MISSION MOONLARK, kotlc

18

The world was falling.... everything was falling... certainly this painfully unfamiliar reality was a dream... but why had everyone not stopped their lives when Kenric was....

"No," Sophie whispered, unable to keep her lip from trembling.

Leto angled his rearview mirror away and said in a painfully choked voice, "I'm afraid so Ms. Foster. We scoured the remains for a whole day, and we never found his-"

"Then he must be alive!" Sophie insisted loudly. As soon as the words left her mouth, she knew how silly they were.

Kenric was- or had been, Sophie thought bitterly -a former senator who had unexpectedly dropped out of the Senate election after his second term, to lead an investigation on the Black Swan. Unlike the other government officials, he'd seen the justice in the agency's goals and helped gather crucial information, somehow without betraying his own government. And he'd always been so kind...

"Fintan never made it out," Biana piped up in a small voice. "I know it doesn't feel like enough... after..." Her voice cut off, and it took several tries to clear it. "But it's still-"

"It's not enough!" Sophie snapped scathingly. She felt her eyesight going red with resentment and bitterness and anger and... and...

"We're here," Leto warned darkly, pushing the door open with unnecessary force.

Sophie slid out, proud of her legs for not shaking as dozens of eyes turned on her. Thankfully, she was used to her usual strategy: Avoid eye contact, walk straight ahead, and ignore everything at all costs.

"Want to head to my room?" Biana offered, as soon as they hit the blissfully warm, heated lobby.

The Black Swan's headquarters was one of the most ingenious yet: disguised purely as another crowded New York City hotel. The front desk- also known as a very disgruntled Agent Cadance in disguise -gave them a fake smile as they approached.

"Room B17 please," Sophie said, matching her false cheeriness with a plastered-on smile of her own. Their eyes met.

"And can I see your verification paper?" Agent Candace went on, still not dropping her uncharacteristically optimistic attitude.

"Erm..." Sophie realized she no longer had her shiny monocle pendant, but was saved as Biana showed her own.

"Thank you ladies." She passed them a key, but Sophie could've sworn she cast them a resentful glare, before turning to help another family of tourists who looked like they were genuinely there for the hotel.

"I guess," Sophie mumbled. She dropped her voice, scouting the area briskly before asking, "Do you think the Collective'll interrogate me?"

"What for?" Biana wondered. "They certainly know the truth about Alvar. His escape wasn't exactly inconspicuous."

They hit the familiar metal door labeled AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY. The metal key fit perfectly inside the lock, along with a fingerprint scan: with a glaring ping, the door swung open, revealing an entire underground area- dedicated to the Black Swan.

The main area was a large circular room with reflective glass on all sides and shiny tiles lining the floor. Agents of all ages bustled through the halls, glancing at Imparters and sorting through files. The rooms were located in the left hall, where an even bigger underground network was hidden.

"If they do," Sophie muttered, keeping her voice low. "Leto can get it all out of me. Trust me- they don't call him a 'Telepath' for nothing. That guy's an interrogation boss."

"True," Biana reasoned, pressing her thumb against the center of a door handle. For a moment, nothing happened; then a loud clicking noise knocked Sophie out of her reverie and Biana flopped onto the queen-sized matress.

"I'm exhausted," Sophie mumbled, turning on the TV.

Biana rolled her eyes. "Welcome to the spy life, SF."

The screen flashed to a retro-style new station where a distraught Senator Oralie was sobbing into the microphone.

"I-It all h-h-happened so f-fast..." she whispered, swiping at her eyes. 

The camera focused back on the news caster. "Former Senator Kenric dies at age 42 in  a mysterious fire. Officials are unsure-"

Sophie hastily switched the channel.

"Underdog team from Exillium High School unexpectedly crushes acclaimed Foxfire High in a Monday night football game!" a much younger, happier news caster was reporting. "Let's meet their new Team Captain!"

The screen re-zoomed on a blonde haired boy holding a football tucked underneath his arm. 

"No way..." Sophie whispered, barely able to believe her burning eyes...

"Hi." The boy smirked, his ice blue eyes glittering. "The name's Keefe Sencen."