Disclaimer: I still don't own either Alias or its characters.

Dreams That Haunt: Reporting to Kendell

"She put a bomb in an agent's house earlier today. She then went back to her apartment. There was yelling, it sounded like Mr. Vaughn. Then her contact entered her home and I heard three shots." The man with a German accent explained.

"What happened? Was Vaughn hurt?" Sydney asked over the phone.

"No, no. Mr. Vaughn left the apartment twenty minutes later. He was bleeding from his left arm. I tried to go to his aid but he ran to his car before he even noticed that I was there." He continued.

"Schneider where is she now?" Sydney asked.

"She went to an airport and sat down next to a payphone. She's been sitting there ever since." Schneider told her.

"Whose house was it?" Sydney reluctantly asked.

"It was an agent Weiss. Hitzig stayed on location to see what happened. He reported to me about ten minutes ago that an unidentified man came to the agent's house and knocked but after a moment he tried opening the door and triggered the explosion. Mr. Vaughn drove there right before the explosion. Hitzig told me he was very distraught." Schneider told her.

"I want you to make sure that you don't lose her. Report back any unusual or suspicious activity. If you can't report to me, make sure you tell Vaughn. Where's Jackson?" she asked.

"Jackson is tailing Zisman, just like you asked." Schneider told her.

"Has he reported anything useful." Sydney asked.

"Yes, he has already identified three other covenant agents. Two of them work in federal buildings. One is with the FBI and the other with Internal Affairs. The third works at a bank. I've sent you their files already." Schneider said.

"Thank you Schneider. I'll send you and the others your payments to the same account." Sydney informed him.

"Thank you Miss Sydney. I'll keep you informed of everything that happens." Schneider said. Sydney hung up the phone and walked to a abandoned warehouse nearby. She made sure no one was following her before she entered.

"Hello Sydney." Kendell said. Kendell was concealed by the darkness of the warehouse but as soon as he saw Sydney he came closer to her.

"I have more information Kendell. I think we're making a lot of progress." Sydney told him. "I had someone follow Lauren's handler. We've identified three more covenant agents. You should have a copy of those files back at the CIA."

"That's great Sydney. What else do you have for me?" Kendell asked.

"Lauren. She's become a bigger problem than we expected. I thought her mission was simply to keep tabs on Vaughn but I know now that she's much more dangerous. She planted a bomb in Eric's home." She told him.

"Sydney, I already told you that Lauren is valuable to us if she thinks we don't know who she works for." Kendell explained.

"Kendell, she could have killed Weiss! She's too dangerous. You need to take care of it." Sydney demanded.

"You're right, I'll see what I can do. Now for you counter-mission, you and Simon will go to Algeria and look for the keys as planned. Once you find them you switch the original keys with these fake keys we've made for you." Kendell explained as he showed her the keys that looked exactly like the original Rambaldi keys.

"Don't you think it's a bit risky? What happens when the covenant tries to use the keys and they don't work?" she asked.

"Don't worry Syd. The CIA thinks that once all twelve keys are recovered the covenant will send you to recover the cube. If that happens we'll give you the original keys and you will give us the cube. And in case it doesn't go as planned, the keys are defective and it will simply appear that time is the culprit for the keys not working." Kendell explained. "The keys will be sent to Algeria and when you recover the originals you will contact me and I will tell send someone with the fake keys. When do you leave?"

"Tomorrow morning, I'm scheduled to meet Simon later this afternoon. I won't be able to contact you for some time but you should still be receiving information about Zisman, Lauren and the other covenant agents." Sydney told him.

"Be careful out there." Kendell said to her.

"I will, just make sure you don't let Lauren get away." Sydney said to him as she left the warehouse.

In Rome later that night:

Sydney sat in a crowded restaurant waiting to meet Simon Walker. She wore a beautiful red dress and her blonde hair rested neatly on her shoulders.

"Hello gorgeous." Simon said startling Sydney. Sydney turned around to see the man that Vaughn was so worried about.

"Simon Walker I presume." She said.

"Yes, that would be me. Julia Thorne, I've heard lots about you. I can only hope you live up to my expectations." He said looking her up and down. Simon sat across from Sydney and looked at her closely. "You're very beautiful Julia."

"Thank you." She said as she took a sip of her red wine.

"Before I work with anyone Julia, I like to make sure that they're worthy of working with me. After all you wouldn't buy a car without giving it a test run would you?" Simon began. Sydney simply looked at him in silence. "Are you ready?"

"Always." She responded.