---SD-6. She sighed in relief and in triumph; this was the safe house that Sloane was so anxious to protect. Now that she was here, she dug into her bag and pulled out the tracker that Anna had given her. Finding a secluded spot, she attached the tracker on. Hopefully the satellites would pick up the position.
She suddenly heard a click.
Uh-oh, she thought, slowly turning around.
She found him.
Nadia was sitting in a café, reading a "The Bear and the Dragon" by Tom Clancy while waiting for Gotwyski to contact her by cell. She had changed into blue flare jeans and a blue t-shirt. Her hair was up in a ponytail and she wore sunglasses to keep the sunrays' glare out of her eyes. A few tables away sat the reporter Tippin, who was in a far more outrageous outfit than her. He wore a really crazy wig with the hair all scruffy. He wore a silky yellow top and white jeans and some really scaly looking shoes. He had gigantic green-lenses sunglasses on his face that totally scared Nadia out.
Talk about a fashion disaster, she thought distastefully.
When Gotwyski hadn't called in yet, she closed the book and pulled out a notepad and pen and began to write lazily. I wonder if this mission will prove if I have the guts to be in the CIA, she wondered warily as she continued to write. Gosh, I hope so.
Her cell rang.
She immediately scooped it up and answered it. "You there?"
"Yes."
"Where?" she asked, looking around.
"In the alleyway, across the street from where you are."
"That close?" she squeaked.
"Yes…the agent is here as well."
Nadia peered from the corner of her eyes, but through the hustle of people going through and fro the main street, it was hard to tell. And with the traffic and the zoom of the cars coming down the street, she couldn't really pinpoint anyone unusual. "Which one? I see tons of people," she replied, keeping her voice low from the other people.
"The one leaning on the wall with a cigarette."
Nadia pretended to look around casually, at the same time taking in the situation. She found the man. He was leaning against a brick building beside the dark alleyway, holding a cigarette and blowing out the smokes on the people who were passing by. Talk about no sense of respect, she thought angrily. I hope Gotwyski kicks this guy's ass bad!!! "I see him," she growled. "You get ready."
"I'll talk to you later."
"Good luck." She closed her cell and tucked it away. She watched as the man dropped his cigarette on the ground and stepped on it. She watched him dig into his pockets and pull out something that looked like a cell phone. He then walked towards the alleyway, where her associate was already waiting to knock him out cold.
My turn, she thought, standing up and gathering her things into her bag. She then headed towards where Will sat. His newspaper was pretty much covering his face, but she knew better. She cleared her throat, making him nearly jump five meters in the air. He was visibly shaking in fear for his dear life. Underneath his glasses, she could see his fear reflecting.
He's not used to it, she realized, which is a shame…in some forms or the other.
"Mr. Tippin?" she assumed with a faint British accent.
He looked visibly startled. "How did you…?"
Nadia raised a hand. He hasn't recognized me, she thought. So my clothes played the part. "I know many things, Mr. Tippin," she said with the faint accent. "I know about your current situation and how you had to resort to such…distasteful things." She gestured to his clothing before leaning over the table, slipping a note on the table towards him. "Follow the instructions carefully. Do not hesitate and do not turn back."
"But the guy…" he blubbered.
"…is being taken cared of," she replied ominously, cutting him off. She straightened herself up. "Just follow what is written…and one more thing." She looked down at him, thanking silently that her lenses were dark. She could see that Tippin was rather uncomfortable of how the conversation was going. "Drop the case against Michael Vaughn…you'll only wind up in a morgue."
Before he could reply, she started to walk away from the café, blending in with the crowd. She couldn't help grinning; it went off rather nicely. The ominous factor and the quick control of the situation…not to mention him not recognizing her were perfect. Mission accomplished, she thought triumphantly. I just hope Sydney's doing fine on her end.
"Who sent you?" the woman demanded harshly.
The two officers and Sydney were now standing at the plains, meters away from the trees where they had found her. They pulled her away from the trees and were now standing face to face in the brilliant sunlight. The man began a search on her while the woman studied her in an uncomfortable scrutiny. Sydney didn't like her already.
She didn't reply.
The woman raised her rifle to Sydney's face. "I said," she gritted, "who the hell are you?"
The man looked up, finishing his search. With his rifle, he lifted the loop of Sydney's bag. "She's got nineteen explosive charges in here," he told his partner in a monotone. "She also has a handgun, the kind only SD-6 issues and a cell phone, issue unknown and a portable GPS unit. Some personal hygiene materials." He gave a faint shrug at his partner.
"So SD-6 finally got someone out here," the woman mused, sticking the gun in Sydney's face again with fierce determination. Sydney tried hard not to give the woman a reason to shoot her into oblivion. "Say, pretty, you got to talk sometime otherwise you will wind up with a hole in your head. Trust me, pretty, it'll ruin your entire look."
Sydney stared calmly into the woman's stormy eyes, not answering.
The man raised his rifle. "Hey! She asked you a damned question! Answer her!"
For an answer, Sydney knocked the rifle out of the man's hands with one swift move. She then quickly executed an uppercut, hitting his chin, before he could respond. His eyes rolled back as he crashed onto his back. The woman swung a punch from behind, but Sydney ducked and drove her fist into the woman's belly. The woman gasped, staggering backwards and clutching her belly.
Sydney heard a yell from behind. She turned around to see the man on his feet again, red with rage and humiliation. She kicked him square on the chest, making him throw back. He didn't fall but charged again towards her. She went on one knee and slammed his belly with her elbow. He groaned and she did another uppercut into his chin, sending him backwards and into unconscious.
The woman charged again towards Sydney. She groaned in exasperation as she swung a punch at the woman, sending her reeling to the ground. She then grabbed for her handgun and stood over her, gun pointing to the woman's face. Sydney was breathing raggedly, but she didn't care. "Now it's your turn to answer my question," she told the woman. "What the hell are you doing up here?"
The woman sneered, "I'll never tell you."
Sydney mocked a disappointed look. "Aww, too bad," she replied in mock disappointment. "I was hoping we'd be friends. I guess this'll have to do." She then used the butt of the gun to knock the woman out cold.
She quickly grabbed a couple of their things. She pulled off the coat of the woman's and then realized that it was too tight on her. She then went over to the man's unconscious form and stripped him of his coat and pulled it on her. She found a hair elastic from her pocket and pulled her hair up into a tight coil. She then loaded the rifle completely and added some extra ammo into the pockets of the coat.
She followed the path that she had seen them come in; from the hills. With her newfound things, she made her way, trying to decrease the hump of her bag underneath the oversized black coat. The hill was steeper than she had thought and by the time she reached the top, she was panting from exhaustion of the fight and from climbing.
What she found was amazing. Below her was a campout with olive green tents ranging around 15 tents and army-style jeeps. Crates of things and stacked near some tents and a fury of controlled activity was maintained throughout the campsite. There was also not a lot of talk going on. Either they're robots like the first two or they're trying to make their presence not known to the town.
Sydney ushered with the other people, trying to find key areas where she could make a secret drop off of the explosives. The man she bombarded with upper cuts back on the plain was not joking when he mentioned the explosives. Some unknown weapons specialists that only Sloane knew specially designed the bombs for this kind of mission. They were very effective from what she heard but this was the first time she was going to see them in action.
She started planting them when no one was looking or paying attention. She hid them under the parked army jeeps, near craters and other things that were standing in a side, in the most peculiar places. She tried to avoid proximity near the tents as much as possible as she already hid half of her stock. She was relieved to get rid of them; she felt like a walking bomb the entire time.
At the same time, she tried to gather information about this group of people. As far as she can tell, they only called themselves the "MSS" and were determined to find SD-6's stash of whatever. She wanted to go back and check out what it was, but there was no time. She would have to return for it after she was finished dealing with these people. If she learned anything else about these people, it was that they weren't exactly the most social people they had ever met.
Finally, she was down to the bomb that has Anna had given her. It was different from the other bombs that Marshall had given to her. It was a silver-like colour and she could feel the tiny indents on the side that read CIA on it. It was relatively lighter than the SD-6 issued ones but she knew that this little thing packed a punch.
She was headed towards some crates to plant the last one when she heard someone approach.
"Do I know you?"
Sydney scrambled on the sunglasses from the pocket of the formless coat she was wearing and slowly turned around, trying to hide her features shyly. "Yes?"
There was a tall man in front of her with slick hair and wearing sunglasses. He had a stern gaze that seemed to penetrate through the sunglasses and his mouth was twisted in some sort of a scowl. Sydney felt a sense of authority from this man and it didn't feel that good. "I do not recognize you," he said in a stern and commanding voice. "What is your name?"
"Corrigan," she blurted out. "Leslie Corrigan."
The man nodded. "I see," he said slowly. "A very intriguing name, really. Why, I knew someone from home named Leslie…pretty girl." He leaned over and said in a low voice, "I am in charge of not only this place, officer, but also in charge of the roster. And I memorize those names on the list. You see, officer…there is no Leslie Corrigan." He raised a gun and pointed it towards Sydney. "So the question now is; who the hell are you?"
Sydney did not answer. Instead, she pulled the chain of the CIA bomb and threw it. It landed on a worktable scattered with various work equipment. The bomb went off in a surprising clamour and the smoke was not exactly the gray you'd see. The man she was talking to looked what she just did and she swung an axe kick, making him drop the gun. She then kicked him on the chest hard, sending him backwards.
She then started to run. The other officers took notice of her now and grabbed their rifles, chasing after her. Sydney had a head start and started sprinting towards a narrow exit between the trees and the huge hill. She began to run through her options on what to do as she heard the shouts and threats being made behind her.
Think, Sydney, think.
She was now on the field, running for her life. Her hands were on her gun and her bag, running away from the crazy people behind her. Luckily they haven't fired yet, she thought in slight relief, her hand digging into her bag. What was she going to do? She usually had an escape plan in mind…but this time she didn't know what to do.
I'm going to die, her irrational side panicked. I'm going to die in the flat place!
Then her hand came across the box where the CIA bomb that Anna had given sat. Her fingers felt a crumpling of paper. She pulled it out and stared at it as she ran. It was a map! On the back was a quick scrawl: "Sydney. Here's the escape route just in case you run into trouble. See you in L.A. -Nads"
That smart girl! She thought. She gave me an escape route! She quickly memorized what she had to follow and folded up the paper. From behind, she could hear the firing of bullets and the thumps it made on the ground near her feet. Dammit! She thought as she sped up. Trees were lined up to her right and she desperately tried to find the escape route that Nadia had left.
Then she saw it.
At the edge of the trees sat a parked Rav 4, black. Sydney turned to see a huge gap between her and her pursuers and she leapt into the driver's seat of the car. The keys were already in set and she revved up the engines. She then began to turn and drove at full speed towards the men and women who were initially after her.
Take that! She thought as she made them start running away from her at full speed. She could hear their cursing and their gasping for air. Heh, I'm making them run for their money this time, she thought. They were running back towards their encampment when she struggled into her bag and lifted a small handy device Marshall had given her. She flicked the lid open to reveal a shiny red button.
Here comes the fireworks, she thought as she pressed the button.
An explosion rocked behind the hills and smoke and fire rose behind them. The officers gasped and stopped, looking at what Sydney had just done. Sydney stopped pursuing them and swerved around and headed back to an open road near the town.
Mission accomplished.