It was now half time, and the two teams were tied. Every single person in the crowd was on the edge of their seat, knowing that this was going to be a close game. Emma looked up, to see her mom with her hands on her head, taking in deep breaths. She smiled, laughing at the fact that an ex member of the CIA was freaking out over a basketball game. While her coach was talking to the team, Emma untied her right shoe, and pulled a small charm off the laces. She looked to the younger kids who had now come down to the main floor to shoot baskets, and spotted her brother and sister among them.
"Give me a sec, coach." Emma said. Her coach nodded and Emma ran up to her brother.
"Emma!" He hugged her tight. "You're doing great!" He whispered in her ear.
"Thanks buddy." She smiled and let go. "I have a job for you."
"Okay!"
"I need you to give this to mom," She handed him the small basketball charm. Sarah had given it to her before her very first game when she was six and still in the peewee league. Emma had worn it on every pair of laces on her right foot ever since. "Tell her that she needs it more than I do." Emma laughed.
"Okay, I will." He smiled and started to run up to the seats.
"Oh, Jack!" She shouted and he turned around. "Tell her to stop spiraling." Her brother laughed and finished running up to the seats. Emma sprinted back over to the team's huddle.
"That was more than a second." Her coach warned.
"Sorry, what'd I miss?" She was breathing hard.
"I'm going over our offensive attack strategy, listen up." Coach went back to discussing the plays. Emma kept an ear towards Coach, but glanced up to see her mother laughing as Jack handed her the charm. Sarah looked down to Emma, who smiled and waved at her. Sarah blew her daughter a kiss and Emma shook her head, laughing. The buzzer went off, and the team got extremely close.
"We are not going to lose this game, ladies. We came here to dominate." Emma said to her team. They all nodded and Emma broke the silence of her friends. "DOMINATE ON THREE. ONE...TWO...THREE...DOMINATE!" They threw their fists down and spread out onto the court. Emma was about to finish playing the game of her life.
The four agents heading to Russia got to the airport in no time at all, as Sierra liked to speed in the 2015 Maserati.
"Could you slow down? Jeesh." Sydney whined, rubbing her now sore neck.
"You have to lean into the turns, Syd. If you try and fight them you'll just get stiff." Jessica laughed from the back.
"Gee, thanks Jess. Now that we're here, I could really put that information to good use." Sydney grunted.
"Stop fighting, we don't have time for it." Kylie's voice was heard for the first time during the entire ride.
"Sorry, mom." Jessica sassed.
"Don't make me come back there!" Sierra yelled from the driver's seat. To the normal person, they seemed like four teenagers going backpacking in Russia together, but in reality they were trained assassins at the age of nineteen and eighteen, ready for combat at all times. They had just entered Los Angeles International Airport when Sierra's phone started ringing.
"Hello?" She answered.
"Agent Decklin, this is General Jones."
"Oh hey, General. What's up?"
"I have some bad news."
"What?"
"James Smith has captured Chuck Bartowski."
"Wait a second general! You're saying that this murderer has our leader's dad?" Sierra yelled into the phone. The team gave her warning looks, as civilians around them stared.
"Our department just received a disc with multiple ransom videos, and he was in one, yes."
"General, Emma is in the middle of her game. What are we supposed to do?"
"Do you think she's more worried about high school or her father's life?"
"We should let her finish, and then grab her."
"That's not the order." The General was firm.
"She's going to be pissed."
"Let her be upset, but get her to the base. If you wait any longer, it could be too late." Jones hung up and Sierra turned to the team.
"Guys, we have to go get Emma." They all rushed out of the airport, not taking their flight to Russia.
"Wait, who has Emma's dad?" Jessie asked as they got into the car.
"Smith, the crazy guy that's been killing all agents in cold blood." Sierra slammed on the gas, and sped off towards the stadium.
"Why can't we let Emma finish her game? This is really important to her…" Sydney trailed.
"I get that, but Jones gave us an order. We can't exactly ignore an order given by a five star general." Sierra retorted.
"Okay, but she isn't going to be happy."
"Someone call her, or call Clara. Just call one of them!" The girls would do anything for Emma, and they were going to help her find her father. First, they needed to get her.
"It all comes down to this! A minute left on the clock, the score 72-70, the Burbank Warriors have the ball!" The announcer yelled excitedly. The other team had called a full time out, and Emma could feel the pressure. She wasn't used to trailing behind on the scoreboard, but at least her team had the ball.
"Okay, they're going to press us but we need to be quicker than that. Once we break the press, take the ball slowly down court, and look for Emma for the three." The coach said.
"Wait a second, coach. You want me to take a three-pointer? Why not just drive it in? Overtime isn't a bad thing." Emma argued.
"Just stick to the plan, Bartowski." Coach snapped at her. Emma sighed and suddenly got extremely nervous. If she missed, they would lose. They were only down by two, and tying the game seemed like the best option. But, Emma didn't argue. They set up for their press break, and broke the opposing team's press immediately. Kayla Jenkins brought the ball down slowly, looking for Emma on the wing. Ten seconds were left on the clock and the entire crowd went silent as Emma's hands grasped the pass.
"Emma Bartowski for the three-pointer and the win!" The announcer shouted. Suddenly, Emma's CIA team rushed into the stadium. Their eyes were huge, and they looked worried. Emma immediately signaled for a time-out, and the entire crowd erupted into what is she doing? and what the heck just happened? Emma bounded out of the gym and into the locker room, not worrying about telling anyone why she was leaving the court. She was sweaty and red-faced when she met up with her team.
"What the hell are you doing?" She yelled at them.
"Look Emma, we know you're mad, but something happened before we got on the plane." Sydney tried to explain.
"Well it better be the best 'something' I've ever heard. We were about to win the freaking state championship!" Emma was as livid as her coach had been.
"Emma, Smith has your dad." Clara whispered from behind her. She had come from the stands. Emma caught her breath for a moment, and then let a few words escape her mouth.
"Okay, that's a pretty good something." She wouldn't cry in front of her team. She needed to be the strong one.
"We're going to do everything we can Emma. Jones is making this a top priority." Sierra stated. Emma felt so guilty; she was so busy playing her game that she didn't even notice her father's absence. He was her biggest fan, and she was too big for her britches to notice.
"Emma, it isn't your fault..." Jess was sympathetic for once.
"Yeah, how could you have known?" Kylie chipped in.
"Guys, I don't need friends right now. I need agents to help me find my dad. Let's head to the base and figure everything out from there." Emma said.
"You got it, boss." Sydney smiled. Emma had to crack a smile back, and then she snuck out of the stadium with her team. It didn't take any longer than 20 minutes for them to get to the base and they immediately entered the main space where the communication screen was located.
"Good, you're all here." Jones's face popped up on the main screen in front of them.
"Where else would we be?" Kylie laughed, trying to make light of the current situation.
"I think we need to call in the big guns." Jess said to the general on the screen.
"I agree, this is too much for just us." Kylie nodded.
"Where's Bartowski?" Jones asked, scanning the faces in front of her.
"I think she's in the armory preparing for whatever we have to do, Gray. She's taking this really hard." Sydney replied.
"If you think this is too much, who do you suggest we call?" Jones raised her eyebrows.
"The original Clandestine Attack Team. If we're 2.0, then there was obviously a team before us." Emma entered the room, loading her magazine with bullets as she did so. She clicked the mag into her gun and looked to the screen. She had changed out of her uniform, and into her dark skinny jeans, blue tank top, black leather jacket, and black converse.
"What?" Everyone said in unison.
"Their file speaks for itself." She plopped a manila folder onto the metal table in front of the screen. "They had over 700 completed missions, they were feared by even the toughest CIA Agents, and they were badass." Emma said.
"How in the hell did you get the file?" Jones erupted. "You had no access to those files!"
"It's called hacking, general. Maybe you should get your guys to be a little more careful." Emma spat.
"Emma, you can't talk to a general like that…" Sierra interrupted.
"I just did." Emma shot her teammate an icy glare.
"They are not going to be assigned to this mission." The general knew something but wouldn't say it.
"Well, luckily for us, they aren't apart of the CIA anymore, which gives them full approval to come work under the table. Besides, I already called one of them. Zondra, if I remember correctly." Emma replied.
"What! Are you out of your mind? You are suspended from this mission, Bartowski. Do you hear me?" The general shouted. Everyone except Emma winced.
"Denied. I'm sticking to this mission whether you like it or not." Emma spat. She left the room immediately, and the team stared at the general.
"Get her under control. However, be cautious when the C.A.T. Squad shows up. They're dangerous." General Jones warned.
"C.A.T Squad?" Clara asked.
"That's what they were known as. Much shorter than having to say Clandestine Attack Team." Jones explained. "Just make sure Bartowski stays put." The girls nodded and disconnected the call.
"What the heck is happening to Emma?" Sierra asked.
"My Uncle Morgan says that her mom used to get like this when something bad happened to Chuck." Clara said.
"Well, it's scary. We need to name it something." Jessie laughed.
"My Uncle called her 'The Giant Blonde She-Male.'" Clara laughed aloud.
"Giant Blonde She-Male sounds perfect for this version of Emma. I'm actually kinda scared." Sydney said. The rest of them agreed and hurriedly got to work in anticipation of the C.A.T Squad's return to the agency.
As Sarah exited the stadium with the twins trailing behind her, she clutched the charm that Emma had sent to her in the stands. Maybe if she had been wearing it, this wouldn't have happened. She wondered why her daughter had left the stadium in the middle of a shot, especially during thee state championship game.
"Uh, Sarah?" Morgan's voice interjected her thoughts.
"Morgan? What is it?"
"Carina and Zondra." He nodded to a black Porsche a few yards away. Sarah squinted, making out the features and shapes of her old friends.
"Will you take the twins for me?" She didn't look away from the two women standing outside of the car.
"Yeah, of course. Take as much time as you need. Something tells me this is important." He replied.
"Thank you so much, Morgan." Sarah said with no tone whatsoever.
"I'll take good care of them." He smiled as Jack and Jenny got into his and Alex's big van along with his own child.
"Just please don't let them stay up late." Sarah broke her gaze from her old team, and narrowed her eyes, remembering the last time Morgan had brought them home from a sleepover at his house. They had gotten no sleep, and were being fueled by pure sugar. Morgan promised he wouldn't, leaving Sarah to greet her friends.
"What's the deal?" Sarah asked Carina immediately. Carina and Zondra shared a look, not certain if they should jump right ahead and tell her.
"Promise you won't freak?" Carina asked.
"Uh, not now that you've said that." Sarah started to worry. Was this about Emma?
"Well...uh, Walker..." Carina started.
"Spit it out!" Sarah yelled at the red-head.
"Some crazy guy has been killing existing and retired CIA Agents, and his latest capture was your husband." Zondra blurted. Sarah looked at them blankly without saying a word. Tears welled in her eyes, but she blinked them back and took a deep breath.
"I have to find him." She said.
"We know. That's why we're here." Carina said.
"What do you mean?" Sarah asked.
"We got a call from an agent who's working on the case. General Beckman's replacement is her boss, and her entire team is the best the CIA has now, or so she said." Zondra explained.
"Top agents? How good are they?" Sarah wasn't convinced that these people could help her find Chuck.
"Well, apparently they're the new C.A.T's. And the girl Z talked to is better than you were." Carina laughed.
"I doubt it." Sarah's voice was flat.
"Yeah, and the best part is that none of them are older than nineteen!"
"Kids? They have kids trying to find Chuck?" Sarah's voice rose.
"They wouldn't be agents if they couldn't handle themselves, Walker."
"We're going to show them what real agents look like. Let's go." The three of them got into the car, and sped off to the location they were given.
Emma wasted no time in getting everything ready for the mission. New information had come in from General Jones, and they now had a solid lead for Smith's location. She couldn't wait for old retired agents to get there, who was Jones kidding? These crappy elderly agents wouldn't know the sky from the ground, and she needed to find her father now.
"Emma, just wait until they get here. They'll know what to do first." Sydney entered Emma's room of operation.
"Oh, so you doubt me now?" Emma yelled at her best friend. Sydney yelled right back.
"Good lord, Emma! Why don't you get your head out and see that we're trying to help you!" She screamed. Emma hung her head.
"Sorry Syd, I just really want to find him." Emma sat down in a chair to her left, and rested her head into her hands.
"I know, but there's not much good you can do at the moment. Wait until the adults come to help. You aren't Superwoman, you know."
"Yeah, I know."
"Guys! They're here!" Sierra exclaimed, rushing into the room.
"Great." Emma moaned. Sierra was extremely excited to meet the former CIA agents, as the file told wonders. Emma wasn't about to let someone else come in and run her mission, so she got up, and followed Sydney out to the main part of the building. The four other girls were surrounding three women. Sydney and Emma came up behind them, with their arms folded.
"I hope you know this is my team." Emma said rudely. "I call the shots, and don't forget that I called you." Her eyes widened as one of the women turned around faster than the others did.
"Emma?" The woman exclaimed.
"Mom?" Emma unfolded her arms and her jaw dropped. Her mother had been a part of the original C.A.T. Squad?
"Wow, this'll be interesting." Carina smirked and nudged Sarah playfully. The mission had just gotten a bit trickier.
