Author's Note: I admit, I used the time I had between classes to type this killer of a chapter. I hope I did it justice. I feel like I rambled a lot in multiple places but I hope you get the idea. Gah, now I'm worried. I don't think I made sense. Kindly let me know how you feel about this.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Pitch Perfect or Mission Impossible.

CHAPTER FOUR

WASHINGTON, DC : CIA/FO HQ

It wouldn't come as a surprise that Benji Applebaum was a big fan of the opera. Why wouldn't he be? It's relaxing, it's classy, it's a world apart from this. So when he's sitting at his desk at HQ, not only is he playing Call of Duty, but he finds that listening to opera music relaxes him. It's also a distraction to the fact that his job officially sucks now. Ever since his best friend had gone undercover, Benji was left to be fed to the wolves. The wolves being the CIA. They keep him at his desk, doing mediocre tech jobs. But, Benji knew that he was helping his friend by doing nothing. He has to keep his mouth shut, his head down and continue his job. No matter how boring and unfair it was. Everyday for the past six months, the CIA would take him in for a lie detector test. They're still hot on the idea of capturing Jesse Swanson, and they're willing to do anything to bring him in. Just about anything that they've grounded his entire team. When the mail intern stops by his desk, Benji quits out of his game and immediately goes back to whatever job he was supposed to be doing. An envelope is dropped on his desk.

B. Applebaum
2020 Lakeland Lane
Washington, DC 22449

Benji opened the envelope and right there in bold letters,

"You've won!"

A ticket to the Vienna Opera was inserted in the brochure and Benji was sure that today was starting to look up. That is, until the phone rang.

"Applebaum." He answered and immediately rubbed his face in frustration, "Is it that time already?" Ugh.

Sitting in a conference room with wires attached to him, Benji was more than annoyed but he had to do this.

"I'm going to ask you a series of control questions-" The woman in front of him started to set up the polygraph,

"I know and I'm gonna answer truthfully, and then you're gonna ask me to lie intentionally."

"State your name,"

"The King of Norway," At his answer, the waves on the screen began to move at a rapid speed, "see, that's a lie. I'm actually third in line to the throne. My brother was-" before Benji could finish, Chief Allen walked into the conference room. He immediately sat up straight, and looked forward.

"Has Jesse Swanson contacted you?"

"Why would he contact me?"

"Swanson has resurfaced. This time in Cuba. He," Chief Allen reached into the box on the table and spread out the documents, "left these behind." Agent Donald Faison had casually walked into the conference room, a warm cup of coffee in his hand, watching the confrontation. "Tell me what you make of them." Benji reached out to sort through the documents on the table. He skimmed over the dozens of photo strips of people,

"I don't know. He's taken up scrap booking?"

"Look at the photographs, Applebaum. All of them are either missing or dead. They were all government agents. Russian, French, British, Israeli, you name it. These are highly classified files and yet, Swanson had no problem collecting them and he always seems to be a step ahead of us. I wonder how?" Chief Allen was now observing Benji's facial expressions. He was still hooked up to the machine, giving him the advantage of calling him out on a lie.

"Are you suggesting I'm helping him?" Benji felt his blood boiling. It's one thing to be held against his own will, to be bumped down to desk duty, and to take away his team, but it's another to accuse him of something he clearly did not do.

"That thought had crossed my mind." Agent Donald watched Benji's composure. He was impressed the guy kept his composure in front of this douche of a man.

"Six months, I have been here- sifting through mountains of metadata and exabytes of encoded excrements. I have decrypted, processed, passed more data than anyone in my section," Chief Allen took a glimpse at the computer screen to take note of Benji's statements. Although he was heated up, the waves on the screen were stable, "And yet, every week, you hold me in here and you ask me the same question just in a different way,"

"And today, you haven't answered it."

"You seem to think I have some kind of obligation to him. Nothing could be further from the truth, okay? Jesse Swanson is still out there in the field, and I'm stuck here answering for him. We are not friends," At his own statement, Benji looked down at his feet, "I owe him nothing.

Benji was either a really skilled agent or he was really telling the truth because the monitor was showing no signs of lying.

"That'll be all, Applebaum." As soon as Chief Allen had exited the conference room, a slight hitch in Benji's blood pressure and pulse had shown on the screen but you'd have to be looking real close to notice it.

Back at his desk, Benji noticed the Vienna Opera brochure and he thought to himself, I need a vacation.

VIENNA, AUSTRIA

Clad in a tuxedo, Benji made his way off the subway and right off the bat, was bumped by a passerby. He didn't notice the hooded figure but he did notice the large envelope that was left in Benji's hands. Inside was the Opera's playbill and a pair of dapper looking glasses.

He slipped the glasses on and immediately, his eyes were scanned.

Identity scan confirmed.

"Welcome to Vienna, Benji! Missed me?"

Benji immediately turned around to hide his expression from oncoming civilians,

"Jesse?! Where are you? Where the hell have you been? Agh, you know what- please don't tell me that because it's just another thing I would have to lie about in my weekly polygraph." As long as Benji kept the glasses on, he could hear his friend through the built in comms.

"Everything is going to be fine. Just keep walking, but make sure you're not being followed."

"Oh man, I didn't win those opera tickets, did I?"

"No, I'm afraid not."

"So, where do we meet?"

"We don't. For your sake, we shouldn't be seen together," A ping sounded from Benji's phone while he was on the escalator, on his way out of the subway and to the Opera house, "you have mail."

Benji swiped open the document and a picture of Jesse's sketch appeared on the screen. "Who is he?"

"That's what we're here to find out. What I do know, is he's our only possible link to the Synleague and I have reason to believe that he's going to be here tonight. But, I can't find him alone. Are you in?"

"Yes, of course. Of course. Uhm, so what's the play?"

"Simple. You find him, we tag him, I follow him wherever he goes."

"And after that?"

"After that, you're on a plane, back at work Monday morning. No one is the wiser."

"What?! That's it?"

"You're in enough danger as it is. I didn't want to involve you this much but I had no choice."

"Well, if you're gonna bring me all this way, you could at least give me something a little bit more- you know, dramatic."

"Benji, we're trying to keep a low profile. You want drama? Go to the opera."

Turning the corner, Benji found himself across the street from the theatre. Swarms of people were already in sight, entering the building. Loads of paparazzi were stationed outside, snapping pictures of whoever was important enough to exit from a limo. Exiting from said limo, a man and woman, were immediately surrounded by reporters and photographers.

"Are you seeing what I'm seeing?" Benji asked.

"Yes, I am."

Just then, a security guard approached the couple, making sure they were heavily guarded from outsiders.

"Am I correct in assuming that is the Chancellor of Austria and his wife?"

"Yes, you are."

"Did you know he was going to be here?" Looking over from the balcony he was on, Jesse made his way inside the theatre,

"No."

"Right, well we have a European Head of State here, at the same time as we're looking for a nefarious terrorist. And I'm sure the two things are completely unrelated-"

"Benji,"

"-meanwhile, I'll try and overlook the fact that you're an international fugitive wanted by the CIA,"

"Benji."

"And this little unsanctioned operation is tantamount to treason-"

"Benji,"

"-because as you stated earlier, I will be back in my desk on Monday morning, playing video games and no one will be any the wiser,"

"The show's about to start, Benji."

"Right." Benji was walking up the stairs now, trying to keep his cool and at the same time, trying to keep his voice under while he was surrounded by very important people and a few other civilians.

"Just take your position, tell me what you see."

"Okay,"

"Nice tux, by the way." Benji immediately glanced over his shoulder while he was still ascending the stairs. A shadow passed when he looked to the balcony.

BACKSTAGE

A group of musicians were now being patted down and inspected, you can't be too careful with what was being smuggled in backstage. They were all in the clear and made their way to the orchestra. One, however, stayed behind.

Benji broke into a closet, immediately hacked the camera monitors and had his own special viewing of the theatre through his compact computer.

"Join the FO, see the world- on a monitor, in a closet," he murmured to himself.

The show was starting and the lights were dimmed. Instead of a view of the stage, Benji got a hold of the theatre cameras pointed at the audience instead. He started to scan through each audience member through facial recognition. "Okay, I have eyes. Searching." At Benji's update, Jesse began his ascend to make his way to the private balcony he reserved above the Chancellor's.

She was not particularly fond of the reason why she was here. In a dress, most especially. A long flowing red dress that complimented her pale skin color so well. Getting past security was no problem and Beca knew that what was to happen, was just a job. She had to do it. If she didn't, she'd be in deep shit. She made her way backstage, the echoes of the opera singer ringing through her ears. Hmm, well if there's one thing about this job, it's quite classy. She got past the stagehand staff and climbed up a prop that resembled an enclosed tower. She grabbed the sniper gun that was hidden inside one of the balcony pipes.

Meanwhile, Jesse occupied the balcony on top of the Chancellor's. He kept his eye on the stage and the audience. "Talk to me, Benji,"

"Not yet. Standby." Benji quickly tapped away on his computer and sped up the scanning.

"I know you're here. Where are you," Jesse muttered to himself.

Benji switched cameras to one of the backstage doors and then he saw it. "Uh, Jesse, I might have something for you. Can't confirm."

"Where?"

"Backstage, I will direct you." Jesse slipped from the shadows and made his way backstage. "Take the door on your left, he should be right in front of you." Jesse was now on a backstage balcony and he saw the figure walking away from him. To make his commute much faster, Jesse grabbed onto the curtain, slid his way down to the lower balcony. Just then, another figure caught his eye. A lady in red.

"Benji, did you see that?"

"See what?"

"A woman,"

"What woman? Where are you? I can't see you."

Beca assembled her weapon and got into place. She was in clear view of the Chancellor's balcony. This was a tricky spot though. She was right on stage, inside a tall prop. If anything went wrong, she'd be caught by the entire audience. Fortunately, the tower was towards the back of the stage, under just enough shade and away from the main spotlights. She opened up the sheet music to follow along with the performers. It was on the last note she was to complete her task.

Jesse was now conflicted. Does he go after the woman or the man that he so happened to be hunting down? Now that he got a closer look at the man walking above him, he noticed he was holding a package. Damn it, looks like he's gotta go for him. Jesse ran up the ladder, passing the entrance to the tower and got up to the narrow balcony just between the back curtains and the stage lights. It was empty. The man no where to be seen. Jesse carefully walked across the way and he saw him. He was on top of a flat surface that so happened to be the top of a stage light. Thankfully, his back was to Jesse, giving him the opportunity of a sneak attack. Unfortunately, Benji was desperately trying to get his visual on Jesse back. When his computer started to lose signal, Benji thumped the power box which unknowingly resulted in a switch in the control room to go off. The stage light that Jesse was on top of was now two feet higher than the one the man was on. Well, there goes the element of surprise when Jesse jumped from his glider to the other. The instrument the man so happened to be holding was a very well disguised rifle, and the two were now arguing over it. Unfortunately for Jesse, the man was about three feet taller than him and a little bit on the heavier muscle side. While they were wrestling with the rifle, Jesse noticed a glimmer in the man's right eye. Those weren't corrective eye lenses, they were cameras. In one of the other balconies, an elderly man checked his phone to see what was going on and right on his screen, the face of a young Jesse Swanson.

The two men punched and kicked and wrestled on top of a very swingy light glider. How Jesse was gonna win this one, he didn't know. Just like his other missions, he'd improvise.

Beca started to take position, tearing a slit in her dress to give her legs a better distance and positioned the snipe gun steadily.

The man had a knife. Way to go, Jesse. While he was being held in a headlock, he noticed across the way that a security guard broke into the lighting booth. He, too, had a clear shot of the Chancellor's balcony.

Benji saw this on his screen, "Jesse! The lighting booth!"

I know. He thought, but couldn't respond while he was still being choked. "Jesse, do you copy?!" Damn it. Benji ran from his closet and went on his way to the lighting booth.

Jesse finished off the bigger man and grabbed the rifle. What the hell kind of invention was this? A flute that was a gun? People are damn creative.

He pointed to the security guard in the lighting booth and while he did so, he noticed a reflection from the tower to his right. The woman. In position with her own gun. What the fuck? Why is everyone and their grandmother out here tonight, targeting the Chancellor?

Jesse swung his gun from the security guard to the woman, and back. He's gotta make a call. Who's going to take that bullet? The last note of the song was coming up and he knew like any trained agent should, that a professional hit would be clean and quiet. The last big note of an opera song would be the perfect time for a snipe. Before that could happen, Jesse swore under his breath. He needs to make a call, now.

Swinging the gun back to the woman, he looked at her. It was her. The woman. From London. Fuck. In a split second, Jesse swung the rifle once more and fired a bullet into the shoulder of the Chancellor, taking him out from his seat and onto the floor. Beca fired once the last note was hit, but then realized her target was no longer in sight. She followed the bullet path and noticed a man on a light glider. She aimed her gun at him and missed him by an inch. The security guard saw her and he immediately shot at the tower, causing Beca to duck.

Benji bursted into the lighting booth before the security guard changed his target into the woman in the tower. The two of them danced around with their fists flying at each other. The guard was relatively bigger than Benji and so when he shoved him against the wall, a shot went through his back, causing him to drop dead. Benji stared at the body before he looked up from where the bullet came from. He noticed the woman in the tower and he immediately dropped to the ground for cover. He crawled to the panel and shined a light on the tower. Beca turned to the bright light and shot at it before she was seen. Benji ran out of the lighting booth before he became the next shooting target. She had to get out of there. Jumping from the tower to the back curtain, Beca swayed her way to the balcony and climbed up the ladder. Fuck these heels.

The theatre was now swarmed by security guards and a man walked across the stage to interrupt the show. Beca left backstage and slowed down her pace to fit in with the herd of people walking past her. She looked over the balcony and saw the crowd of security guards making their way up the stairs.

"Umgeben das gebäude. Sichern die ausfahrten!" Bloody hell. They're surrounding every exit of the building. Beca needs to get out of there stat before her cover is blown and she'll be in deeper shit for not even completing the task.

"I have a way out," Beca noticed the man next to her, "interested?" She looked him in the eye just to see what his game plan was. It was one of her many skills. She could very easily tell if one was lying or not just by looking at them straight in the eyes for a split second. That, and the fact that this tall man was ruggedly handsome in a suit.

"Lead the way,"

At the back of the building, the Chancellor of Austria was being escorted to a garage where a protective service was waiting with a car.

The pair of agents ran back to where they were. Backstage. Jesse grabbed a coil of rope on his way while Beca tagged along behind.

"Anything you want to tell me?" They ran up the staircase and kept climbing higher,

"Uh, no, not right now."

"How's the pace?"

"Don't wait for me," She breathed out. Beca was in perfect shape but damn, these heels really make it hard for a girl to run. Most of her ops gave her the freedom to wear whatever she wanted. Her normal heeled booties were no match for these stilettos. They were now on the rooftop,

"What's next?" She asked. It seemed he was just figuring it out as he goes. Great. I'm trusting this bloke.

Jesse scanned the rooftop for a way down, aha. "There." He pointed to the row of flags hanging alongside the roof. They ran on the narrow strip of railing and they had to jump down to the lower roof. He reached out his hand to her to jump but instead, she sat on the railing,

"Shoes," he stared at her, "shoes, please." He took off her shoes and, like a gentleman, grabbed her hand to help her down. They slid down the roof and made their way to the flagpoles. Jesse tied the rope into a knot around the flagpole and secured the other end around his waist. Just then, a couple of guards made their way onto the rooftop, shouting at them in German.

Jesse grabbed the woman with his hand and wrapped it around her waist, "Ready?" She nodded. They jumped together and slid down the rope in haste. As soon as they landed, Jesse untied the rope nonchalantly while the woman had her hand looped around his arm. They couldn't have timed it any better as the theatre was being evacuated, causing a crowd to form.

The car had just pulled in front of the theatre, making its way to the hospital. "It's just a flesh wound!" The Chancellor said. His wife started to panic and worry while he tried to calm her down. One of the protective details in the car noticed a briefcase that lighted up,

"Halten sie das au-" a blue light sparked, and the car was flipped over into flames. Jesse turned to see the commotion and another car got in his view.

"Get in!" Benji yelled through the window. They weaved their way from the theatre and passed the police cars. They were now on their way and Benji checked his rearview mirror, only to do a double take. "What the.. she tried to shoot me!"

Jesse turned to the woman, "It doesn't make her a bad person," He moved to crouch in front of her, "I am gonna have to search you."

"You have to let me go," Beca raised her hands to let Jesse search her. That accent. That beautiful smooth, British accent. Jesse, focus.

"Oh, not a chance!" Benji yelled.

"I assumed you were deep cover back in London but isn't this taking the role a little too far?"

"Hang on a minute, you know her?"

"Oh, we haven't formerly introduced," Jesse kept finding small little weapons that were hidden around her body, and that was just strangely hot, "but I'm pretty sure she's British intelligence?" He looked at her for an answer. They were pretty close at this point, there was no room but for Jesse to lean a little bit on her as he continued to search her,

"Beca Mitchell. You're Jesse Swanson, and-" Jesse pulled out a lipstick from her dress, "that shade is very hard to find." He put it in his pocket.

"What were you doing at the opera tonight?"

"What, aside from killing the Chancellor?" Jesse rolled his eyes at Benji's comment.

"Saving your life in London put me in a tight spot with some very dangerous people. I was sent to kill the Chancellor to regain their trust,"

Benji watched through the rearview mirror, "Ah, so you admit that you killed him?"

"I went-" Beca leaned forward as Jesse grabbed her neck to take out the very shiny, very sharp hair clip that kept her hair up, "through the motion, that's not the same thing."

His hand was still on her neck, "You thought you'd put him in the hospital, take him out of harm's way."

"The same thing you tried to do."

"You're not gonna believe that, are you, Jesse?! What about the rest of her team?"

Beca looked to Benji in the mirror, "You mean those other two idiots? I can only assume they were redundancies."

"In case you didn't follow through- one man to kill the Chancellor, the other one to kill you. A test."

"Second one I failed, thanks to you." Beca looked at his face, deep in thought. He was still on her despite him being finished searching her.

"And the car bomb was insurance."

Benji checked the rearview mirror once again, only to find a pair of headlights, "We have a tail."

Without wasting time, Jesse pulled out his phone to show her the sketch of the mysterious man, "Who is he?"

"We're after the same thing, and I can help you. If you want to bring down the Synleague, you have to let me out." They stared at each other for a second,

"They're closing!" Benji warned.

"This has to look like an escape so… just throw me out anywhere."

"Tell me who he is." Jesse ducked in time when shots were fired at the car.

"Ahhh! Change of plan, throw her out!" Benji did his best in navigating through the streets without getting killed.

Jesse and Beca were laying in the backseat, "You have everything you need to find me." And with that, Beca opened the door and rolled out of the moving car.

Author's Note: Did that make any sense at all?