Agent Chetiri

Chapter 3

There are many different sides to people that will never fail to surprise you.

-Randy Pausch

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The next morning, Alexa had opened her eyes, with Q's offer still on her mind. She was in a hard place, as accepting the job would put her at risk of being discovered. As nice as it was, that danger still remained and she was unsure if she was willing to risk exposing herself.

Still, there were different reasons why she would accept. For instance, the pay was much better than Enigma's. Likewise, the materials were better and she would finally achieve that higher purpose she was looking for.

She stared up at the ceiling with an irritated look on her face. There were certain advantages, yet there were considerable disadvantages as well. After an hour, Alexa ended up deciding that she really didn't care and that if she did get into trouble, that the MI6 could protect her.

She rolled out of bed and sat at the table to sign the papers Q had given her. It wasn't a long process, but she had a feeling that the tests would be much more telling of her capability to be an MI6 employee.

Alexa spent the next hour in vain preparation for the so-called examinations. Alexa had decided on a more casual outfit that consisted of a peach-coloured shirt with sleeves that reached her elbows and a black pencil skirt that hugged her curves. She slipped on a pair of black heels and packed a pair of spare clothes and shoes in her purse. Her hair was not a cause of much fuss and she brushed her long, brown hair behind her shoulders.

She heard a knock on the door and opened it to find a petite Asian woman who looked to be in her mid-thirties. The woman had kind eyes and a warm smile to match. She wore a pair of black pants and a white dress shirt and held a phone in one hand, looking like the average government worker. "Good afternoon. I've been sent by Q to pick you up," she said pleasantly. "That is, if you still want to apply."

"I do. Thank you," Alexa said as she picked up her coat and her bag. "My name is Alexandra. You are...?"

"My name is Joy. I work at the Q-Branch. It's lovely to meet you," she said as she led Alexa out to the car idling on the curb.

"Thank you. It's nice to meet you too," she said softly as she climbed in. Alexa had never been too adept with introductions and she had a feeling that she would be facing a lot of them today. She held the paperwork in her hands and tapped her fingers against the smooth surface of the folder, waiting patiently to be brought to the MI6 base.

"Everyone saw what you did with that network attack," Joy said as she drove through the busy streets.

"Oh...really?" Alexa said.

"Yes. I think you did quite well, considering that you got the job done in seven minutes," she said as she glance back in the rearview mirror to smile at Alexa.

"That's nice of you to say so. Thank you," Alexa said as she looked away from Joy. She quietly watched the lights of London fly by and she saw them heading into a tunnel at Sheffield Market, near to where she worked before.

They exited the car and immediately went though a variety of security checkpoints. Alexa followed Joy through the tunnels, which (strangely enough) did not smell like dust and damp bricks. The only scents she could place were the faint aromas people's perfumes and colognes as they walked by. Joy took her into an elevator and proceeded to give her a quick tour of the large underground complex. She led her through various rooms before finally showing her to an area where Alexa saw six desks laid out systematically.