The Agent

Something else was wrong.

After closing the briefcase, I squinted at the picture frame near the lampshade. Roughly, I grabbed it and noticed the man posing with a little girl in the picture. It was Big Al. This wasn't Alfonso condo. It was, in fact, Big Al's condo.

Abort, I thought to myself as I returned the picture frame. Abort!

Just as I walked back to the kitchen, the lights turned off. Not good. I put on my night vision goggles and carefully walked where I came in. The entrance door suddenly opened and streams of light danced on the walls. I crouched down and quickly went out from the window. As soon as my foot touched the edge, I pushed my back against the wall. Anytime now they'll find out those three missing bodies, I thought to myself. Where the hell should I go from here?

Then, I remembered Carrie again and quickly took off my contacts and communication device. The little specks of concave contacts floated down and a little relief waved through me. My parachute is still in the rooftop, I thought to myself. It'd be suicide if I was to go all the way down to the lobby. If I could somehow jump off from the rooftop and parachute down, I'll have more chance in living another day. Swiftly, I went to room 1104's bathroom again where I hid the four guards.

I went out from the bathroom after locking it again. As soon as I opened the entrance door, a couple of screams and shouts were heard next door. Shit. In the empty and dark hallway, I quietly and quickly sprinted towards the exit stairways as more doors opened behind me.

"Someone shot some of our guys!" a man's voice exclaimed. "Find them!"

My hand grasped the exit door handle. As soon as I opened it, flashes of light streamed behind me. I squeezed through the small opening and quietly closed it behind me.

Then, I ran up the stairs like hell. The muscles on my legs worked as they jumped through multiple steps. After hearing the exit door open at the previous floors below, I sprinted through the steps with power.

"I think they went through here!" a man's voice echoed from below. Just one more floor, I thought to myself. Boots shuffled below me and I knew they were getting close. Almost there! From my vest, I grabbed a tear gas grenade. The door that leads to the rooftop was within my reach, but the guards were getting closer. As soon as I opened it, I pulled the safety pin and threw it down the stairway. I locked the door and I could hear the tear gas grenade explode. I was safe outside.

But something was wrong outside too. I could feel it deep in my bones.

I heard a helicopter nearby. Just as I suspected, there was a running helicopter sitting idly just a few meters from me. A Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk, I thought to myself. It's another Agency's customised helicopter, but why was it here?

Should you really be asking questions right now, I thought to myself. Cautiously, I grabbed the parachute from behind the trash bin and approached the helicopter. The side door slid open and a lone agent walked towards me, but it wasn't just any agent.

It was Carrie and she unholstered her gun and pointed at me. She was wearing what most field agents wore. I froze as she got nearer. There was uncertainty in her eyes and her mouth plastered a permanent frown, but her grasp on the gun was confident. I scowled underneath my balaclava. My hand reflexively went near my holstered gun.

"Don't move, agent!" she commanded with authority. "Or I will be forced to shoot." From afar, I could hear the exit door bang faintly. Some of the guards still had the balls to come after me. "Listen to me, Carrie," I exasperatedly said, "if that door opens, all hell will break lose. Whatever you're doing right now can wa-"

"Get on your knees and put your hands up, agent."

"Wha-"

"On your knees and hands up!"

"Carrie," I whispered patiently as I slowly kneeled down, dropped my parachute and put my hands up in front of the fiery red-head. The banging were getting louder. "What are you doing? We have to go now!" With one hand she grasped my goggles and balaclava and threw them aside. She grabbed my guns along with the additional three clips that went with them and threw them behind her. Look at me, I thought to myself. Look at me and answer my question, dammit! Her eyes softened once she saw my face. She gathered herself and put the gun against my forehead. My mouth went dry.

"Pamela Pearson a.k.a agent seventy-six, you are hereby terminated by the Agency due to immense evidence of your involvement in agent thirty-three's death and conspiracy against the Agency," Carrie said gravely. "Additionally, being a mole of Alfonso Romano and in helping create the Trojan Horse program-"

"What the fuck are you talking about!?"

"Due to these actions, you are no longer useful-"

"I know everything, Carrie!" I spat. My body shook in anger. "Jason's video told me everything. You and I both know you're Alfonso's mole. Don't you dare fucking deny it!" Her face fell and I could tell I took her by surprise.

"What video is this?"

"Like I would fucking tell you-"

She slapped me hard across the face. I saw red. "What video!?" The spot where she slapped me stung.

"Jason's video that streamed through your contacts," I said angrily," while I was in Big Al's condo. Yea, fucking thank you for that. Why are you doing this?" Traitor, I thought to myself. I should've seen this from the start. She took a step back and tilted her head to the right. Most field agents wore their communication device in their right ear. Someone was giving her orders. Horrified, she looked at me with a frown on her face.

"Agent seventy-six, you are now labeled as Agency's number one criminal and traitor-"

"You know I didn't do this! You fucking set me up!"

"We hereby sentence you to die." My body went cold. From that point on, I should've begged for my life or at least bargained for something, but instead I gave her a small chuckle. She looked at me questionably.

My number one fear just came true, I thought to myself, and I fucking told her about it. From there on, I mentally attempted to erase everything I felt for her, every big and little moments we had together. Gone.

It was just me and this woman.

"My dear," I whispered gravely. "I'm already dead." Quickly, I pushed the gun away from my forehead and pulled her forearm towards me. I knew if I attempted to go for my own guns or knife, she'd be quick enough to shoot me right on the spot. I attempted to elbow her, but she counterattacked, using her own forearm to block her face. We struggled for the gun, but she and I knew I was stronger.

She elbowed me across the face and I stumbled, but I had the gun at hand. Panting, I pointed the gun at her, but she tackled me. She sent us flying to the ground and I was pinned under her. She used her own size and techniques against me, and grabbed hold of her gun. As soon as the barrel made contact with my head again, the exit door slammed open and a couple of guards came pouring out hungry to attack like a pack of wolves.

Carrie looked at the guards and back at me, undecided where her focus should be. Bullets flew past us. She finally decided to roll off me and started shooting at the guards. I rolled over and hid behind a small generator. Fuck it, I thought to myself. I sprinted for my SC-20K M.A.W.S., grabbed it and dove behind another small generator. I started shooting at the guards, but remained vigilant of Carrie.

She was only a few feet away from me, hiding behind another metal crate firing away her gun. One by one, we somehow shot them all. If someone was looking at us from above, we might've killed at least ten men. I relaxed a bit once the firing stopped, but I knew I had to get the parachute and escape somehow. Fuck, I thought to myself. She's eyeing me, I can feel it! I put my SC-20K M.A.W.S. back and slowly let out a breath of air. I'm out of ammo, I thought to myself as I checked the current clip in the gun. Fucking useless. I threw the lifeless metal aside and pressed my back against the cold crate.

Then, an idea popped up as my hand checked my belt.

"Carrie," I shouted behind my cover, "I don't know why you did it, but I know I'll stop you! You're not the main reason why Jason died, but his blood is on your hands somehow." Slowly, I grabbed a smoke grenade from my belt and peered around the corner. She was kneeling on one knee, aiming at me like a hunter. The parachute is just there, I thought to myself as I eyed the black bag. Just a couple of meters away.

"I want to kill you," I continued as I gritted my teeth," but I'll kill your boss first. Once we see each other again, it's shoot to kill. You," I unhooked the safety pin," can go to hell!" I threw the smoke grenade her way and I sprinted towards the parachute. Bullets flew past me again as Carrie blindly shot at my back.

As soon as the bag was an arm's length away, I grabbed it and sprinted towards the edge of the roof. Just a couple more steps, I thought to myself as I ignored the need to rest. As soon as I began to jump, I felt a bullet hit my back. I lost my balance and grasp, but the bag and I were already falling. Shit, I thought painfully to myself. Where is it? The ground was getting nearer by every second and if I don't put on and free the parachute soon my guts will be splattered for everyone to see.

I repositioned my body and made it more aerodynamic by straightening up my body and pulling limbs to the side. Reaching for it with one hand, I was getting close to the falling bag. As soon as my finger touched one of its strap, I reached for it with all my might until I had a full grasp of its strap. Come on, I thought to myself as I put the bag of my back. Come on, come on!

As soon as the equipment was strapped in, I pulled on the ripcord and the canopy pulled me upwards. Fortunately, the cold wind was dragging me away from the building, but I was going down faster than I thought. Landing would be rough.

Flashes of Lake Point Tower's blueprints and nearby landmarks came to mind and I remembered a softball field a couple of blocks away from the building. I squinted below and saw a big empty field surrounded by a couple of apartment buildings. Steering my parachute to its direction, I should be safe to land here. I gave a soft grunt as my boots made contact to the green grass. Without hesitation, I folded and rolled the parachute back into the bag. I looked at my watch: it was almost 4 A.M.

Move, I thought to myself. My ears picked up something from a distance. It was faint, but I heard a helicopter from above. Move! I grabbed the backpack, put it on my back again and sprinted to a nearby alley. A couple of meters in and a door suddenly opened in front of me. A slim figure stepped out and motioned me to go in. Fuck it, I screamed in my head. No time to be picky!

I did a quick turn and entered into a dim room. My back rested against the pale yellow-stained wall and calmed myself. The adrenaline rush was still there seeping through every organ in my body. My eyes darted around the room, almost forgetting that I went inside the old building. Quickly, I grabbed my knife from my belt and eyed the slim stranger, who closed the door and put an ear against it. As soon as the mysterious figure turned around, I sprung up and put the edge of the knife on their throat.

It was a woman, possibly around my age with incredibly pale grey eyes. I could tell from the way she was looking at me that she was furious. Her eyebrows narrowed and strands of her long raven coloured hair were stuck on one of her cheeks. She wore a baggy hoodie and a pair of blue jeans. Looking at her, she reminded me of Alexandra Daddario. In fact, she could pass as her twin sister. She was a couple of inches shorter than me, but I can tell she has the capability to take down anyone who was taller than her.

"Who the fuck are you," I asked patiently, but I knew I looked anything but patient in her eyes. I put more pressure on her throat. "No lies."

"You fucked up," she hissed. "I warned you about her and showed you Jason's video, but somehow you still fucked up!"

I blinked. "Are you Ashley?" She pushed me with all her might and I took a couple of steps back, waiting for her to answer. She rubbed her neck using the back of her hand flipped a switch on the wall. The whole room lit up.

"Yea it's me," she said glaring. "You're in a very big web of mess, agent. This whole situation is fucked." Still grumbling, she walked over to the other side of the room and sat before multiple computer monitors and three keyboards. She started typing away. The whole room was bare except for a small mattress and refrigerator, a couch, two luggages, three computers and coffee table, two big shelves fully filled with books, and multiple papers and books on the carpeted brown floor. What a mess.

"How do I know I can trust you?" I asked cautiously as I dropped the parachute to the ground. "My trust in people is in very limited supply these days." Thanks to Carrie, I thought to myself. Scanning the woman and my surroundings, I held my knife firmly by my side as I rested my back against the wall.

"Don't be so uptight, agent," she said, shaking her head. "If I wanted you dead, I would've killed you a long time ago. Besides, you don't want to kill me. I'm," she turned and looked at me, "the only ally you have left." It felt like her glare was permanently embedded on her face and strangely it suited her. I pursed my lips together and decided to hear this woman's side of the story, but the knife was still in my hand. I walked over and sat on the couch.

"Can you put your boots away please?" My head snapped up, but since she did pull me out from harms way I could at least respect her carpeting. Sighing, I did what I asked.

"Talk."

She tapped on one of her keyboards and multiple faces on screen popped up. "Where do I begin? The name's Ashley, a.k.a agent eighty, currently twenty-six years old and no longer in alliance with the Agency. Yes, I'm a rogue agent."

"But why-?"

"Let's do the questions after I talk, okay?" She gave me a small smile and continued explaining her story.

Ashley was one of the top field agents in the Agency, until one mission made her question her humanity as she was ordered to kill a little girl. After failing to do so, the Agency made her suffer the consequences of failure by ordering someone else to kill the girl for her. Devastated, she went into deep hiding from the Agency for a year. She gathered the necessary materials and resources to supervise the Agency's activities, but she never went back. The more dirt she dug, the more she hated the organisation.

So she went rogue.

Once she finds a mission that was unethical for her standards, she went out of her way to complete the mission without drawing blood. If an assassination was uncalled for, she'd try to find a way to save the target, but also reveal any criminal and illegal activities the target was involved in through the media. She was both a hacker and a field agent, which can be tiring from time to time. It was a 24/7 job, but she felt like it was necessary.

Through hacking, Jason somehow found and contacted her about a possible mole in the Agency. Curious, she agreed in helping him in return for more resources and supplies. She worked tirelessly in front of her computer, hacking through every possibly lead she got, but she couldn't find anything. However, as soon as Jason's laptop was hacked, she and him hacked back and found themselves in Carrie's territory.

"She had to be the mole," she explained as she whirled her computer chair. "It made sense. She's smart, one of the top desk agents in the Agency, and one of the best hackers I've seen. She hacked into my laptop once, and I had to destroy it, buy a new one and move to another location. She's sly and obviously she played you. She played a lot of us."

Jason began to get paranoid after that and asked Ashley to keep an eye on me, fearing that if he was a target, I would be the next one. Since only he and Ashley knew about the Trojan Horse project and the mole, he turned to Ashley to keep me safe and possibly help me in continuing to hunt for the mole.

"After Jason died, I latched on to Carrie's activities and managed to hack one of her laptops," she continued. "Fortunately, it was the one she used the most these past years. Ever since I found out she was working alongside with you, I had to move into the city and somehow warn you about her without personally meeting you. She had eyes everywhere. Through these past two years, I studied you and your behaviour. After learning that you were to infiltrate one of the condos in Lake Point Tower, I decided to stay near the softball field because strangely I knew the logical choice to escape from the building was to parachute your way down to an open field. Fortunately, I was right."

"Were you the one that turned the electricity off?"

She smiled. "Guilty as charged. I didn't know what Carrie would've done if you were to be in Big Al's room and she could've done anything from withdrawing from the mission, leaving you exposed in front of the security cameras without you knowing. Or she could've turned on the security alarm. So I had to act fast. I could have warned you about Big Al's condo, but I had to be careful. One wrong move and Carrie would have found me. Unfortunately, you found out too late. I couldn't hack on time."

"The Agency has labeled you its number one enemy, you know," she said slowly. "It's shoot to kill from there. Any chances of taking you in peacefully were thrown out the window once you decided to attack Carrie."

"That's bullshit," I spat. "She attacked me first! If I didn't fight back, she would've killed me."

"That's serious, agent. You're lucky to be alive."

Lucky indeed. I slumped back on the couch, feeling a wave of sleepiness. "So what now? Find the mole and Alfonso?"

"Our priority is the mole," she replied as she stood up and walked over to her luggage. "But right now, your priority is sleep. I'll get you some clothes to sleep in, agent. It's going to be a rough road from here." She rummaged through her clothes and finally threw some at me. Standing up, I caught them and began to take off my vest and belt.

"Damn," she said suddenly as she eyed my back. "Two bullets at your back. You're lucky your vest saved you."

Shot in the back, I thought to myself. How ironic.

- - - - - - - -

I woke up by the sound of someone slurping and the smell of ramen noodles and coffee. The room had no windows and the only source of light were from Ashley's computers. Even with Ashley's long sleeved shirt, pyjamas, and blanket, it was absolutely freezing. I stretched and yawned, then looked at my watch: it was 10 A.M. Six hours of sleep wasn't that bad, but without the nightmares, it felt like I slept for ten hours.

"Mornin'," Ashley said indifferently. She was still on her chair typing and clicking away on her computers. The only thing different was a couple of empty cup noodles on her desk and a cup of coffee on her hand. "Help yourself in whatever I have in the mini fridge."

"Did you sleep at all?" I asked hoarsely as I sat up and rubbed my eyes. I could see my breath when I talked. "It's a little cold here, don't you think?"

"It's cold everywhere, seventy-six," she said, not bothering to look at me. "Might as well get used to it." I poured myself a cup of coffee and grabbed the last cup noodles. I wished I had something heavier to eat, I thought to myself, but I shouldn't complain. After I poured hot water into the cup, I sat on her messy mattress right beside her desk. She looked at me at the corner of her eye as I ate.

Sighing, she stopped typing and leaned back. "You're not going to like what I'm about to tell you."

Wrapped up in my blanket, I chuckled as I sipped my coffee. "You underestimate me."