Maddison Romanoff-Stark

Red Room Mission

It's morning and we're in the middle of watching those cartoons and drinking juice boxes when Dreykov summons my team and I to his office. "Girls, you have a mission," says Dreykov. He shows us a picture of a man and then he says "This man is your target. He was telling secrets about the Red Room to people he shouldn't have and for that reason and a few more, he must be killed. Do not come back until he's dead and the kill is confirmed. If you come back before then, and I have ways of knowing, there will be severe consequences." Then he sends us to get into our suits and go on the mission. We're sedated before we even walk out onto the runway to get on the plane.

We have been on the mission site for a few hours. I am perched on top of a building. I am lying on my stomach with my eye looking down the barrel of a gun. I see my target. I speak into my comm, saying, "I have eyes on the target." "You are clear to take the shot," says Lucille. Without hesitation, I take the shot. It hits the man in his head, and he falls to the ground. "Got him. I'm going down to confirm the kill," I say. I repel down the side of the building and I touch the targets wrist. "No pulse. Kill confirmed," I say. "Mission accomplished," says Ruby. Then I hide the body and as I go to meet my team at the plane, which will take us back to the Red Room, a man runs out of a building and shouts "You there! Little girl! What are you doing killing people, huh?!" I whip around and I take the shot. It hits him in the head and he drops dead. I check for his pulse and there isn't one. I hide his body next to the other one and I sprint to the plane where my team is waiting. "I got held up. A man witnessed me kill the target so I had to kill him too." I say. The girls on my team nod and we climb into the plane and get sedated before takeoff just like we were on the way here.

We arrive in the Red Room and immediately walk to the elevator and we take it Dreykov's office to tell him we completed the mission. We arrive in his office, and Dreykov asks, "Mission report?" "The target is dead. I confirmed the kill and hide his body," I say. "Well done. Were there any witnesses?" says Dreykov. "One witness but I killed him and hid the body as well. No other witnesses," I say. "Wonderful. Now, out of my office!" says Dreykov. My group and I march out of his office.

We train for the rest of the day and we climb into our beds exhausted. My mom's right. Being in the Red Room is brutal. I hope she finds me soon. Especially considering I can feel parts of myself fading away slowly but surely. I think they're brainwashing me or something.

Three days after my first Red Room mission, we're in training when Dreykov summons my team and I to his office again. We go to the elevator promptly and we arrive in his office. Dreykov says "Girls, I have good news for you. Congratulations. You have another mission. You have four targets. They are government officials who didn't follow through on some deals. They also said some lies and things about the Red Room that I can't let get out to the public. Kill all four of them before you return to me or you will all suffer the consequences." We are already in our suits since he pulled us out of training. We get sedated and land sometime later.

We scout the area for the targets and we find them in a building in the middle of a meeting. We decide to kill them on their way out of the building. We await their departure in our secret perches. The four targets exit the building while deep in a conversation with each other. "Alright, no one can see them. The coast is clear," says Bailey. "Take the shots," says Megan. "Roger that," I say. Then Amy, Ruby, Carmen, and I take the shots knocking our targets down. We repel from our perches and we confirm the kills. "All four are dead," says Carmen. "Perfect, says Bailey. The four of us hide the bodies and then we all make our way to the plane in an orderly fashion. We get sedated and we arrive back at the Red Room.

Like last time, we go to Dreykov's office and he looks at me for the mission report which is my job after each mission. "All four kills confirmed. We hid the bodies. No witnesses," I say. "Very good. Now, out with you!" says Dreykov. We turn around and march military style out of his office.

It's crazy to think that I've been in the Red Room for about a week and a half. Somehow I've managed to keep my watch a secret. It helps that we wear gloves whether we're training or on a mission. It prevents us from leaving fingerprints which can easily be identified. During Ballet, I leave my watch in my suit pocket. The watch is water proof and very hard to break so it won't get messed up if it goes in the wash.

These days it's hard to recognize myself. I used to be a sarcastic, bubbly, energetic, lovey, and creative kid.

But now I'm a kid who uses a lot of technique, a kid who thinks before they act, a kid who kills people because she's told to, a kid who does Ballet until her body is numb and her feet bleed, a kid who never talks back to anyone or uses sarcasm, a kid who's using weapons that most grown adults have never touched, and most importantly, a kid who isn't running around playing or doing what they want, I'm a kid with a set schedule with places to go, people to see, and things to do every day.