Unyielding

Never Give Up

Sprawled across the bed, Ysa Romero gripped her Nintendo switch tightly. Staring at the screen with passion and intrigue, she watched as her favorite Animal Crossing: New Horizons villagers went about their lives. There was Fauna, of course, who was watering some flowers by her house. Sherb was being Sherb by the town plaza. Marina was singing Bubblegum K. K. Coco was staring soullessly into the void, per usual. All was well on her island and Ysa had done her daily duties, which entailed shaking trees and whatnot. She was ready to save and log off when all of a sudden, her screen blacked.

"What the fuck?" Ysa got up suddenly, scowling at the black screen which reflected her scrunched up face back at her. Pushing up her glasses like some nerdy girl in a teen movie, she inspected the switch closer, only to be interrupted by the screen turning back on. Rather than ACNH, though, the switch displayed a video call between her and some random middle aged man. Leaning back instinctively, Ysa realized just how close she was to the screen, probably causing her to look unprofessional.

"Agent Rudy reporting," the man announced through the switch's wonky speakers, "Can you hear me through this system?" Ysa stifled back a laugh. The guy's name was really Rudy, huh. Lame.

"Yeah, I can hear you just fine," she replied tiredly. "You hijacked my switch and ruined my save for today... for what?"

"You're getting sent on a field mission," Rudy answered diligently. "Orders from the Sensei."

"Zhang Laoshi scheduled me for a field mission?" Ysa groaned. "Why couldn't Nick Savoca do it? He's such a suck up to her, he'd love to go on this mission."

"You're the only agent under her branch who has a dance foundation and medical background," Rudy explained. "You're fit for this mission."

"What do I get out of this?" Ysa's interest was piqued. "I'm only accepting if it's good."

"You're willing to use your one pass for a field mission?" Rudy raised an eyebrow, his expression delayed by the lag on her end. "Most agents opt to skip on paperwork assignments."

"Dude," Ysa deadpanned. "This is the first time I've had a break in months. I'm sure it says in my bio that I'm a med student at 16, and on top of this shit for the UCG too."

"Shh!" Rudy reprimanded her. "These calls are recorded and replayed for the higher-ups, don't talk down about the Underground Chinese Government like that."

"Well," Ysa adjusted her bangs meticulously. "Wanna tell me why I should accept now?"

"You'd get 7200 points into the system," Rudy began. "Which would-."

"Put me above Nate Paris in the rankings," Ysa realized. "These points would make me number two, at least!"

"Right, well, I see you've found your incentive," Rudy smirked. "You'll need your incognito urban-scape gear for this one, you're going to Shanghai."

"Like, as in in China?" Ysa furrowed her eyebrows.

"Yeah," Rudy elaborated. "This is the first international mission for part-time agents allowed by the USC. Which is why you're not going to be alone."

"I'm getting a partner for this?" Ysa's brain was muddled all of a sudden.

Rudy nodded, holding up a picture of a dangerously attractive young man. "His name is Christian Grey-Evans. He goes by Chris Evans or Christian Grey, no in-between, so pick one and stick with it."

"Chris Evans as in Captain America and Christian Grey as in Mr. Kinky from 50 Shades of Grey?" Ysa froze awkwardly.

"The names are the same," Rudy gave her a flat smile. "However, he is his own person. Mind you he does look like a mixture of James Dornan and Chris Evans, though."

"That's fine, but I don't know how you expect me to stay focused during the mission," Ysa sighed, rising from her bed to rummage through her closet. She took out a box where she stored all her UCG gear.

"So you accept?" Rudy implored while she prepared her urban-scape suit like he'd mentioned before.

"Duh," Ysa blinked incredulously. "You think I wouldn't have accepted?" Ending the call, she grabbed her standard Glock 19 alongside a bag of ammo packs. Stuffing both in a bag full of essentials, she lifted her window and climbed out into the night, heading toward the specified rendezvous point.